Emotional AI in advertising can reach customers in the right way

For the first time this year, digital ad spending is expected to surpass linear TV, with 52% of ad dollars going to CTV, social video and online. No wonder since the average person spends six hours and 31 minutes consuming content online. But the growth in digital advertising is not hitting the target audience. In fact, one study showed that 51% of people have blocked brands that bombarded them with irrelevant digital ads. Under these circumstances, contextual advertising strategies that integrate emotional AI are proving to be more effective in getting the message across.

“Ads that evoke emotions similar to the content people are viewing are 50% more likely to engage,” says Josh Rosen, President and co-founder of Reticle AI, an emotional and contextual ad targeting tool. “Emotional AI analyzes content. It doesn’t track the consumer, so it’s privacy compliant, which is increasingly vital as people become more privacy conscious.”

The move to contextual ad targeting with emotional AI is gaining traction as brands seek to engage audiences while optimizing ad budgets.

Strengthening customer connections with emotional AI

Advertisers have always relied on sentiment analysis to tailor their messages. But historically, this has been limited to positive, negative or neutral emotions. A deeper understanding of emotions can help brands create deeper connections with consumers and get them in the right mindset. Rosen gives a prime example: earlier this year, Taylor Swift’s TIME cover was deemed “unsafe” for advertising.

“It had the word ‘feminism’ in it, so older targeting tools thought it had ‘negative’ undertones and was therefore ‘unsafe’ for advertisers. We identified it as ‘trendy,’ which is a key emotion that brands want to target,” Rosen explains. “If they had used contextual tools, brands could have aligned themselves with the world’s trendiest star and gotten their ‘trendy’ ads in front of people who are most likely to engage with them.”

Reticle’s team – which includes neuroscientists – found that ads powered by emotional AI can increase purchase intent by 12% and ad engagement by 21%.

“That’s more people not only seeing, but actually remembering your ad and engaging with your brand,” says Rosen.

In today’s privacy-conscious world, many consumers prefer contextually relevant advertising over audience-based targeting. Especially with the rise in popularity of AI. According to a recent survey by Prosper Insights & Analytics, 31.5% of US adults are extremely concerned about the role of AI in handling their data. Contextual ad targeting is different as it does not collect data about the individuals themselves. Deploying emotional AI to analyze content complies with privacy regulations, satisfying consumer data concerns and building trust.

How emotional AI technology serves emotionally congruent advertising

The emotional dimension of advertising cannot be overstated. Greenbook research shows that up to 86% of purchasing decisions are influenced by emotions, with consumers seeking to satisfy multiple emotional needs through their purchases. In fact, according to a recent survey by Prosper Insights & Analytics, 44.7% of American adults admit to impulse buying. By processing billions of URLs, videos and other digital content every day, analyzing everything from headlines to closed captions, emotional AI technology can categorize data into emotional signals. This helps advertisers align their ad placements with the granular emotional tone of the content.

In a Reticle case study, a legacy jeans brand looking to revitalize its image used emotional AI to connect with younger consumers. The campaign saw a 15% increase in net target sentiment. In another case study, a major home improvement retailer achieved a 7% increase in engagement with emotionally matched ads—64% of the audience watched the ad to completion, compared to 57% with traditional media.

Ethical considerations of emotional AI in advertising

While emotional AI presents a new frontier for advertisers, it also raises important ethical questions. Cookies, for example, have long been criticized for violating user privacy. Emotional AI offers a way to circumvent these concerns, providing more precise targeting without the need for invasive tracking, especially any tracking that involves AI tools.

By focusing on emotional reach rather than personal data, emotional AI provides a solution that respects user privacy while increasing brand safety and targeting accuracy.

Best practices for integrating emotional AI into campaigns

For brands looking to integrate emotional AI into their marketing strategy, there are several key steps, the first of which is understanding your audience’s emotional drivers. Then, align both creative and digital deployments accordingly. While some companies may be reluctant to add another layer to their technology stack, effective emotional targeting can improve campaign results as ads reach consumers in their optimal mindset.

Start by identifying key performance indicators (KPIs) that go beyond traditional metrics like click-through and view rates. Focus on the actual engagement and ROI each placement delivers to better understand how consumers feel when they interact with an ad. This emotional resonance drives more meaningful engagement, ultimately resulting in a higher ROI. Our goal is to ensure that ads not only reach the right audience, but also connect with them on a deeper, more personal level, leading to long-term brand loyalty.

Looking beyond legacy delivery methods to create real connections with consumers

As privacy concerns continue to grow, advertisers must look beyond traditional tracking methods to connect with consumers. Emotional AI, with its ability to deliver contextually, emotionally relevant advertising, presents a powerful solution for brands.

“By leveraging emotional AI, brands can cut through the digital noise, reaching consumers in the right mindset while respecting their privacy in an increasingly regulated yet emotion-driven landscape,” adds Rosen.