A Vendor Briefing is a research tool for industry analysts, and an opportunity for an IT vendor to present its products, services and business strategies to analysts who cover the vendor specifically or a related technology or market. Vendor Briefings are “on-the-record” presentations. During a Vendor Briefing, the flow of information predominates from vendor to analysts and is not interactive. Analysts may ask questions of clarification during a briefing session, however, analyst feedback is not the focus and should not play a part or role within any given Vendor Briefing session. Gartner analysts schedule briefings at their discretion based purely on an interest in the vendor, its technologies and its marketplace, not because of any fee or contractual relationship.
Requesting a Vendor Briefing
To request a briefing with Gartner analysts, complete our Vendor Briefing online form. If you are not a Gartner client, please complete a one-time registration prior to filling out the Vendor Briefing online form.
Vendor Briefing Process and Typical Lead Time
Within one business day of submitting your completed application, your request is assigned to a Vendor Briefing specialist who will email you point of contact information for processing and a reference number for tracking. To gauge analyst interest, the specialist will disseminate your request to the relevant analysts who will typically respond to the briefings team with Yes or No to your request within two to three business days. Lead times for scheduling analyst accepted briefings are dependent upon analyst responsiveness and availability and are typically scheduled two to four weeks out. The lead time significantly increases for requests exceeding two analysts or when a Gartner or industry event is taking place.
Typical Venue for a Vendor Briefing
Vendor Briefings are typically 45 minutes in length with 1-2 analysts and are conducted via phone using Gartner's web conferencing platform. Dialing instructions are provided upon analyst confirmation. Audio briefings are recorded and accessible by Gartner analysts after the call. Face-to-face briefings are infrequent and are scheduled at the analyst's discretion and based upon analyst travel requirements.
Maximizing Time With Analysts During a Vendor Briefing
The best approach is to provide the analysts with a concise story that clearly presents all your major points in less than five minutes. Who are you? What does your company do and why is it worth investigating? What services and products do you offer? Why do your customers buy your product or service? What business problems does it solve? What differentiates your product from existing products and services? Where do you fit in the market relative to your top competitors? When will you complete your next important milestones? More information on how to effectively interact with Gartner and deliver compelling briefing presentations to analysts can be found below: