Some analyst relations (AR) managers are lucky in that their executives really get the analysts and their impact on the vendor’s leads and sales deals. Alas, not all AR professionals are so lucky. However, there is a resource to use to educate* executives about the impact of the analysts – the analysts’ own words. For example, here is a throwaway line by Forrester analyst Jeremiah Owyang in Starting the Forrester Wave: White Label Social Networks and Community Platforms:
“I get asked daily in one medium or another who to buy”
Jeremiah is very good about keeping vendors and end-user clients alike up-to-date on what he is working on via his blog posts. This particular line was not bragging, but explaining one purpose of the Forrester Wave, which is to help technology buyers develop their short list of vendors to invite to a bid. Because it was not the main purpose of the post, I think that makes it even more powerful education tool as it shows that analysts with end-user advisory firms like AMR Research, Forrester and Ovum (oh, and of course Gartner as well) take for granted that they influence buyer decisions in ways large and small.
Side note – For those AR managers who are still skeptical about the value of reading analysts’ blogs, this particular post illustrates that you can get important insights into an analyst’s work-in-progress via a blog post.
SageCircle Technique:
- AR professionals – Ask your analysts at every chance for stories about how they influenced sales deals
- Vendor sales teams – Ask your prospects and customers if they use analyst commentary when building short lists or otherwise use analyst advice during a sales cycle
* Need assistance educating your executives about the impact of the analysts? SageCircle’s Executive Briefing series can be a powerful tool for getting executives to that “ah ha!” moment that leads to greater support for AR. To learn more about available topics and purchase a briefing conveniently using a credit card, please visit the Executive Briefings page on the SageCircle website.
Bottom Line: The words of the analysts can be useful when it comes to educating your colleagues. Make it a habit to ask analysts about examples of their impact on short lists and sales deals.
Question: Do you try to educate your executives by using examples of analyst impact on sales, whether using real examples from your sales force or leveraging stories from the analysts?

Since 2000, SageCircle has helped analyst relations teams to focus on business value by encouraging innovative thinking that leverages insights and drives revenue.
Thanks Carter, insightful.
Thanks Jeremiah. I and other AR professionals appreciate your candor and openess about how you conduct research and what you are working on. Keep up the good work.