We’re almost at the end of 2024, which has been a tough year for many. We’re thankful to have had a successful year, filled with fun, laughter and great support and challenge from our clients. This year marked our 30th anniversary, a big deal considering only a third of businesses survive past their first decade! Below, we share some of our proudest moments from the year. Here’s to a peaceful and exciting 2025!

View from our founder: a call to action

As we approach the end of another year, change for UK consumers remains relentless. The hope many felt in the lead-up to the election has dimmed, replaced by a growing unease about what lies ahead.

Our own industry isn’t immune. AI is rewriting the rules – upending everything from synthetic respondents to the speed and quality of innovation. Therefore, the choice is clear: adapt or be left behind. Change isn’t just a challenge; it’s an opportunity.

After two decades of watching the insights industry lose stature, we now have a chance to rebuild. And rebuild we must – not for the sake of the industry, but for consumers.

The brutal facts are that nearly five years on from COVID, consumer optimism is a shadow of its former self. Beneath it lies a deep well of emotional deficits and systemic challenges that demand attention. Transformational products and services – the kind that genuinely move people and markets – require courage: the bravery to hear what consumers aren’t saying, uncover what they truly need, and unite teams to deliver.

So, it’s time to break free from the endless cycle of proving ROI on isolated projects. Customer empathy shouldn’t be a ‘nice-to-have’ buried in a PowerPoint; it should pulse through every decision, every team, and every meeting. Insights teams shouldn’t just compile data – they should ignite action.

Our commitment for the year ahead is simple: to be bold. To help brands not just understand consumers but connect with them – truly, deeply, and purposefully. Because when insights drive action, businesses don’t just grow; they transform.

Here’s to building something meaningful together in the year ahead.  Alison.

Getting recognised 

We were beaming with pride to win Most Trusted Partner award at this year’s AURAs. Picking up the Best Storytelling and Best Agency awards was incredible too, but ‘most trusted’ is what sticks in our hearts. Thank to all our clients for your kind votes.

We also won our first Quirks award for our work with Whitbread in overcoming outdated perceptions of Premier Inn. Insight fed directly into Whitbread’s commercial and strategic programme, with the overhaul resulting in spend per sleeper targets exceeded, weekly F&B sales soaring and guest satisfaction much increased. Read more about the work here.

Unwrapping 2024  

Our final event of the year was an exciting debate – understanding how The Score’s predictions from the beginning of the year really played out.

It’s bolstered our belief in our formula for predictions, and the importance of harnessing the power of emotion. Humans are hardwired to survive, constantly seeking ways to feel balanced – so by understanding emotional shortfalls and excess, we can anticipate where their appetite will lie. We spend a lot of time exploring these deficits and surplus, which is harder than it sounds as of course they all sit under the surface, they’re unseen, unspoken instincts, not clear wants – so we use our 5Drivers model to illuminate the way. These yearnings layered against the wider landscape, especially money, help us spot the real opportunities.

We’re proud to say we’ve become pretty good at this. This year, however, we didn’t just mark our own homework. We invited Score subscribers to give their verdict.

It was a great event, you can watch again here, there are also a few teasers about what we think 2025 will bring! To all our loyal subscribers: thank you for making this another fantastic year with the Score. And a special shoutout to Kirsty, Ellie, and Rich for helping us review the year. Here’s to more insightful years ahead!

As a little bonus, we’re also excited to share our Score Community video – stories shared from our qualitative community on how this year has felt to them. It’s a great watch!

Getting out there

It’s been a busy year of webinars, events and workshops across the globe. We were so excited to host our first face-to-face event since Covid hit. Our Plug into Persuasion event, in collaboration with AURA, saw a bumper turnout in Leeds to hear from an inspiring set of speakers about the challenge we face in influencing leaders. We saw just how bad the empathy gap is between consumers and boardrooms and challenged ourselves to find our inner champions.

We’re looking forward to putting on our largest ever face-to-face event in 2025 and debating more about the art of persuasion in stakeholder management at the MRS annual conference where we’ll be running a panel session with some of our inspiring clients.

Giving back

2024 has been a bumper year for our charity and store, Raindrops on Roses. To date we’ve donated £220k to help combat cancer. A wide range of causes have benefited – including cancer cell research, platinum therapy for ovarian cancer patients, research into breast cancer development, GP education, software for the Paul Strickland Scanner Centre and West Herts hospital.

We were also proud to support the fabulous team at The Big Issue Group to develop their new membership model. A huge well done to the team for getting this launched so quickly. The number of people living in extreme poverty in the UK is insane. Become a member and help support all the amazing work the team do in their mission to end poverty.