Kevin Siskar of Ambition Today sits down with Matt Britton to discuss building Suzy, consumer intelligence, and the future of research.
Kevin Siskar, founder of Ambition Today, recently sat down with Matt Britton to discuss building Suzy, the evolution of consumer research, and what's next for the industry. This interview excerpt captures their conversation.
Kevin: You've built several companies before Suzy. What's different about this one?
Matt: Timing and clarity on the problem. For years I knew that consumer research was broken. It was slow, expensive, and inaccurate. Most brands were making major decisions without real consumer input. They'd commission expensive studies that took months, get back findings disconnected from actual customer behavior, and have to make decisions with imperfect information.
Suzy solves that. We give marketers direct access to real consumer voices, fast. Days instead of months. Authentic instead of generic. That clarity of purpose—knowing exactly what problem we're solving—made building Suzy feel inevitable.
Kevin: Why hasn't anyone solved this problem before?
Matt: Some have partially. But they've been constrained by traditional research methodologies or focused on specific use cases. What we realized is that you need speed AND depth. You need quantitative rigor AND qualitative authenticity. You need accessible pricing so any marketer can afford it, not just Fortune 500 companies.
Most research platforms optimize for one of those. We built Suzy to excel at all three simultaneously. That required rethinking how research gets conducted from the ground up.
Kevin: Where does consumer research go from here?
Matt: Real-time feedback loops. Right now research is episodic—brands do a study, get findings, make decisions, wait months for next research cycle. In the future, continuous insight feeds directly into product development, marketing optimization, and strategy iteration.
Imagine continuously hearing from your customers. Not through NPS surveys, but through open conversations about what they want, what frustrates them, and how they're changing. That realtime intelligence becomes your competitive advantage.
Kevin: What role does technology play?
Matt: Technology should amplify human insight, not replace it. AI and automation let us handle more respondents, identify patterns faster, and surface insights more efficiently. But the art of research—asking the right questions, understanding context, interpreting nuance—that remains fundamentally human.
The smartest brands will combine AI-powered efficiency with human-driven understanding. That's where the magic happens.
Kevin: What would you tell founders building in this space?
Matt: First, solve a real problem. Not for yourself—for customers. Spend more time with customers than in your product. Second, don't try to build what's worked before. Destroy assumptions. Third-party research panels, complex methodologies, slow timelines—throw that playbook out. Start from what customers need and work backward.
Finally, remember that you're not building a tool. You're changing how companies make decisions. That's a cultural shift. Make your product so good and your insights so valuable that adopting your platform becomes a no-brainer for forward-thinking companies.
Kevin: What consumer trends keep you up at night?
Matt: Polarization. Not political polarization, but consumer preference polarization. Markets are fragmenting into micro-segments with distinct needs and values. The days of "mass market" are over. Brands must understand granular consumer segments or they'll be competing on price in commoditized categories.
That's why consumer intelligence matters more than ever. You can't guess at what fragmented, diverse consumers want. You have to ask them. Repeatedly. Honestly.
Kevin: How important are values to consumers?
Matt: Increasingly, values matter more than convenience or price for certain segments. Consumers want to know that brands share their values. Sustainability, ethical sourcing, diversity, community impact—these aren't nice-to-haves. They're decision drivers for growing consumer segments.
Smart brands are transparent about their values. Not in performative ways, but authentically. That authenticity builds trust and loyalty that price competition can't touch.
Conducting it once annually instead of continuously. Consumer preferences shift. Markets move. Competitive landscapes evolve. Brands that understand their customers in real-time adapt faster and win more.
Speed and agility. Smaller brands can test ideas faster, pivot based on feedback quicker, and build authentic relationships with customers more easily. Combined with smart consumer research, that agility beats big brand inertia.
Less technical statistics expertise, more psychology and storytelling. The ability to interpret what consumers really mean, not just what they say. The ability to translate insights into strategy. The ability to ask better questions instead of just analyzing answers.
Interested in consumer intelligence and research strategy? Learn more at Suzy.com, hear Matt speak on consumer trends, or contact us to discuss your research needs.
Matt delivers high-energy keynotes on AI, consumer trends, and the future of business to Fortune 500 audiences worldwide.