Data intelligence and biometrics: the future of marketing research

Looking at the future of marketing and new trends in business, Zachary Harding, local marketing specialist and CEO of Hyperion Equity, has invested in a 10 per cent stake in Blue Dot Data Intelligence Ltd.

Blue Dot is a research and data intelligence company based in Jamaica, which was started a little over two years ago by Larren Peart.

Blue Dot uses biometric technology that tracks eye movement and monitors emotional responses to various stimuli or questions being asked. This ensures that the disconnect between what people say and how they actually feel does not affect the results of the research being done. This way, marketers can understand and target their buyers' subconscious mind.

"In 2016 elections, locally and internationally, you see where even the most respected research firms got the predictions wrong not because their methods were faulty, but simply because what people say does not necessarily indicate how they feel. Using biometrics, we can know what people are really thinking," said Peart.

For Harding, the decision to invest in Blue Dot was simple. Having done the appropriate due diligence, Harding deemed that the company's financials were strong and the growth trajectory positive.

"As a marketer, I always dream about leveraging new technologies to help companies make smarter decisions, both as it relates to their consumers as well as how they do business. The team at Blue Dot was able to show me how easy it is for traditional marketing research firms to get it wrong. It's not often that I'm surprised, but they were one step ahead of me. The team has the right mindset, and that convinced me that this is something I want to invest in," said Harding.

New to the marketing world, especially in Jamaica, is the concept of data mining.

"What a lot of people don't get is the impact that data mining can have on the local economy. As a commodity, data is the new oil, however, many companies either don't understand the value of their own data or don't have the expertise to analyse and extract the valuable insights from the data. In some cases, the data they already have can negate the need for them to do market research in the first place. Blue Dot's emphasis on this area of data mining shows that as a company, they are ready for the future of marketing," said Harding.

Blue Dot Data Intelligence Ltd has conducted several studies for leading companies in North America, Jamaica, and several other Caribbean islands.