Causal IQ Reimagines Role of Programmatic Solutions Provider, Leveraging Intimate Influencers
In a digital marketing ecosystem filled with solutions providers taking hyper-specialized approaches, Causal IQ is going in a markedly different direction.
Having stepped out from GlobalWide Media’s programmatic business division as its own firm just last month, Causal IQ isn’t limiting itself. Causal IQ CEO Farshad Fardad says the company is using every tool available to customize its campaigns.
“Our mission is to offer a fresh take on the role of a programmatic solutions provider by utilizing the benefits of both man and machine,” says Fardad. “Causal IQ is stacked with teams of digital marketing experts across nearly every vertical to ensure media buying and campaign optimization is seamlessly executed to achieve advertiser goals.”
Since its launch, Causal IQ has worked quickly to reimagine the role that programmatic solutions providers play in today’s environment. That involves using data and relying heavily on “everyday influencers”—like parents, colleagues, and friends—to authentically reach consumers in target markets. Causal IQ’s new method combats the possibility that consumers perceive content to be too commercialized or unrelatable.
Causal IQ’s RYPL solution, which relies on an audience modeling approach that takes into account those who might impact a target consumer’s decision making, uses social listening tools and data to map connections between friends and spending habits. The approach is intended to drive word-of-mouth conversations and build authentic brand loyalty. Fardad says it’s that combination of household, workplace, and social data, layered on top of traditional data attributes, that makes RYPL such a game-changing solution.
“RYPL addresses the difficulty of prospecting new customers head on by taking into account the impact everyday influencers have on the consumer’s path to purchase. This information is used to drive a viral impact, or ripple effect, throughout a user’s social network—friends, family, co-workers—to drive more efficient conversions,” Fardad says. “The more people in a consumer’s social group that know about a brand or product, the more likely it is to come up in conversation with in-market consumers, thus tying the latest in digital advertising technology to the oldest, most reliable form of advertising—word-of-mouth.”
Although Causal IQ was born from GlobalWide Media, the two companies’ clients aren’t necessarily the same. Whereas GlobalWide works with brands and agencies of all stripes, Causal IQ’s RYPL solution is more directly aimed at brands that rely on product recommendations for consumers. That means retailers are using the solution, but also businesses in the entertainment, auto, travel, and hospitality industries.
“Any vertical where there is a heavy reliance on influencer groups to make a purchase decision,” Fardad says.
Among the company’s earliest clients is the women’s fashion brand Johnny Was, which Fardad says generated nearly 40% better conversion rates after implementing the RYPL solution, along with a return on advertising spend of $2.26 for every dollar spent.
Still in aggressive growth mode, Causal IQ is looking at new areas ripe for innovation. Particularly, Fardad sees rapidly changing TV viewing habits and advertising methods as a signal of new opportunities on the horizon.
“As the definition of traditional TV viewing is changing from flipping through cable or satellite stations to watching content on apps and devices anytime, anywhere, Causal IQ is placing significant focus on OTT and connected TV,” Fardad says.
“We give our clients the best of both worlds by applying precision targeting that had previously only been available via digital advertising to television viewers. This enables the seamless delivery of messaging across all internet-connected devices.”
Stephanie Miles is a senior editor at Street Fight.
