Influence
As someone who’s spent decades in the analyst relations field, I’ve observed a growing disconnect between how analyst services operate and what today’s technology buyers actually need. This was the focus of a March 2025 webinar I hosted with Susan Tonkin from Wrike and Patrick Lethert, where we explored how analyst firms can better serve…
After back-to-back briefings with analysts here at Mobile World Congress, I’m hearing that many analysts find themselves caught in a familiar tension: focus on the technical facts or emphasize business outcomes? As someone who has worked with technology analysts for decades, I’ve observed that many resist making bold business benefit statements for fear of sounding…
Recently, I’ve been planning a business story development workshop that builds on insights from my 2022 paper in Organization Studies, with Neil Pollock and Luciana D’Adderio,”Extending entrepreneurial storytelling to new audiences.” This work has highlighted an interesting contrast between how analysts and commercial organizations approach storytelling, leading me to reflect on opportunities for cross-pollination between…
Extensive research (See this article) from Lancaster University Management School has highlighted a concerning disconnect in the analyst relations world: Industry analysts producing extensive content that technology vendors consume, but perhaps not enough of what technology buyers actually need. Analysts excel at evaluating products, assessing vendor capabilities, and analyzing competitive landscapes. But here’s the uncomfortable…
Recent analysis of analyst briefing records reveals a clear pattern: the most successful vendor briefings feature significantly more two-way dialogue than presentation-style meetings. The data challenges some common assumptions about analyst relations and points to specific techniques that can improve briefing effectiveness. The Evidence for Dialogue We analyzed turn-taking patterns across multiple analyst firms and…
The market research industry faces unprecedented change as AI reshapes how organizations produce and consume intelligence. At Barcelona’s SCIP Intellicon 2024, practitioners shared insights about this transformation that point to deeper shifts in how market intelligence functions. In the weeks since my workshop on the topic there, I’ve been speaking with participants and others about…
TechTarget’s stock price has fallen 36% this year to reach $22.01, a 52-week low. While market sentiment reflects broader tech sector headwinds, it also indicates investor uncertainty about integrating TechTarget with Informa Tech’s digital assets and Omdia. Short-Term Integration Limits Synergies Technical Integration The combination of TechTarget’s intent data capabilities with Omdia’s research will take…
Research buyers at SCIP Intellicon 2024 raised significant concerns about market intelligence quality in my workshop on the topic. Their experiences point to five critical issues affecting B2B market research: Data Collection Integrity Research buyers are seeing gaps in data collection. “We tested them with one number… if they couldn’t provide something really close, they…