It’s a sure bet that when CIO and IT decision makers gather in groups, tech sales people circle nearby, angling to slip into the crowd. The common wisdom is that every member of these groups is a sales target. Each member is ripe with purchasing potential. That’s certainly a practical way for tech providers to look at IT peer groups. … Read More
Influencer marketing – new interactive video, book offer
Here are two great ways to get up to speed on influencer marketing. First up, there’s a new interactive video of Nick Hayes’ recent presentation at the Commonwealth Club, “Marketing Is Broken, Influencers Can Fit It”. Much of the presentation — including the case studies — comes from his book on influencer marketing. And you can purchase the book at … Read More
Influencer programs and building public trust
Influencer programs can be a lever for building and sustaining trust. How well this works depends largely on how we enable influencers to build and convey trust in our brands. This is especially true given the global economic climate. We know that influencers are trusted advisors. The question is, how are we enabling them to develop and convey trust in … Read More
Aneesh Chopra, CTO of the USA, visits Silicon Valley next week
Market influence is earned, not appointed. Yet, I’ve got to believe that Aneesh Chopra, recently appointed as the first CTO of the United States, is going to become a force of influence very quickly. And I’m looking forward to hearing him speak next week at the Churchill Club. Most of the government tech influencers are people advising on government tech … Read More
Uncover your hidden influencers
This is a reprint of my article in ‘The Influencer’: Q3’09. Register now for alerts on future issues. Nick and I were fortunate enough to spend quality time with a number of new clients and prospects in Silicon Valley during the first half of the year. One of the influencer topics that cropped up again and again during our conversations … Read More
Thinking about communities of practice
Those of us who watch the watchers tend to use phrases like “the analysts”, “the media”, “the integrators”, “the bloggers”, “the academics”, and so on. Â In most cases, we use these phrases simply as short hand. Â We know that there are few common denominators uniting the people in these positions. Â However, that’s not the message we send to our colleagues … Read More
Defining the strength of influencer relationships
Human relationships tend to be complicated, and relationships with influencers are no exception. Yet, you need to know where you stand with an influencer and to share that insight with others in your organization. That’s why so many of us strive to describe influencer relationships in terms that are simple, meaningful and broadly applicable. There are many different systems for … Read More
TechCrunch muscles in on syndicated research
TechCrunch has edged into the syndicated research business, the traditional turf of analyst firms such as Gartner, Forrester Research, IDC, Burton Group, et al. The idea behind TechCrunch Research is elegantly simple: package up quarterly reports based on the open source CrunchBase wiki database, sell the reports at economical price points and promote the service across the TechCrunch media network. … Read More
Analyst relations outreach: is the goal analysts or decision-makers?
Historically, analyst relations (AR) programs have been designed as a bridge between a technology company and the analyst community. As a result, AR programs have focused first and foremost on analysts, and only indirectly on prospects, customers and other decision-makers. Is it possible to reverse this program orientation? Bring it more in line with other communications strategies, such as social … Read More
2009 Time 100 peeks at people influencing the influencers
I am impressed with the interactive section on the “People Behind The People” published with the 2009 Time 100. It’s an indicator that even a mass consumer audience is interested in learning about “behind the scenes” influencers. Time did a great job slicing and presenting this content to boot, given their audience. It’s a reminder for all of us that … Read More