Faster, cheaper and more efficient: AI-powered market research is here

We’re hearing about a lot of companies using artificial intelligence (AI) to make the most of the data they collect. Now market research has adopted the technology.

After finding success with clients such as Google and Mastercard abroad, Prague-based response:now is bringing their AI-powered app to the United States.

The company now offers a fully self-service, programmatic platform that creates research reports based on machine learning. Then it uses a human editor to tease out any undetected nuances and reconcile any disparities.

Fred Barber, newly appointed managing director of response:now in North America says it makes sense to use AI in research.

Since research is essentially data — and common metrics such as the Net Promoter score are basically formulas — an algorithm can learn to make reasonable assumptions and conclusions about the data it analyzes, Barber said. Using AI, response:now automatically creates reports, cutting down much of the time spent in traditional research environments.

According to Barber, 75-80 percent of the work effort in market research is in the writing of the reports. “It’s costly and time-consuming,” Barber said. In comparison to traditional research, response:now can deliver in “five days, not five weeks and for 2K instead of $20 (on average).”

In many cases, Barber says, the company can provide research at three times the speed and one-third the cost of current market research and DIY offerings.

The company enables their clients to get research on a wide variety of variables, including ad performance, packaging design, customer satisfaction and more.

“We’ve enabled market research to become a much more ubiquitous part of the business process,” Barber said.