Intellicast EMI Research Solutions

Welcome back to Intellicast! We have another great episode for you today. Brian Peterson is joined by Mary Draper, who has just returned from Atlanta and the Insights Association Annual Conference.
Kicking off the episode, Mary and Brian discuss how the spring conference season is closing out. This naturally sets up the conversation for the rest of the episode – an in-depth recap of the IA Annual Conference.
The conversation starts with Mary giving Brian her overall perceptions of the conference. Compared to other conferences she has been to, Mary talks about how IA Annual is much more focused on information sharing and networking than sales. This leads to Mary discussing one of the first sessions called "So You Want to Sell to Me" and how Karen Craft talked about what it was like for her to attend a conference. This included the hundreds of emails they get, many invites for coffee and/or dinners, and more. Mary said that while she couldn't remember the exact number mentioned, if Karen accepted all the invites she got, she would be booked solid for a week and miss the entire conference. It was eye-opening.
Next, Brian and Mary discuss some of the core themes and topics from the conference. In addition to artificial intelligence (one of the main topics at conferences for nearly two years), data quality and inclusive research were also big topics.
Mary gives more details about how AI was discussed at the conference. She noted that while there was initial skepticism and concerns about the validity of AI-generated data, AI's efficiency and time-saving aspects have led to its increased use and acceptance in the industry. She also talked about how it was talked about some of the drawbacks of self-reported data, which leads to a larger conversation around the difference between self-reported versus behaviorally verified data and what sometimes causes inconsistencies with self-reported data.
Mary also talks about how the conference focused on the importance of making market research more accessible, with a focus on people with disabilities. She shares her experience participating in breakout workshops; particularly one focused on developing a participant Bill of Rights.
Finally, Mary and Brian talk about Mary's favorite non-conference activity she did. While she couldn't make her normal Publix trip, she spoke about how she could watch the eclipse while in Atlanta. It was on her calendar for a while, so she was happy she didn't miss it.
Thanks for tuning in!
We have just released the 2024 edition of our annual report on the online sample industry, The Sample Landscape. To stay ahead of the curve of what's going on in the online sample industry, be sure to download your copy now. Download Here: www.emi-rs.com/the-sample-landscape/
Did you miss one of our webinars or want to get some of our whitepapers and reports? You can find it all on our Resources page on our website here.
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Welcome back to Intellicast! It has been a couple of weeks, but we are back with a couple of special guests. Joining Brian Peterson this week are Gabby Blados and Matthew Alexander – both of whom attended Quirks Chicago.
Kicking off the episode, the trio discuss the recent eclipse and what they did to view it. Everyone agreed that it was a once-in-a-lifetime event that they were glad they were able to see.
Next, Gabby and Matthew give a breakdown of Quirks Chicago. They talked about the overall tone of the event and how it was more lively than other conferences they had attended, especially ones just out of the COVID lockdown. Gabby mentioned how she felt a sense of camaraderie from everyone attending.
Matthew and Gabby then get into some of the major themes and topics from the conference. In what should surprise no one, AI was the biggest topic. They noticed a shift in attendees toward embracing AI, where there was much more hesitancy in previous years. Data quality was another big topic at Quirks, and sometimes, they overlapped with AI.
Gabby and Matthew talked about their favorite session, which got them both thinking about how we, as an industry, ask about household income and, with cultural changes, whether there needs to be a change. They mentioned how there could be challenges in defining household income, especially among multigenerational households, households where adult children have moved back in, or ones that have extended family living with them. This leads to a deeper conversation about how current screening questions about household income could lead to the exclusion of certain respondents because of how they interpret the definition of household income.
Gabby and Matthew then talked about their experience at a session where Johnsonville and C+R Research presented how they navigated building a new campaign to bring everyone together while avoiding pitfalls that other brands have encountered recently. Matthew pointed out that he was impressed by Johnsonville's willingness to acknowledge their initial missteps and their commitment to improve through collaboration. The conversation had Brian thinking about a movie he recently watched, Flaming Hot, that had parallels about ensuring you address cultural differences appropriately.
Finally, Matthew and Gabby tell Brian that it was announced that next year's conference was moving out of downtown Chicago to a venue closer to O'Hare airport. Matthew and Gabby talk about how, while they enjoyed the downtown location, they were excited about the potential of the new venue.
