Influencers have value. The opaque market emerging for buying influencers, increasing their value and leveraging their endorsements distort purchasing, policy processes and corporate outcomes. Over the next year Fábio Rocha, Jessica Backsell, Johan Nilsson and I will research the market for influencers. Rocha (@fnevesdarocha) is a long-time software industry executive whom I work with in…
You’re thinking it, aren’t you? You wonder if paying analyst firms will improve your placement in comparative reports, get you included in other reports, get you mentioned in speeches, and recommended when analysts talk to buyers. You don’t want to insult them, but you want to know. Isn’t it all pay for play? We…
For start-ups, being nominated by Gartner as a Cool Vendor can be advantageous and appealing, which could make them stand out from the crowd and get valuable references or valued customers. Since Gartner began the Cool Vendors report in 2004, over 3,100 Cool Vendors have been recognised. Daryl C. Plummer, VP and chief Gartner Fellow just…
The notion that early stage businesses need to focus on solving a client problem rather than on their own long-term survival is a common one, although sometimes it can be a good idea to find a consultant who can help you solve some challenges. However, they need to explain their commercial goals and strategies when…
Best practice analyst relations is changing. It is quickly being surpassed by strategic, relationship-based plans that show immediate results. In a Kea Company analyst relations webinar, Teri Green, Duncan Chapple and Stephen Miller will not only discuss shifts in the commonly-held ideas about ‘best practice’ but also outline a new frontier of excellence being established…
Mark Reed-Edwards found the perfect timing, right after ARInsights‘ forum in Boston, to ask me about the misunderstandings and options within analyst relations. In the first of two ‘Confessions of a Marketer‘ podcasts with Mark, I explain the roots of the pay to play myth: that all analysts will say better things about you if…
The KeaCircle and Analyst Firm Awards, which we’ll present at the Analyst Relations Value Forum on Thursday, will highlight the stunning dynamism of both analyst relations and of the analyst industry itself. Traditional megavendors are not longer at the leading edge for analysts relations, and clients of major analysts firms have more alternatives and are…
Industry analyst relations is an essential, if underutilized, tool in the marketing and positioning of software and IT services companies. Because of their relationships with buyers of technology, analysts like Gartner, Forrester and IDC hold tremendous power over vendors of IT products and services. They interact with existing and potential customers, employees and financial analysts….