New tech research models: threat to Gartner and Forrester, opportunity for you?

Business models, the realities of making money by selling goods or services, change.

• You don't see many Tower Records stores any more, do you?  The retail music business model changed with digital distribution, and stores selling CDs were cut out of the picture. 
• How long has it been since you made a phone call from a pay phone?  Mobile technology ruined that business model.
• Remember the original AOL?  Pay us for your ability to get online, and we'll offer internet access along with our packaged services?  I do, but just barely; the original AOL for Windows did not even have a browser.  But you weren't supposed to need one, AOL provided everything.  

Could the big research company business model
be headed for a similar fate?

Research about technology has a business model too.  There are many variations, but one of the most common models is to pay for an annual contract with a large research company--typically Gartner, Forrester, or IDC--with the expectation that their size will get you most of the knowledge you need to make better choices.  To make sure you're really covered, many companies buy a portfolio of more than one of those contracts.   But in general, it's the original AOL idea applied to research.  

I've written about the business of research, and as you may remember, buying those portfolios was part of my career for many years.  In my opinion, some of the same trends I cover--mobility, social networks, the "freemium" model--are triggers that imply a threat to the "big research" business model.  Even if not, remember your old standby, the SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats?)  If changes in access to business tech research represent a threat to the big companies, they may also give your own enterprise an opportunity to get a broader range of information, at much lower cost, and with far better decision-making impact.  

In the past few months, I've been talking to former leaders from big research about this idea, and about the future of the business.  In articles to come, we'll hear what it's like to set off on your own as an expert, and how that business model can succeed.  We'll talk about social means of gaining business and tech expertise, how to move from a one-to-many model (such as Gartner/Forrester) to a many-to-many model, as exemplified by specialized individual consultants.  

And I'll report about an emerging trend: the growth of tech information requests coming directly from the business, not the IT department.  The last point is significant; it's another way in which the consumerization of business threatens to disintermediate the IT department, thereby threatening the business model of IT itself.  It's pure Era of You effect in action.

The first of the three-part series on new research models:
My, how you've changed: Technology research meets Social, Consumerization, Freemium

This article is part of Infrics.com ongoing coverage of the business of research:

The Business of Research: map higher value, make smarter choices

Evaluating Research Companies: Gartner, Forrester, and IDC

Tech Research Without Spending Big Bucks: four information streams for business

How are you handling research within your own organization?  Do you feel that big research contracts are a good investment?  Are you turning more to blogs and direct contact with subject matter experts?  I'd like to include your experiences in this series.  Let me hear from you. 

AOL sign in screen image: http://blog.boxedart.com/nostalgia/10-websites-and-services-we-loved-in-the-90s/

An Insider's Guide to Technology Analysts--from ReadWriteWeb

It's very rare I see anyone else commenting on the actual business of research, so this article is a great find, with some very useful advice.  A former analyst is candid about the business drivers behind analyst firms, and offers recommendations to help you get the most from the analysts you speak with.  Excellent read, well worth your time.

An Insider's Guide to Technology Analysts:

'via Blog this'

An Infrics.com research consult day: money well spent

Since I took the infrics.com site live last spring, the most popular articles by far have been the ones on planning, buying, and managing research.

Vermeer's "The Geographer"
image from wikipedia.org

I understand this well, because in all my years of buying research for a living, I never did see good objective analysis of the field itself: the strengths and weaknesses of the research companies, the sales and customer service strategies they use, and the best practices for spending research money as a consumer of those services.    The series of articles is here:  The Business of Research.

Those articles are free, and always will be.

At the paid level, an Infrics.com consult day combines that insight with specific advice for your own company, delivers a research strategy and action plan, and acts as catalyst to make best use of the time and money you devote to your research efforts.

These are the deliverables:

• Opening workshop;  your own business research needs, mapped in real time against your organization, culture, and goals. Who are your research "customers?" What do they want?  What do you want FOR them?
  
• The big 3 research companies: Gartner, Forrester, and IDC.  Best practices for choosing, buying, and working with each.
  
• Other research sources: some are free, many are much less expensive than the big three. Learn what they are, why they're important, and how to work with them.
  
• Social tools and expertise sharing in your organization: how they are a "hand in glove" fit with research. Work hands-on with social tools.
  
• The 80/20 rule for research: could it be the best answer for your organization?
  
• Strategic and tactical research: why you need both, how to get highest value from each.
  
• Organizing internally for research value: centralized? federated? distributed?  Ways to envision research management.
  
• What's your RoR--Return on Research? How to know, when standard metrics measure the wrong things.
  
• Walk away with a specific action plan. Entry level, mid-tier, or all-in? We'll create each, and compare cost and returns.
  
• Ongoing support: unlimited followup calls for 12 months after the initial engagement at no additional charge.

The one-day on-site engagement is $2500 plus travel.  While I will happily discount for non-profits, NGOs, and startups, I will NOT gouge a larger corporation for huge consult fees just because it's the standard (a day with an analyst from the big three is typically priced at $10k.)  Please feel free to ask about customized plans,  and combinations with other workshops like Tech Triggers Innovation, or Big Ideas.  

E-mail to discuss scheduling or other questions, or leave a comment below and I'll contact you.