Thanks for tuning in!
We have just released the 2024 edition of our annual report on the online sample industry, The Sample Landscape. To stay ahead of the curve of what's going on in the online sample industry, be sure to download your copy now. Download Here: www.emi-rs.com/the-sample-landscape/
Did you miss one of our webinars or want to download some of our whitepapers and reports? You can find everything on our Resources page on our website here.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome back to Intellicast! EMI's own Matthew Alexander joins host Brian Peterson to discuss the latest market research news.
Kicking off the episode, Brian gives a quick rundown of upcoming conferences and their dates, including Quirks Chicago, where Matthew will attend. Matthews gives his insight into what he is looking forward to with Quirks.
The guys then dive into the market research news, starting with the news of the launch of Unlock Surveys, a new panel from Stagwell, the owners of Harris Poll and Maru. In connection with the podcast, former Poll Party Pod host and frequent Intellicast guest Adam Dietrich will be the managing director of the new panel.
Next, the guys discuss the latest financial reports from Ipsos. Brian and Matthew discuss Ipsos's growth in 2023 and what it means for the overall industry.
The following story ties in nicely as the guys discuss the new AI tool, InnoExplorer, that Ipsos launched. The tool uses generative and analytical AI to help clients accelerate their innovation cycles. This leads to a deeper discussion about the introduction of AI tools and what the future could be in 5 years, as well as just one year from now.
Finally, the guys dissect the news about new legislation that has been introduced to shut down the annual America Community Survey. Matthew gives his perspective as a sample consultant who builds custom sample plans for clients, many of whom depend on accurate census and population data, and what losing this data source could mean for the industry.
Thanks for tuning in!
We are proud to have collaborated with Brandtrust, combining their Narrative Inquiry and our Strategic Sample Blending to unlock deeper insights and richer data, enhancing our ability to understand the complex topic of mental health. Download the eBook today!
Want to catch up on our blogs? Click here.
Did you miss one of our webinars or want to get some of our whitepapers and reports? You can find it all on our Resources page on our website here.
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Welcome back to Intellicast! We have a special episode for you today! Brian Peterson is joined by Mary Draper and special guest Karine Pepin, co-founder of The Research Heads, for an in-depth conversation on data quality.
Before diving into the discussion, Karine talks about her background, how she got into market research, and what led her to start The Research Heads. She talks about the market gap that she and her co-founder identified where they are looking to bridge the gap between do-it-yourself researchers, in-house teams, and full-service agencies by offering flexible and collaborative solutions.
Next, we jump into our data quality discussion. Karine and Mary discuss why there is no single solution to ensure data integrity. Karine advocates for a multi-layered approach to address various sources of bad data, emphasizing the importance of a comprehensive screening process, attention checks, and post-survey analysis, which Mary agrees with.  
The discussion expands into the impact of social media and the role of incentives in survey participation, acknowledging the challenges posed by fraudulent respondents and the potential benefits of a universal respondent ID system to enhance targeting and data quality.
Finally, Karine gives us her view on the future of data quality in market research. While optimistic, she does believe the industry needs to be committed to transparency and the education of clients about the necessity for increased budgets to tackle data integrity issues effectively.
You can connect with Karine on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/datafairy/
You can read Karine’s article on data quality that was featured on Research Live here: https://www.research-live.com/article/opinion/leveraging-academia-and-working-together-can-improve-data-quality/id/5122943
Thanks for tuning in!
We are proud to have collaborated with Brandtrust, combining their Narrative Inquiry and our Strategic Sample Blending to unlock deeper insights and richer data, enhancing our ability to understand the complex topic of mental health. Download the eBook today!
Want to catch up on our blogs? Click here.
Did you miss one of our webinars or want to get some of our whitepapers and reports? You can find it all on our Resources page on our website here.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome back to Intellicast! On today’s episode, Gabby Blados and Brian Peterson are joined by special guest Brianna Boyer, the Senior Director of Solution Strategy from AYTM, to discuss agile research.
Before jumping into the agile research discussion, Brianna talks about how she got into market research. Like many of us in the market research industry, Brianna talks about how she kind of fell into the industry. Brian and Brianna talk about what could happen to the industry if an effort was put into having people pursue careers in market research rather than just fall into it.
