GreenBook Future List Spotlight: Christopher South

Outside of insights, what are your passions and interests?

I look for adventure and discovery in almost all aspects of life. My favorite passions include traveling to different countries with loved ones, scuba diving, learning new languages and cultures, and exploring the flavors of food, wine, and art from around the world. My family isn’t too fond of the adrenaline-chasing ones like jumping out of a perfectly good airplane or racing my friends a few laps around the Sears Point, but those also top the list.

Another passion of mine that most people don’t talk about is personal growth. The mind is just like any muscle in the body, and I am always reflecting and improving my mindfulness, spirituality, relationships, and more. Sometimes through simple activities like painting, meditating, hiking in nature, philanthropy, or purposefully putting myself in uncomfortable situations is an adventure itself that provides me with personal insight and balance.

 

Since starting your career in MRX, what would you consider to be your greatest accomplishment?

My greatest accomplishment in MRX also comes with one of my greatest failures.

In 2011, my co-founder and I, without having Market Research backgrounds, created what would quickly become one of the most disruptive solutions in MRX. We were not prepared for the high volume of customers that exploded after we launched. This was when YouTube was considered new and booming, and digital video as the TV consumption killer was all the talk. We knew marketers would have to create content faster than ever before and that businesses were scrambling to connect with consumers just as quickly.

Research took months for results and cost tens of thousands of dollars for small sample sizes by today’s standards. Yet digital marketing budgets were small and typically didn’t justify running market research. We solved this by creating one, if not the first, agile market research platforms turning results around in just hours, not weeks or months, at a fraction of the cost.

We also created our patented live audience reaction system giving marketers frame-by-frame emotional reactions to their videos. Shortly after launching, I remember our team pulling 20-hour days just trying to keep up with the sales calls. Major household brands were pouring in wanting to understand how it was possible, and we were scrambling to create sales collateral and set up systems to keep up. Due to Spot Trender building on revenue, not institutional investment, we didn’t have a big enough team at the time.

Looking back on those days was both our greatest accomplishment being disruptive and our greatest failure in not being prepared to handle the volume of customers. We got through the growing pains, of course, and built a great business.

 

How has market research changed since you first started your career?

Machine Learning, or as people endearingly call it, Artificial Intelligence has changed MRX. But really, I think the most significant changes has been in our customers, the marketers. Marketers have become extremely savvy with data and online tools, and their expectations from what they get out of market research has changed. Some brands and agencies have invested significantly in their own data analysis tools built in-house, and some rely on a suite of platforms. In both cases, marketers are ingesting more data than ever before, and from all aspects of research and consumer behaviors. As researchers, I think we not only are data providers and storytellers, but we can also help our clients distinguish good data from bad data. Even as complex automation and AI develops in the future, the insights will only be as useful as the inputs. Sifting through and designing smart research, I think, is now more important as more data sources play into how we tell our stories."}" data-sheets-userformat="{"2":769,"3":{"1":0},"11":4,"12":0}">When I started my market research career, the industry was dominated by the Big Four powerhouses, or the Old Guard as I like to call them. Of course, there were hundreds if not thousands of small research firms, but they all had one thing in common; research was primarily full-service and was slow and expensive. The industry was ripe for disruption, and as the adage goes, people will always want Better, Faster, Cheaper (“Cost Effective”). It would be easy for me to say the advent of Machine Learning, or as people endearingly call it, Artificial Intelligence has changed MRX. But really, I think the most significant changes has been in our customers, the marketers.

Marketers have become extremely savvy with data and online tools, and their expectations from what they get out of market research have changed. Some brands and agencies have invested significantly in their own data analysis tools built in-house, and some rely on a suite of platforms. In both cases, marketers are ingesting more data than ever before, and from all aspects of research and consumer behaviors.

As researchers, I think we not only are data providers and storytellers, but we can also help our clients distinguish good data from bad data. Even as complex automation and AI develops in the future, the insights will only be as useful as the inputs. Sifting through and designing smart research, I think, is now more important as more data sources play into how we tell our stories.

 

What do you think the key characteristics or qualities of a leader are? How does this play into MRX?

There are many types of leaders with different qualities, so there isn’t a bulletproof checklist to become a leader. I tend to pick and pull qualities from various leaders like Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, or Gary Vaynerchuk that works for me.

I think having a high emotional IQ, and clear communication skills are two fundamental qualities of great leaders. They know how to communicate goals and strategies, but they also know how to listen. I also like to look up to athletes like Kobe Bryant, who brings a different level of mastery to their industries. They have more focus on mindset, visualization and are not afraid to learn from failure. I think being well-rounded in all aspects of life helps with leadership. For example, getting more sleep, exercise, and eating healthy are part of a balance that boosts leadership performance.

Exploring your mindset formed by experiences and how those affect emotions, actions, and beliefs is also a leadership skill. Adapting some of these qualities and skills has given me the strength to start companies, the courage to fail and learn new perspectives on business strategy and communication, and empathy, which I’ve applied to market research and understanding consumers.

 

What trends do you see making headway on the horizon of insights? What trends do you think will falter in years to come?

bias, and will face an even more significant challenge when consumer data gaps increase with more privacy. Long-term AI could be the technology that bridges the gap between data privacy and predictable consumer behavior.\n"}" data-sheets-userformat="{"2":769,"3":{"1":0},"11":4,"12":0}">One of the biggest trends I’m not sure people are talking enough about is data privacy. There is a huge shift from the last 10-15 years where people freely gave up their data, online behaviors, and shopping patterns to one where people will either “clear their personal cache” or get paid for their data. This is important because right now, the tools used in both market research and marketers involve people’s data being sold between industries in a rush to aggregate it and predict consumer behavior. The shift to consumers safeguarding their data will significantly impact current and developing methodologies for understanding consumers and the reliability of insights depending on the data sources.

The research industry will need to adapt better self-reported methods through surveys and find new ways of collecting reliable online behavior data as consumers move to privacy first. There is a considerable focus on AI development, but I see that as one of the potential trends that could falter. It currently faces challenges overcoming bias and will face an even more significant challenge when consumer data gaps increase with more privacy. Long-term AI could be the technology that bridges the gap between data privacy and predictable consumer behavior.

 

Where do you see the future of insights heading in the next 10 years?

Technology seems like the obvious answer to the future of insights. Everyone loves to talk about how AI is the future, but I think the answer is much more human than that. We know AI will eventually be either developed by MRX companies in a niche way or a paid service via API that gets integrated into our platforms to help us find trends. Finding trends faster will be a great benefit, but ultimately, I think the future of insights is consumer/human-centric.

We see the upcoming generations support brands that create personal connections with them, build relationships, and genuinely align with their values in a more meaningful way. Look no further than the most prominent creators and entrepreneurs; they give away information, content, resources, adding tons of value and building relationships first. And it comes back tenfold in revenue.

I think this is where the future of insights is, not just better trends or predicting consumer behavior, but helping brands center around their customers. We’re heading towards a day when insights and marketing tech enables brands and agencies to create custom-tailored content for individuals on a massive and automated scale that feels personalized and ads value first.