Late last week, SearchDataCenter.com wrote a story about a lawsuit that ZL Technologies Inc. filed against Gartner alleging that the firm favors larger vendors in their reports. According to the story, ZL Technologies claimed that "Gartner's 'Magic Quadrant,' an annual report ranking IT vendors in particular categories, favors larger companies to the detriment of smaller vendors and IT buyers."
The story puts the spotlight on a issue that has long been discussed amongst technology vendors, the media and PR professionals -- understanding the influence factor of industry analysts and devising an appropriate strategy for engaging and working with them. The story is interesting because it focuses on the customer's point of view and how they use these reports in identifying vendors and evaluating their products. The comments reveal that while end-users do value the reports in helping make their choices, the reports are not the deciding factor for them.
Nevertheless, I've heard many, many complaints over the years from vendors about these reports as they approach them with equal parts anticipation, respect, fear and contempt. Universally, they all want to be in them and do well, but they also question the ratings process and worry about factors like vendor size, reputation, and the financial/subscriber relationship between the participating vendors and the analyst organization. And while these concerns may be legitimate, more often than not, I think they are overblown.
What really matters in this process is relationships. Does the vendor have a formal program in place for engaging the analyst organizations? Do they read their reports? Do they ask their advice? Do they follow their blogs or twitter feeds? Do they clearly understand the criteria by which they will be judged? Essentially, do they know the people who matter and engage in a regular dialog with them. If they do, then they can be assured that they've made their case and after that just let the chips fall where they may. The outcome may not be exactly what want, but they've been integral to the process and in the end that is the most you can ask. Tell me what you think?
