The data-driven marketing services company Fluent (FLNT) had a decent earnings report yesterday and their current sell-off is due to weaker projected guidance. But there is good reason for the softer outlook for next quarter: they are onboarding some significant new brands (adding 3 to their existing 2) to now be working with 5 of the top 25 largest companies in the world. When you start to partner with very big brands, you need to create custom solutions and as a result you shift your business to best maximize their returns to retain them. As success is proven through performance-based marketing, your own revenue then tracks right along beside it; the proverbial win-win. Fluent is doing great in general and this dip is another good time to buy, as they continue to build out their infrastructure to work with more and more blue chip clientele.
Ryan Schulke, Fluent CEO (on yesterday’s ER call):
“For certain segments of Fluent’s traffic, they’re able to rationalize a premium against that because, for them at this moment in time, market share may be more important than simply profit through the door. Those unit economics and return on ad spend is consistent across all our clients, but some of these larger clients will take short-term point of view on if I can go out and conquest against the competitor through the Fluent platform, I’m willing to pay a premium for that. So they’re utilizing those types of assets that we’ve brought to the table, has really been a key advantage for our business, no matter what type of client we’re working with and really identify segments of traffic that they can pay a premium for.”