> I think CA have been given too much credit
Yes. Trump announced his candidacy in August 2015 and I said something to to this effect: "Don't laugh. He's going to win. Nobody wants another career politician for President."
According to the article, his campaign only hired CA five months before the election - around May 2016 - when he already appeared unstoppable. And don't forget, the Clinton Machine had been doing this voter analytics crap for decades. So if it really mattered, she would have won by a landslide.