Wat tekent het jaar 2024? Tot welke inzichten zijn we gekomen in het vak? Draait het allemaal om AI of zijn er nog meer mooie dingen gebeurd? Crispin Beale, CEO van Insight250, gooide voor insightsassociations.org wereldwijd een vangnet uit met de vraag ‘Welke belangrijke lessen heeft onze sector dit jaar geleerd?’ We presenteren een selectie van antwoorden.

▼

Sir Martin Sorrell, Founder & Executive Chairman S4 Capital plc, UK

‘In 2024 everyone realized that unifying and harmonizing first-party data was essential given the likely deprecation of third-party cookies by Google and Apple’s IDFA rules, particularly concerning using the signals from the six leading digital platforms.’

Kristin Luck, Founder, WIRe, Scalehouse, Growgetter, President ex-officio ESOMAR, USA

‘2024 brought us a number of lessons… that embracing AI isn’t optional, that the shift to online methods (particularly in qualitative research) wasn’t just a pandemic fluke, that data quality is fundamental to research and yet continues to be an industry-wide issue, and that we need to develop better skills, particularly around data aggregation and analysis, if we’re going to remain relevant as an industry. The question is… will we learn these lessons? As an industry, we’re often too quick to discount what is staring us straight in the face in favor of defaulting to the comfortable ways of conducting research with which we’re most familiar.’

Sharmila Das, Chairwoman, Purple Audacity, India

‘In my mind, 2024 will be earmarked as a year of reconciliation. This is the year when the acceptance that both AI and HI can co-exist and become a powerful combined force permeated down to the general research practitioner. For many years now we have been feeling skeptical, afraid, and in denial of digital interventions and tools. Slowly but surely, we have started understanding that the trick lies in using these advancements to deepen, not dilute, our understanding of consumers. It is not surprising that resilience, curiosity, and the courage to embrace transformation have emerged as key values once again for the Industry. If this year taught us anything, it’s that adaptability and human connection are not trends—they are the essence of our enduring impact.’

Priscilla Mckinney, CEO LIttle Bird Marketing, USA

‘This year really drove home that our industry needs to get smarter about balancing efficiency with quality. The market research industry is dealing with increased data quality challenges and fraud, while clients want faster turnarounds at DIY prices. What’s making the difference isn’t just technology – it’s finding reliable partners who can move at our pace and truly understand project requirements. The vendors who thrive are the ones who go beyond transactional relationships to become true problem-solvers.’

‘The primary lesson is the essential need to approach questions without hubris or agenda’

Alexander Edwards, President, Strategic Vision, USA

‘The primary lesson for the insights industry this past year is the essential need to approach questions without hubris or agenda. When insight professionals abandon humility on controversial topics, they sacrifice accuracy and precision. For example, conflicting predictions about the success of electric vehicles in the U.S. market illustrate how an agenda skews analysis. Similarly, incorrect forecasts about voter behavior in the U.S. presidential election occurred because the personal values and priorities of the voter seemed often neglected for anecdotal experiences by the researcher. ValueCentered Psychology, lack of agenda and an embrace of humility ensures a trustworthy reflection of reality.’

Mariela Mociulsky, CEO, Trendsity, Argentina

‘The past year has highlighted that data is more than just numbers; it’s about human narratives. The key lies in interpreting this data within ever-changing social and cultural contexts. This isn’t a transition; the pace of change will continue to challenge us, and increasingly so. Ethics have become fundamental, demanding transparency and fairness in artificial intelligence models. Organisations must embrace a mindset of continuous learning, where adaptability and innovation are essential. By recognising that each data point tells a story, we must take responsibility within our industry and demonstrate that we can transform decision-making into a more responsible and human-centric process.’

Simon Atkinson, Chief Knowledge Officer, IPSOS, UK

‘This ‘Year of Elections’ served as a reminder, if one were needed, that the information landscape is super-fragmented – just look at how people find out about what’s happening in the world. A plethora of social media channels and platforms have replaced traditional news networks as our main sources of information as to what’s happening in the world. Brands need to plan accordingly!’

Isabelle Fabry – Associate, ACTFUTURE, ESOMAR – Co-Representant, France

‘In 2024, the insights industry highlighted the importance of agility in adapting to rapid shifts in consumer behavior and digital landscapes. The rise of AI-driven research tools pushed us to balance automation with the human element, ensuring that empathy and cultural understanding remain central to our work. This year reminded us that, while technology can enhance efficiency, the true strength of our industry lies in our ability to explore human DNA and epigenetic dynamics for a deeper understanding of behaviors and motivations.’

‘The true strength of our industry lies in our ability to explore human DNA’

Ryan Barry, President, Zappi, USA

‘Insights has a bad reputation for being slow to adopt change. That is entirely not the case with AI. Insights are LEADING the charge in many places with insights people being on core AI committees, being the experimenters in their org, and getting the attention of their C suite plus the mgmt consulting industry. This is a very exciting time for the consumer because if we integrate consumer data into scaled workflows, we will see a much brighter future for brands!’

Arundati Dandapani, Founder and CEO, Generation1.ca, Canada

‘This past year underscored the transformative power of technology in amplifying human intelligence and imagination. The tech-driven insights industry not only boosted global annual turnovers again but also highlighted the urgent need for robust digital governance and a blend of cross-functional, business-outcome-oriented skills. Key takeaways include maintaining a critical lens on assumptions, particularly around demographic stereotypes, constant testing and validation, all while fostering curious optimism about how we can reshape representation with good data creation. Moreover, attitudes and behaviours cannot be understood in silos—integrating unstructured, emotion-rich datasets and advanced analytics is crucial for capturing the nuanced motivations of global citizens and consumers. A holistic approach is essential for delivering insights that drive meaningful action.’

Alex Hunt, CEO, Behaviorally, USA

‘Fortune favors the bold: there’s an accelerating structural shift underway, away from research design, execution, and analysis, and toward systematized use of data analytics, that deliver more precise guidance, and act as useful foresight and intelligence for marketers who hold responsibility for commercial decision-making. Those succeeding in 2024 are both client-side departments and data and insights suppliers who are bold enough to reposition themselves on the right side of this tidal wave of change and much closer to commercial decision-making. As with any major decision and notwithstanding that change is never straightforward, we’ve only ever wondered why we weren’t bolder, earlier.’

Mark Ursell, CEO, QuMind, UK

‘We have seen a continuation of corporations taking more control of their insight process so I think the trend towards the agencies needing to offer a hybrid model of tech and consultancy will continue. The upside of this is customer insight is more and more at the top table of decision-making, which is where it should be. In addition, AI innovations have focussed on time-saving and operational efficiency rather than a radically new approach to gathering customer feedback and disseminating customer insight to decision-makers. There also continues to be focus, quite rightly on improving the quality of data the industry gathers as this is a key area for all of us to focus on.’

Bron: insightsassociation.org