Why CMOs Are Turning To Synthetic Research for Smarter Strategy

But here’s the irony: the very thing that could help you prove marketing’s value — brand health measurement — is often skipped. With the right data, you can track your firm’s awareness, trust, and differentiation over time. You can connect your efforts to long-term business outcomes. And you can start to shift the perception of marketing from a cost center to a strategic investment in the firm’s future.

Surveying a large number of General Counsels and CEOs about your firm is nearly impossible. So, how do you run quantitative market research when your audience is unreachable?

Enter synthetic market research.

What Is Synthetic Market Research?

Synthetic market research is a new frontier powered by generative AI. It creates AI-generated personas — digital twins — of your target audience by pulling from a vast array of publicly available data: social media, websites, earnings calls, academic papers, and more. These aren’t just generic composites. They’re statistically modeled to mirror the behaviors, preferences, and decision-making patterns of real people.

Think of it like digital twinning for marketing. Just as engineers create virtual replicas of machines to simulate performance, synthetic research builds virtual replicas of your buyers — so you can test messaging, segment audiences, and explore decision criteria without ever sending a survey.

Is It Trustworthy?

That’s the million-dollar question. And the answer is: resoundingly, yes.

Our partner company in this space has tested just that. To date, they’ve run over 80 head-to-head tests comparing synthetic research to traditional methods. These tests were double-blind and peer-reviewed. The result? A 95 percent accuracy rate.

Is traditional research still the gold standard? Sure — if you can actually reach your audience. But when your buyers are elusive, synthetic research becomes not just a viable alternative, but a strategic advantage.

What Can You Do with It?

Everything you’d do with traditional research — only faster and at scale.

• Audience segmentation: Build nuanced profiles of hard-to-reach buyers.
• Message testing: Try out value propositions and positioning statements with AI personas.
• Buyer journey mapping: Understand decision criteria and committee dynamics.
• Strategy development: Use insights to shape campaigns, content, and go-to-market plans.
• Test creative execution: Test campaign and creative content against audience segments.

Why Synthetic Research Might Be Your Only Option

Let’s put this into perspective.

A marketer working with a highly specialized firm — one targeting four distinct, hard-to-reach audience segments — recently tried to run traditional market research. The results? It was going to take 8 to 12 weeks to gather just 150 responses. Not 150 per segment. 150 total. That’s barely enough to scratch the surface, let alone generate statistically valid insights. And after all that time and investment, the data wouldn’t be strong enough to confidently guide a campaign, shape messaging, or inform a strategic pivot.

Now imagine the cost of that delay. The opportunity lost while waiting. The risk of making decisions based on shaky data — or worse, no data at all.

In contrast, synthetic research delivered 1,000 responses in just seven days. That’s not just faster. It’s transformational. It means you can move at the speed of your business. You can test, learn, and adapt in real time. You can build strategies on a foundation of insight — not assumption.

A Smarter Approach to Strategy

For CMOs and marketing leaders in B2B and professional services, where audiences are niche and access is limited, synthetic research offers a smarter, faster path to insight. If traditional research is out of reach but strategic clarity is essential, this isn’t just a better option. It’s the only one that makes sense.

Curious how synthetic research could support your next strategy cycle? Connect with a One North expert to explore how it can help you move faster, reduce uncertainty, and drive smarter, insight-led decisions.

Photo Credit: Zak | Unsplash