A lot has been said about how AI changes everything. But will it?

How does B2B research differ—really—from general consumer insights work?

Put simply, B2B research is unique because B2B decision-making is unique.

No, the robots aren’t taking over.

But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t befriend them.

In an era of increasing privacy regulation, defining actionable marketing personas has become a necessity, not a luxury. The promise of one-to-one marketing has collided with the desire for privacy. Persona marketing represents the way forward.

Whether it’s a new product, a reinvigorated marketing plan or a concept for more efficient operations, innovation is the cornerstone of growth. Some companies have built a brand on it. Others, to their own peril—and near doom—have ignored it.

Most research projects create a picture of what’s already occurred. They can detail—often with finite precision—purchase patterns, motivations and satisfaction. But research can and should have a more compelling role than simply documenting the past.

Each year hundreds of millions of dollars are spent on tracking studies designed to monitor the market impact of advertising campaigns, marketing programs and brand issues. In fact, they’re generally considered the only option for marketers who want to keep a finger on the consumer’s pulse.

There is a mantra that has taken hold in the Lean Start-Up movement that is near and dear to our hearts. The notion—commonly phrased as “Getting Out of the Building”—is an admonition to entrepreneurs, product developers and engineering teams to step outside of the confines of their offices and interact with customers directly.

We have found that many companies are sitting on veritable treasure troves of data. Undiscovered, unused—and very valuable.

Conventional practices too often treat research as a one-off event, or as a series of disaggregated investigations. The result is too much repetition and redundancy, and too little connection and continuity.

Acceptance of failure is a central tenet of most modern approaches to innovation. One need only do a quick Google search to find a rich litany of quotes admonishing innovators to embrace failure and heed its lessons.

It is a generally undisputed and much discussed fact that the frequency, pace and magnitude of decisions facing marketers has accelerated exponentially in recent years. Success in business is directly attributable to the accrued effect of those decisions. The one who makes the greatest number of right decisions wins.