Dec 04 2009 06:42:10 AM Posted By : Alex
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AOL Keywords Era

Do you remember AOL Keywords? AOL sold AOL keywords that can be searched inside their walled garden or internet as they called it. As AOL was synonymous with internet, businesses had to buy keywords so that users can find them on AOL. This was a controlled access that worked for a while,  when websites came with their own URLs, followed by better search engines like Google. The AOL keywords faded and became irrelevant.

I Think Gartner's Magic Quadrant will end up like AOL Keywords.

Gartner's Magic Quadrant - So Far

Gartner's Magic Quadrant is considered a big deal. Every year when the Magic Quadrant comes out, vendors go crazy over PR mileage it can give. Unfortunately, a few who are not mentioned or mentioned in the wrong place get frustrated, this time we saw ZL sueing Gartner over Magic Quadrant and Gartner won with a response of how the report is Opinions not based on facts.

The reason Gartner's stuff is a big deal now is because of their research reports helped people to quickly understand the technology and players and future. This research is based on

  • Talking to customers, understanding and learning from their implementations
  • Arriving at conclusions and have a few pointers, how the future will be
  • Sharing this information with the world
Everyone wanted to talk/ read Gartner to understand what was going on

How Gartner's Magic Quadrant Matter Won't Matter in the Future

The main reason I believe why Gartner's Magic Quadrant won't matter anymore as it is not a complete view of the market
  • Only paid vendors get into the MQ
  • Others may get mentioned but not covered
  • There is a form for every vendor to give a briefing, everyone who has filled it knows that it never works
I am not sure who is going to make them irrelevant, It maybe LinkedIn, FaceBook (maybe a Biz edition), but it's only a matter of time before the walls come down.


Communities, bloggers, and tweets Give First Hand Information

People are starting a conversation and sharing their experience in communities and groups. Everyday, there are real users  constantly tell the world on how technology/ tool is working for them. This is the first hand unedited, uncut, unbiased information that everyone wants to know.

Real Decisions Based On Facts From Real People Vs Opinions Not Based On Facts

Today, if you want to decide on a technology or a software solution, will you read a Gartner research report or ask Gartner analyst's for advice or ask a  question in Linkedin Communities or GetSatisfaction Community or your domain's community. In a LinkedIn Community, you will get answers from real users and what they went through, where as with Gartner, you'll get opinions not based on facts and it's going to cost you.When user communities get strong and when decisions happen based on real information, opinions don't stand a chance.

Opinions Not Based On Facts - will be Irrelevant

Not sure, if vendors will still consider paying for Magic Quadrant and stuff, maybe they will as their names will appear on it. However, smart decision makers will not decide on the Gartner's MQ, reports and opinions, which will make them not-so-important first and irrelevant later.

Disclaimer: All views expressed here are just Opinions Not Based On Facts ( does that make me an analyst)

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