Is the most effective way to understand real human behavior to simulate it first?Agility requires a willingness to test ideas that sound strange at first—like asking bots to act more human by narrowing their point of view, or treating synthetic personas as real sources of insight. But when applied correctly, this thinking unlocks entirely new ways to scale customer understanding.

Today we’re going to talk about how synthetic research is reshaping how we understand audiences—and how asking the right questions can make these insights feel far less synthetic and far more human.

To help me discuss this topic, I’d like to welcome Mike Taylor, Founder & CEO of AskRally.

Mike – welcome to the show! About Mike Taylor Mike Taylor is the CEO & Co-Founder of Rally. He built a 50 person marketing agency in the US and EU, has taught 300,000 students in online courses, and wrote a prompt engineering book for O’Reilly. Mike Taylor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mjt145/ Resources AskRally: https://www.askrally.com https://www.askrally.com The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://www.teksystems.com/versionnextnow Don't Miss MAICON 2025, October 14-16 in Cleveland - the event bringing together the brights minds and leading voices in AI. Use Code AGILE150 for $150 off registration. Go here to register: https://bit.ly/agile150 Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.showCheck out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company