Inside Insights

Most brands chase trends after they peak, missing the real opportunity. Avery Akkineni, CMO at VaynerX, bridges strategic vision with tactical execution through her unique experience launching VaynerMedia APAC and advising Meta, TikTok, and Salesforce on emerging platforms.

She reveals her "day trading attention" framework for spotting underpriced channels before competitors, the owned-earned-paid testing methodology that validates creative before media spend, and live shopping strategies that generated million-product sales in minutes across global markets.

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Most global brands dilute their message when scaling across markets. Ridhima Thukral, Global Brand Director at Unilever, proves the opposite. Iconic brands become lighthouses that deepen their core philosophy while expressing it locally across countries.

She reveals how Dirt Is Good maintains one human truth about play and discovery, while manifesting as football in Brazil and Holi festivals in India. You'll discover her framework for separating human truths from trends, her method for using AI to handle the 80% while humans focus on the crucial 20%, and why stepping back to understand your brand world is marketing's most underrated strategy.

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Most brands treat consumer feedback like a necessary evil. Chris Bellinger, Chief Creative Officer at PepsiCo Foods US, reveals how top creative teams turn feedback into their secret weapon. Chris bridges the gap between bold creative vision and consumer truth, transforming how iconic brands like Lay's and Doritos connect with audiences.

In this episode hosted by Nataly Kelly, CMO at Zappi, Chris walks us through the strategies and tactics that will save your best creative ideas from dying in focus groups.

Discover Chris' 70-20-10 framework for balancing proven strategies with breakthrough risks, learn the "bulletproofing" method that strengthens ideas without killing creativity, and understand why the best feedback comes from in-environment testing rather than traditional focus groups.

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Sports brands struggle to maintain relevance beyond game day. Marissa Solis, SVP of Global Brand and Consumer Marketing at the NFL, transforms seasonal entertainment into year-round cultural engagement through strategic storytelling and community impact.

In this conversation with host Nataly Kelly from Zappi, Marissa reveals:

• the "script insight" framework that turned social criticism into beloved campaigns
• the three-pillar international expansion model prioritizing fan potential over current popularity
• her "no NFL season" philosophy that keeps 300+ million fans engaged through combine, draft, and off-season drama cycles

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Zappi's Nataly Kelly and Steve Phillips introduce a new season of Inside Insights by breaking down the 2025 Connected Insights Imperative. They unpack why teams with connected insights report 24-point higher satisfaction, how data fragmentation (41%) blocks impact, and why only 23% of companies having a dedicated insights org is a wake-up call. You'll hear ways to “stream” consumer insight into decisions, where AI (and synthetic research) will matter most by 2026, and how cross-functional squads can turn insights from an order-taking function into a true strategic partner backed by ROI evidence and real examples (Visa, NFL, PepsiCo).

Key Points:

• How to centralize “why” data and integrate it with your “what” data for faster, better decisions.
• A playbook to defragment insights and stand up a connected, always-on system.
• Relationship moves that turn marketing–insights tension into durable trust and impact.

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Leonard Murphy, Chief Advisor for Insights and Development at Greenbook, delves into emerging trends in market research, how innovative methodologies and technologies (particularly AI) can drive better business decisions and shares strategies for improving data quality and engagement.

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Deirdre van Zyl, Head of Innovation Planning for Africa at Diageo, discusses her passion for innovation in the complex markets of Africa, the transformative power of AI in the insights industry and the strategies for leading and motivating teams in a rapidly changing environment.

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Steve Phillips, founder and Chief Innovation Officer at Zappi, joins us for his seasonal AI episode to share Zappi’s latest innovations in AI and the progressive work he’s been doing, how to actually get big, rich data and ultimately, how AI Agents will help brands create brilliant products that win with consumers. 

Learn more about our AI Concept Creation Agents: https://www.zappi.io/web/marketing-agents 

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Brett Townsend, co-author of Insights on the Brink and SVP at Quester, compares and contrasts his own book with The Connected Insights Revolution and discusses how, together, both offer a blueprint for insights professionals to transition from a project management role to a strategic advisor role and how to focus more on the fun parts of insights such as storytelling and customer empathy.

Check out both books: 

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Richard Shotton, behavioral scientist, author of The Choice Factory & founder of Astroten, discusses the power social proof and biases hold, where to apply behavioral science to better understand consumers and drive change and how to best maximize productivity with AI.

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