Analyst relations tend to fall into two main categories: financial and industry relations. Building relations with industry research experts can leverage PR and marketing activities that will also impact your sales.

If you haven’t considered leveraging industry analyst firms before then this blog post is just for you. Read on!

Industry analyst firms provide a higher level of value add when it comes to key industries and audiences. They are deep into the research, collecting data, attending plenty of conferences and events to get a good pulse on the industry. They talk to lots of companies from vendors to partners to customers. They end up with a detailed picture of the industry landscape from product cycles to sales opportunities. With this the analyst prepares detailed research reports including analysis and sales projections. These reports address future market opportunities within your industry.

Why should you add analyst relations to the mix?

Reason #1: The data and analysis provided in these reports are critical to any company struggling to stay competitive and win new sales deals. Analysts work hard to maintain objectivity and to get a balanced view of the market, but they can miss putting companies on their radar. Before these reports are complete, companies can get involved and be far more active with the analyst community. How?

The next time there is an analyst report scheduled for publishing, don’t wait until the end of the year to buy the report and just read about all your competitors. Make sure you are in there, too!

Reason #2: Make sure you are engaging with analysts and analyst firms throughout the year.  There are many so find the top 3-5 that target your space and start engaging with them via an introductory briefing. Suggest meeting them at a tradeshow they’re already attending or even taking them out to lunch. Be a resource by keeping the analysts updated on your product roadmap and sales deals. If you can, also update the analyst on quarterly sales. Even if you’re working at a private company, having any insight helps the analyst to have a more accurate portrayal of the market. This will help your company get into their reporting before completion and keep it top of mind with the analyst.

Reason #3: These analysts are also speaking with potential customers and partners. They might be looking for a specific technology or want to know which companies target a specific offering. These potential customers tend to go to the analyst community as they are leading in information and market opportunities. They either ask them for recommendations or review their market research reports to get the info.

Reason #4: Once you have a good interaction in process, some firms are open to providing quotes for marketing materials. These can range from a press release or even collaborating on a whitepaper or customer case study. While an analyst will not say that your product is the best out there, they will share market direction and provide solid opinions based on facts about the technology. Collaborating with a third-party analyst firm will give your materials more credibility. This is because it’s coming from a market perspective rather than all-vendor promotion.

Reason #5: A lot of these analyst firms also provide awards. For example, Frost & Sullivan issues awards each year to recognize innovation and the most innovative companies in the industry. Gartner has their yearly research on the top “Cool Vendors”. They also have positioning in the Gartner’s Magic Quadrants which carries a lot of credibility for many companies as well as in the industry. Many of the small to large companies look at this recognition by reputable analyst firms in their decision and buying cycle. It does carry weight. Not to mention its great PR to include the recognition on your company website. Share with investors and potential customers and include in marketing and PR materials.

Not all analyst firms will be a fit and it will take some extra research and engagement to gain those resources. But, it’s time well invested as analyst firms provide third-party validation. They’re also aware of so many companies that are bound to provide new partnerships or sales opportunities.

Analyst firms play an important role for any business. So it makes a lot of sense to build them into your PR efforts and campaigns. It’s important to note that not all PR firms provide industry analyst outreach and support. If you don’t have an internal team to tackle analyst relations, you may want to look to a PR firm for this high-value service.