Truthify, an emotion AI company from Atlanta, Georgia, launched a video messaging app Thursday that will allow marketing agencies and ad companies to track what consumers like and don’t like about their campaigns.
Through a medium that allows users to record and upload their emotional reactions to marketing messages or content, Truthify works off analytics and insights to help advertisers plan future decisions when trying to attract specific audiences or demographics.
While also utilizing something Truthify calls “Emotion AI,” the app is able to sense and track the user’s subconscious responses to the message they viewed. That reaction is then shared with both the recipient and the sender.
If this sounds familiar, it’s the same technology that companies like Facebook are trying to roll out in order to keep users on the site for longer and better customize their feed with content they are more likely to enjoy.
Truthify CEO Kevin Knull said the app is able to capitalize off of buyers trends in subconsciously choosing the products they buy. In addition, he said the app has the potential to be far more useful than studies or focus groups to giving insights on what consumers want.
“Until now, brands haven’t had a means of quickly identifying the true reactions of their audience and
were relegated to traditional research methods,” Knull said in a press release. “Truthify is a more modern solution to help both brands and individuals gain audience feedback that is immediate, authentic, and actionable. For the brand, knowing how a message is received by its audience before it is widespread could be very beneficial, and it could either help drive increased revenue, prevent significant losses, or avoid public relations missteps. This is honest feedback measured at 14 times per second, and it goes far beyond a ‘like’ button.”
There is little doubt the app has the potential to be a big moneymaker and attract interest from advertising execs who are shelling out millions of dollars with their firms for each campaign in hopes it will be more successful than the last.
“Truthify has the potential to disrupt the marketing and advertising industries in a really positive way,”
said Joe Koufman, founder and CEO, AgencySparks, which is a matchmaker for brands and marketing
agencies. “Truthify’s unique ability to enable brands to test and deliver video content quickly to ensure
that it resonates emotionally with a target audience is a game-changer.”
Truthify has also partnered with the ‘Emotion AI’ firm Affectiva. The company has analyzed millions of faces from a wide range of demographics all across the globe to help make marketing campaigns more efficient and on the nose. Affective works by measuring seven facial emotions: anger, contempt, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness and surprise.
“Emotions influence every aspect of our lives, from how we learn, to how we communicate, to what we
purchase. And yet, our technology and devices today have a lot of IQ, but they’re lacking EQ, or emotion
awareness,” said Dr. Rana el Kaliouby, CEO and co-founder, Affectiva. “Our mission at Affectiva is to
humanize technology with Emotion AI. What makes the Truthify application exciting is that it gives
anyone with a smartphone the power to use technology to better understand each other and how we
emote, as well as decipher what is often lost in digital communication – emotions. Truthify allows
brands, as well as consumers, to connect with those around them in a more meaningful way.”
