AdRoll

AdRoll is a multichannel digital advertising platform used by brands and agencies to run full-funnel programmatic campaigns. The platform covers retargeting and brand awareness campaigns across display, connected TV, video, native, in-app mobile, social and dynamic ad formats, with social placements spanning Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest in addition to the open web. Audience tools include website, mobile app, ecommerce store and CRM contact list segments, AI lookalike targeting, contextual targeting, and third-party syndicated audience targeting from consumer data providers (US customers only). Analytics capabilities include campaign dashboards and KPIs, industry benchmarking of CTR, CPC and CPM, conversion and revenue tracking, exportable reports, reporting APIs, and cross-channel attribution with UTM-tracked and API-integrated reporting across ads, email, SMS, ecommerce, CRM and Google Analytics data.

AdRoll ABM, formerly branded RollWorks, is the company's account-based marketing line for B2B teams, combining multi-channel advertising with buyer insights, customizable journey stages, workflow orchestration, advertising playbooks, go-to-market orchestration and revenue impact reporting.

The company describes itself as AI-powered from inception, with machine learning models trained on more than 17 years of data from over 100,000 advertisers that support bid optimization, predictive audience targeting and custom reporting, plus a 24/7 AI Assistant for campaign questions and optimizations. It emphasizes integrations with more than 80 CRM, orchestration and measurement platforms, and a privacy-forward approach combining zero-, first- and third-party data so ads remain targetable when user-level tracking is unavailable. Support options range from self-service through in-house strategic guidance and creative production, with a help center covering pixel installation, campaign setup, creatives, integrations such as Shopify and Google Analytics, and GDPR, consent management and global privacy compliance.

Founding story

Co-founder and CEO Aaron Bell has described AdRoll's founding in 2008 as inspired by Google AdWords, with the ambition of becoming as central to online display ad buying as AdWords is to search. Bell, a native of Redmond, Washington, began working at Microsoft on Exchange at age 16, studied at Stanford, and worked on artificial intelligence systems, including one used in the Space Shuttle, before being drawn to advertising for its global scale and the opportunity to apply machine learning to it.

Business model

AdRoll sells a self-service and managed multichannel advertising platform. Product packages include Self-Service Ads and Managed Services Ads on a pay-as-you-go basis with no fixed minimums, plus a Managed Services Advanced Package sold on an annual commitment that bundles the full platform, ad credits and guaranteed services. Cross-channel attribution and social ads are sold as add-ons and are included with the Advanced Package. AdRoll ABM is packaged separately into Account-Based Advertising, Account-Based Marketing + Advertising, Account-Based Marketing, and Account-Based Retargeting, the last of which carries no starting fee and charges only for media.

Revenue comes from advertising spend and platform packages: pay-as-you-go self-service and managed advertising with no fixed minimums, annual-commitment managed service packages that include ad credits and guaranteed services, paid add-ons for cross-channel attribution and social ads, and ABM packages including a retargeting option with no starting fee where customers pay only for media.

Traction

As of April 2014 AdRoll reported a $100 million revenue run-rate in October 2013, was on track for $150 million, served about 15,000 customers, and was adding a little over 2,000 advertisers per month, with enterprise and international as its fastest-growing segments. The company's current site states it is trusted by more than 110,000 brands worldwide and that its customers generate $165 billion in sales every year.

Latest developments

AdRoll's current site emphasizes AI-driven campaign optimization, an AI Assistant available around the clock, connected TV and digital out-of-home channels, contextual and third-party audience targeting for a privacy-forward environment, and the rebranding of RollWorks as AdRoll ABM. Recent published material includes a State of Digital Advertising report, a contextual ad targeting guide, a webinar on connected TV targeting run with Experian, and blog content on agentic AI for ad optimization and customer data unification.