What Branded Research does

Branded Research, Inc. is a San Diego-based audience technology company, founded in January 2012 by Matt Gaffney and John Ackerman, that operates a proprietary consumer and B2B insights platform built around a vetted panel of more than 2 million members and a REST API for programmatic sampling. The core technology is an AI-powered quality and targeting stack: machine learning models score each of the 15,000+ daily new registrants using 30+ behavioral and identity data points, achieving a stated 95%+ accuracy rate in removing poor actors, while a separate intelligent routing layer sequences the most qualified respondents into surveys first. The Branded Audience spans 100+ B2B and B2C segments (including IT decision-makers, HR, financial professionals, and small business owners), with 100+ profiling data points per member and survey methodologies ranging from webcam studies to emotional AI, eye tracking, and biometric research. The platform is GDPR and CCPA compliant, certified under the EU-US and Swiss-US Privacy Shield frameworks, and exposed through a developer hub and JSON-based API used by 283 clients.

The company operates a hybrid go-to-market combining enterprise field sales for custom research projects with an API-first, self-serve developer motion supported by sandbox and documentation. Revenue is generated through usage-based API access and subscription or contract-based survey research services, with quote-based pricing and multi-year enterprise contracts; pricing is not publicly disclosed. Customer concentration is distributed across research agencies, consumer goods, B2B, tech and telecom, financial services, healthcare, retail, restaurants, and academic institutions, with named clients including Metrigy, BRANDthro, Principia Consulting, and a major HVAC manufacturer. The company maintains an active content and social presence and holds memberships in ESOMAR, Greenbook, and the Insights Association, while operating a payments layer built on the Dwolla-Plaid integration in which it was the first beta client.

In 2025, Branded Research was acquired by Dynata, a strategic market research operator; the company now operates as a subsidiary within Dynata's broader proprietary data platform, with its AI tooling, niche audience, and API capabilities positioned to enhance Dynata's leadership in high-quality sample and insights. Headcount remains in the 11–50 range, and the company continues to serve clients globally across the USA, UK, and Canada under the Branded brand.

Name

Branded Research

Legal name

Branded Research, Inc.

Website

https://gobranded.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Branded Research operates an AI-powered consumer and B2B insights platform built on a vetted 2 million+ member audience spanning 100+ segments, exposed via a REST API and enterprise research services to research agencies and corporations needing niche, AI-verified sample.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Market Research Technology

NAICS

Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (541910)

SIC

Services-Advertising (7310)

akta.pro primary industry

Fieldwork & Data Collection (Online Panels, CATI/CAPI, Fieldwork) (MPAAALAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Syndicated Market Research (Panels, Omnibus, Tracker Studies) (MPAAALAB), Customer Experience (CX) & Voice of Customer (NPS/CSAT, Journey Research) (MPAAALAH), Qualitative Research (Focus Groups, IDIs, Ethnography) (MPAAALAE)

Keywords

• Consumer market research
• Audience sampling services
• B2B survey research
• AI data quality
• Programmatic insights API

Headquarters

HQ city

San Diego

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Survey Research Services: Branded provides custom audience targeting and survey research services to companies needing consumer insights. Companies pay for access to qualified research participants from Branded's audience of 2M+ members, with pricing based on project scope, audience specificity, and survey complexity.
2. API Access & Integration: Programmatic API access enabling real-time connection to the Branded Audience. Clients connect to the platform via API for automated sampling and research, with 283 clients already connected to the audience through this channel.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Branded Research provides AI-powered consumer insights and audience sampling through a proprietary platform built around a vetted audience of over 2 million consumers across 100+ B2B and B2C segments. Clients access this audience through the Branded Surveys self-serve platform and the Branded REST API for programmatic real-time sampling, with AI-verified responses, intelligent routing, and 95%+ accuracy in removing fraudulent or low-quality participants.

Product overview

Branded Research offers a unified consumer insights platform centered on its proprietary Branded Audience of over 2 million vetted consumers. The platform combines the core Branded Audience product (providing access to 100+ B2B and B2C segments) with the Branded API for automated real-time sampling, and the Branded Surveys platform for participant engagement. AI & Quality Assurance modules power multi-layered bot protection and audience scoring, while the Branded Developer Hub provides technical documentation for API integration. Together, these products enable researchers to access niche audiences, automate sampling workflows, and obtain AI-verified quality insights.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Branded Audience A proprietary research audience of over 2 million vetted consumers spanning 100+ B2B and B2C segments, used by research agencies and corporations to access niche, targeted participants for market research. Includes AI-verified participant responses and deep profiling with hundreds of data points for granular targeting.
• Branded API

Named customers4 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

AI capability5 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• DynataflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Dynata acquired Branded Research, Inc., enhancing market leadership in high-quality proprietary data. The acquisition combines Branded's AI-powered audience sampling technology and niche research capabilities with Dynata's market presence.
• DwollacoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2024Dwolla expanded its integration with Plaid, offering enterprise clients a unified API that combines instant account verification, real-time balance checks, and pay-by-bank payment methods including ACH, RTP, and FedNow. Branded Research is the first beta client leveraging this integration for its survey payout platform. Dwolla plans to enhance the solution with additional Plaid functionalities including identity data, transaction insights, and Plaid Signal for advanced risk scoring.
• PlaidcoreTechnology or IntegrationOpen banking platform integration enabling Dwolla users to verify accounts and check balances in real time through a single API. The partnership offers access to open-banking services integrated with ACH, RTP, and FedNow networks. Branded Research was the first to pilot the Plaid API for account verification.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Toluna: Toluna operates a global online panel and technology platform providing consumer insights, audience access, and survey research services - directly competing with Branded's 2M+ audience and survey/panel business model.
• YouGov: YouGov runs one of the world's largest proprietary research panels and delivers consumer and B2B insights via subscription and custom research - directly comparable to Branded's panel-based insights offering across many of the same verticals.
• Schlesinger Group: Schlesinger Group provides qualitative and quantitative research participant recruitment and data collection services globally - overlapping with Branded's audience access, qualitative methodologies, and custom research services.
• Prolific: Prolific runs an online participant pool with API-based recruitment for academic and commercial research - directly comparable to Branded's panel-plus-API model for sourcing verified research participants.
• Cint: Cint operates an exchange/aggregated marketplace connecting researchers to hundreds of consumer panels globally - directly comparable to Branded's programmatic audience access via its REST API and audience targeting model.
• Lucid (Flame): Lucid (now operating as Flame) is a programmatic sample and audience platform that connects researchers to opted-in consumer panels via APIs - functionally analogous to Branded's Branded API and audience-sampling business.

Broad incumbents

• Dynata: Dynata is one of the world's largest first-party data and insights platforms, operating a global online panel and market research services business that directly overlaps with Branded's audience-sampling and insights offering (and is now Branded's parent company).
• Qualtrics: Qualtrics is an enterprise experience management platform with survey tooling and an own consumer panel for sample sourcing - a broader incumbent that competes with Branded for sample/audience and end-to-end research workflows.

Regional players

• Resonance Solutions (formerly known as industry panel providers): A specialized UK/European panel and recruitment provider for B2B and consumer research - adjacent to Branded's audience-sampling business with greater European depth but similar participant-recruitment focus.
• Norstat: Norstat operates proprietary consumer panels across European and Nordic markets, providing data collection and insights services - comparable to Branded's audience/panel model but with stronger geographic concentration in Europe.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/brandedresearch
• Facebookfacebook.com/BrandedSurveys
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/brandedresearch

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Branded Research