Next, Brian, Gabby, and Brianna dig into what agile research exactly is. Brianna explained that agile research involves applying the agile mindset to research, emphasizing rapid progress and change, unlike traditional methods. She noted that agile research often involves shorter, more DIY studies but stressed that these characteristics are not its core but rather a byproduct of the larger values and principles behind agile.
Next, Brianna discusses the benefits of the agile methodology in product development, emphasizing its focus on incremental steps and iterative processes. She highlights the importance of not being too invested in one question or aspect but rather focusing on the current answer that can help progress. Brian asked if shorter surveys were a part of this process, to which Brianna agreed, suggesting that while there’s room to reduce the length of surveys, it’s important not to eliminate all depth in favor of brevity. She proposed thinking in terms of ‘must haves,’ ‘should haves,’ and ‘could haves’ and focusing on the first two to keep the length of surveys manageable.
They then turn to the challenges of agile research. Brianna mentions that the biggest challenge is implementing agile research, highlighting the need for a mindset shift and change management. She emphasizes the importance of buy-in from stakeholders and teams, to the reality that change takes time.
This leads to Brianna talking about realistic timelines for implementation. Gabby and Brianna then discuss the potential of using agile research methods within traditional market research frameworks to identify insights quickly. Brianna explains that while agile research may not be suitable for every project or need, it can be beneficial between larger research projects. Brianna also suggested that agile research can be particularly effective during innovation cycles and for new initiatives.
In the last segment of the interview, Brian, Brianna, and Gabby discuss AI’s impact on the future of agile research. Brianna highlights the potential of AI in data analysis, designing questionnaires, and building visualizations while also voicing some concern about the potential loss of human interaction and richness of insights.
If you ever wanted to know about agile research, this is the episode for you.
You can learn more about AYTM by visiting their website: https://aytm.com/
You can connect with Brianna on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/briannalboyer/
Thanks for tuning in!
We are proud to have collaborated with Brandtrust, combining their Narrative Inquiry and our Strategic Sample Blending to unlock deeper insights and richer data, enhancing our ability to understand the complex topic of mental health. Download the eBook today!
Want to catch up on our blogs? Click here.
Did you miss one of our webinars or want to get some of our whitepapers and
reports? You can find it all on our Resources page on our website here.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome back to Intellicast! On today’s episode, Brian Peterson is joined by Jason Inderhees to talk about the latest market research and AI news! 
Kicking off the episode, Jason and Brian discuss the latest Bellwether report from the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA), which found that market research budgets declined in Q4 2024. It also mentioned that the industry is expected to decrease by 1% over the next few years. Jason talks about how, while the overall industry may decline, pockets still experience growth, and you just need to uncover them.
Next, the guys talk about the new appointment to the Toluna board. They ponder if this accelerates Toluna’s move to target brands and offers them a full suite of solutions.
The guys then switch gears a bit and talk about a $33 million investment in Anomalo, a California-based data quality platform. They talk about how the platform works and if there are any potential applications for the market research industry.
The second half of the episode starts off with the debut of the new intro music for the AI News segment. Jason and Brian then dig into some recent AI news stories, including news that Publicis Group plans to invest 300 million Euros in AI over the next three years.
The next few AI stories aren’t market research-specific but could impact the industry and industries we serve. First, the guys talk about the recently issued executive order around AI that aims to ensure that the US leads the way and manages the risk of artificial intelligence. Brian and Jason postulate that this is probably just the start of AI legislation. 
In the last story, they guys dive deep into news that New York had proposed a new law called the New York Robot Act that would impose a tax surcharge on “using technology to displace workers,” in an amount equal to taxes and fees that would have been paid on what an employee would have earned in the eliminated position. Jason and Brian are a bit on opposite sides of the debate on this one, but come out at the end seeing each other’s point of view.
Thanks for tuning in!
We are proud to have collaborated with Brandtrust, combining their Narrative Inquiry and our Strategic Sample Blending to unlock deeper insights and richer data, enhancing our ability to understand the complex topic of mental health. Download the eBook today!
Want to catch up on our blogs? Click here.
Did you miss one of our webinars or want to get some of our whitepapers and
reports? You can find it all on our Resources page on our website here.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices