Capabilities
Synthetic Research
Pressure Test Before You Invest
Brands and agencies often face a familiar gap: the space between gut feeling and investment. You have big questions early: Are we in the right territory? Which direction is worth investing in? Traditional research is powerful but it’s often too slow or too costly for these early moments. Guesswork, on the other hand, creates risk.
SMRT Study
Built for those in‑between moments. It brings early, directional audience insight into the conversation so teams can pressure‑test ideas, validate direction, and move forward with confidence before committing to larger investments of time, budget, or production.
Proven Directional Alignment with Traditional Qualitative Research SMRT (Synthetic Market Research & Testing) Study
Results have been tested against prior qualitative studies, delivering early insights that are directionally aligned with traditional qual at significantly lower cost and in a fraction of the time when it’s needed most. Validated across Healthcare, Restaurant, and Retail categories.
What Is SMRT Study Synthetic Research?
SMRT Study is an AI-powered qualitative research approach that simulates how defined audience segments are likely to perceive and react to brands, messages, and creative ideas.
Synthetic audiences simulate probable reactions based on patterns learned from extremely large volumes of publicly available and licensed human language data from multiple LLM’s.
The result is fast, directional insight that helps teams explore perceptions, pressure-test ideas, and evaluate scenarios early in the process.
Synthetic audiences simulate probable reactions based on patterns learned from extremely large volumes of publicly available and licensed human language data from multiple LLM’s.
The result is fast, directional insight that helps teams explore perceptions, pressure-test ideas, and evaluate scenarios early in the process.
Built with Intention. Not Prompt-and-Pray
SMRT Study isn’t the same as dropping questions into a generative AI tool and hoping for useful answers.
Brandience’s proprietary synthetic research capability is built using proprietary, marketer‑designed methods, including:
Structured Research frameworks and repeatable formats
Controlled Inputs and standardized prompts
Pre-defined Learning Objectives rooted in real research practice
Human Review and interpretation at every step
These guardrails reduce variability, limit bias, and ensure insights are grounded, comparable, and usable, avoiding many of the common pitfalls associated with unmanaged AI inputs and outputs.
Brandience’s proprietary synthetic research capability is built using proprietary, marketer‑designed methods, including:
Structured Research frameworks and repeatable formats
Controlled Inputs and standardized prompts
Pre-defined Learning Objectives rooted in real research practice
Human Review and interpretation at every step
These guardrails reduce variability, limit bias, and ensure insights are grounded, comparable, and usable, avoiding many of the common pitfalls associated with unmanaged AI inputs and outputs.
How Brandience Uses Synthetic Research
Long before generative AI became mainstream, Brandience was integrating advanced technology into marketing: from emotion-tracking video analysis and AI powered media buying to early AI policies and governance, persona modeling, and the creation of an internal AI Hub.
As AI capabilities evolved, a new opportunity arose: To bring audience perspective into the process earlier.We don’t treat synthetic research as a standalone tool. It’s an intentional part of our broader data & insight framework that we use to support:
Early-stage strategy validation: Clarifying audience perceptions of brands, products, and categories.
Creative pressure-testing: Narrowing directions, refining messaging, and strengthening concepts before production.
Hypothesis testing: Confirming or challenging assumptions with audience-informed perspective.
Decision support: Helping teams move faster with confidence.
Wondering if synthetic research makes sense for your project?
As AI capabilities evolved, a new opportunity arose: To bring audience perspective into the process earlier.We don’t treat synthetic research as a standalone tool. It’s an intentional part of our broader data & insight framework that we use to support:
Early-stage strategy validation: Clarifying audience perceptions of brands, products, and categories.
Creative pressure-testing: Narrowing directions, refining messaging, and strengthening concepts before production.
Hypothesis testing: Confirming or challenging assumptions with audience-informed perspective.
Decision support: Helping teams move faster with confidence.
Wondering if synthetic research makes sense for your project?
Let's talk
Frequently Asked Question About Synthetic Research
How is synthetic research different from traditional research?
Synthetic research and traditional research serve different and complementary purposes.
Traditional research provides nuance, emotional depth, and unexpected human insight.
Synthetic research delivers early directional clarity with speed, efficiency built on models intentionally trained to think and respond like people do. While the responses are synthetic, they often closely reflect real human perspectives.
We use each method intentionally, choosing the right mix based on what the challenge requires. When deeper validation, lived experience, or emotional complexity is needed, traditional research remains the right tool.
Traditional research provides nuance, emotional depth, and unexpected human insight.
Synthetic research delivers early directional clarity with speed, efficiency built on models intentionally trained to think and respond like people do. While the responses are synthetic, they often closely reflect real human perspectives.
We use each method intentionally, choosing the right mix based on what the challenge requires. When deeper validation, lived experience, or emotional complexity is needed, traditional research remains the right tool.
Synthetic research and traditional research serve different and complementary purposes.
Traditional research provides nuance, emotional depth, and unexpected human insight.
Synthetic research delivers early directional clarity with speed, efficiency built on models intentionally trained to think and respond like people do. While the responses are synthetic, they often closely reflect real human perspectives.
We use each method intentionally, choosing the right mix based on what the challenge requires. When deeper validation, lived experience, or emotional complexity is needed, traditional research remains the right tool.
Traditional research provides nuance, emotional depth, and unexpected human insight.
Synthetic research delivers early directional clarity with speed, efficiency built on models intentionally trained to think and respond like people do. While the responses are synthetic, they often closely reflect real human perspectives.
We use each method intentionally, choosing the right mix based on what the challenge requires. When deeper validation, lived experience, or emotional complexity is needed, traditional research remains the right tool.
When is synthetic research the right fit?
Synthetic research is especially valuable when:
Speed matters
Budgets need to be protected early
Audiences are hard to reach
Directional guidance is sufficient
Teams need clarity before committing further
Speed matters
Budgets need to be protected early
Audiences are hard to reach
Directional guidance is sufficient
Teams need clarity before committing further
What makes Brandience’s synthetic research capability different?
What sets Brandience apart is how and why we use synthetic research:
Human-centered by design: Insights are used to inform, not replace, strategic thinking.
Governed and ethical: Built with bias awareness, transparency, and quality control. Brandience was one of the first agencies to be AI Advertising Ethics Certified.
Integrated into real work: Informed by how strategy, creative, and media decisions are made.
Outcome-focused: Our team partners closely with you to shape the research brief, interpret results, and translate insights into clear strategic and creative direction so the work leads to decisions, not just data.
Human-centered by design: Insights are used to inform, not replace, strategic thinking.
Governed and ethical: Built with bias awareness, transparency, and quality control. Brandience was one of the first agencies to be AI Advertising Ethics Certified.
Integrated into real work: Informed by how strategy, creative, and media decisions are made.
Outcome-focused: Our team partners closely with you to shape the research brief, interpret results, and translate insights into clear strategic and creative direction so the work leads to decisions, not just data.
Other capabilities
Brandience is a Cincinnati-based brand and marketing agency that utilizes data to elevate our creativity and activate your ad investments in the best ways possible. All our disciplines -- from brand strategy, creative and advertising to media, social media and digital -- have data analytics as a core underpinning.
