Morning Consult
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Business intelligence, Survey research |
| Founded | 2014 |
| Founder | Michael Ramlet, Kyle Dropp, Alex Dulin |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C. , United States |
Area served | Global |
Key people | Michael Ramlet (CEO), Kyle Dropp (President), Alex Dulin (CTO) |
| Products | Digital survey research technology, data analytics, news insights |
Number of employees | 255+ (2020) |
| Website | morningconsult |
Morning Consult is a U.S.-based business intelligence firm established in 2014. As of June 2021, its valuation surpassed $1 billion. The company focuses on digital survey research technology and operates offices in Washington, D.C., New York City, Chicago, and San Francisco. It provides clients across sectors such as business, marketing, economics, and politics with global survey research tools, data analytics, and news insights.
History
The founders of Morning Consult include CEO Michael Ramlet, President Kyle Dropp, and CTO Alex Dulin. The company’s origins trace back to a 2013 survey examining young uninsured Americans’ participation in Affordable Care Act marketplaces. Beginning with a modest team of 13 employees in a Capitol Hill office in 2014, Morning Consult grew to employ more than 255 people by the end of 2020.
In 2015, the firm released a report analyzing "Shy Trump" voters during the Republican presidential primaries; this analysis has since been questioned. The following year, Morning Consult formed a partnership with Vox Media to conduct political and cultural polling and introduced the Morning Consult Brand Index, which was highlighted in Fortune magazine’s annual Fortune 500 edition. Additionally, it initiated investor sentiment polling alongside Bloomberg News in 2016.
During the 2016 U.S. presidential election cycle, Morning Consult worked with Politico to produce weekly polls on political topics and media trends—a collaboration that continues through Politico Playbook. Their polling notably suggested a tighter race than many other pollsters predicted.
The company also regularly partners with The New York Times for survey research.
In May 2020, Morning Consult secured $31 million in Series A financing from investors including James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems and Advance Venture Partners, resulting in a valuation of $306 million. This was followed by a $60 million Series B funding round in June 2021 led by Advance Venture Partners with contributions from Susquehanna Growth Equity and Lupa Systems, pushing its valuation beyond $1 billion.
Polling and methodology
Morning Consult employs scientific online polling techniques utilizing a nonprobability approach combined with multiple nationally recognized vendors to reach tens of millions of Americans. After data collection, results are weighted according to demographics such as age, race/ethnicity, gender, education level, and geographic region based on the 2016 Current Population Survey.
Although the company inaccurately forecasted the winner of the 2016 presidential election, it estimated the national popular vote margin within a 3 percent range (the actual margin was 2.1 percent). However, its polling errors during the 2018 and 2022 U.S. midterm elections were larger compared to most other pollsters.
Survey on approval ratings
Morning Consult regularly measures approval ratings for leaders across key global economies. In October 2017, data from its Brand Intelligence product was cited by the New York Times to illustrate shifts in the NFL brand following President Donald Trump’s Twitter criticism of the league.
Economic Intelligence
Introduced in fall 2019, Morning Consult’s Economic Intelligence offering tracked declines in consumer confidence as the coronavirus pandemic emerged in early 2020. The Federal Reserve referenced this data during its emergency meeting on March 15, 2020.
Its economic data is routinely cited by prominent news organizations such as The Associated Press, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post, highlighting its significance in economic journalism and analysis.
Political Intelligence
Morning Consult Political Intelligence monitors the approval levels of governmental figures in a variety of nations such as Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It delivers frequent updates along with immediate analysis of worldwide political trends.