Briefing technology industry analysts is a learned art rather than a formulaic science. The main objective is to connect with the analysts so they understand your company and solution enough to describe it accurately to others. Some of these “others” include journalists and potential customers who may subscribe to an analyst service. While this objective seems […]
Robert Richardson is director of the Computer Security Institute, GoCSI.com. The CSI Filter virtual conference takes place on April 8 at www.CSIfilter.com. A security event not long ago pointed to a different direction for conference events. This was Shmoocon, a hacker conference that was well, a hacker conference. It’s casual, there’s guys with ponytails…it’s not […]
Traditionally the media and industry analysts have been revered as major market influencers (the people your target audience – those you’re trying to sell to – listen to). A leader position in an analyst report or positive product review was the holy grail of PR efforts. While these influencers continue to wield power, the collective […]
Robert Mullins is a freelance technology writer in Silicon Valley. His writing can be found at his Robert Mullins blog. To tweet or not to tweet? That is the business dilemma. Some companies see value in embracing social media websites such as Twitter, Facebook, MySpace and the like as a new way to connect with […]
Most of us occasionally suffer from “following the herd” mentality, but effective positioning requires companies to deviate from the norm and establish their own unique position. When formulating a positioning statement, the statement should (1) clearly articulate the company’s understanding of market needs, and (2) present a defendable value proposition that is meaningful to target […]
One of the unfortunate realities of today’s market is that many marketing campaigns do not yield the results that were hoped for or promised. This usually leads to finger pointing between sales and marketing, and the battle is usually won by the finger with the greater amount of data, no matter how flimsy. We asked […]
Aaron Hampton is the Regional IS Manager for Northern Tool + Equipment and co-founder of enDevelopment LLC, the makers of CommonCents personal finance software. My time is like yours – valuable. And what I’m going to share is valuable to you as a marketing or sales professional. Why? Because if I’m not the one pulling […]
Like many of my fellow marketers, I am by nature a rose-colored glasses kind of person. I can put a positive spin on just about anything. And if an overly complex product gets labeled “feature rich,” I’m okay with it. It is like real estate listings where a small house is dubbed “charming” and a […]
This guest post is written by Paul Rosenfeld, CEO and Co-Founder of Fanminder, a mobile marketing firm helping small businesses, based in Silicon Valley, CA. If there’s one reason software start-ups fail it’s because they don’t acquire customers. And if they don’t acquire customers, at least one root cause will be it’s “product ain’t usable.” […]
I have a dear friend whose personal hallmark is, “I’m not for everyone.” She typically makes the statement right up front as a disclaimer when she meets new people. And she is right. She is a strange mix of business savvy sales person, think Ivonka Trump, combined with the unplugged and raw style of comedian […]
