How Microsoft should market multi-touch

If I were Microsoft, i’d be embracing the iPhone/iPod Touch platform in a big way, (there are some really obvious apps beyond the few things they’ve done to date) and make sure each and everyone was properly branded with the Surface brand. Strong emphasis on doing multi-touch both big and small screen. Multi-Touch is rapidly becoming associated with Apple. I’d work to change that if I were Redmond.

Control sync, control the world, once more

A while ago I posted about the need for what I called, Exchange for the Rest of My Life. It started after a meeting with the founder of Sharpcast who at the time was working on a really cool photo sync service… but it wasn’t enough for me. Here’s what I wanted.

I want to have (or have access to) every picture I have taken (I’ve been a digital camera users since 1995), every song in my collection and every document I have written on every one of my PCs. If I take pictures and download them to one of my PCs, I want those photos updated on all my other machines the next time I access them. I want it to happen simply, invisibly and just work.

The solution for this is here. I’ve talked about it before but with a new Windows Mobile client, it’s worth discussing again. it’s called SugarSync and it does exactly what I asked for. I simply install a client (PC and Mac) and tell it what folders I want on what machines… Everything is linked and stored in the cloud. Bonus? I can access all my content on any machine from a Web UI, see all my photos arranged into galleries (and there’s a nice smartphone client for WinMo and Blackberry that lets me view them as well). I switch among a half dozen computers on a regular basis and the ability to sit down on any one of them and see updated versions of what I’m working on is super useful. If you use more than one computer, you need to look at this service. Does this sound a lot like Live Mesh? Yes it does, except that the folks at Sharpcast are already delivering most of that functionality today.

I’ve spoken with the team there again recently and there’s even more fun stuff to come (which I have been asked not to discuss just yet) but keep an eye on these folks. I’ve talked a lot in the past about the power of the company that controls sync and my mantra of “control sync, control the world”. The team at Sharpcast are well down that path with the SugarSync eco system.

Expendability

Lessons in Analyst Relations

I’ve had the fortune of working as an Industry Analyst for more than a decade now. One of the interesting aspects of the job is dealing with the various analyst relations folks at different vendors over the years. Most are great and hardworking professionals. There are a few bozos out there too. What really separates the effective ones from the non-effective ones is how they approach the job.

1. AR is not the same as PR. Often, AR is handed off to PR folks and some folks have a problem seeing the difference the between the two. Understanding what analyst needs are is a big part in getting things right. Remember, we’re not here to report a story or get it first. We’re here to make sure we get it right and understand what an event means in context of many other things.

2. Analysts, Trade Journalists and Bloggers are similar but not necessarily the same. I’m analyst, I also blog and write a column for Computerworld. They’re all activities that are similar but they’re not the same. I have different needs when wearing each hat. Good AR folks know this and understand the differences. If you’re not sure, feel free to give me a call.

3. Know Your Analyst and Know The Analyst’s Firm. Every analyst is different. So is every firm. By definition, some firms like to create adversarial relationships with vendors as it’s in their best interest to do so. (we’re not one of them). Understand who the analyst is and what topics they cover is also really important. I used to cover a lot of enterprise IT stuff, I don’t cover that topic any more so briefing me is a waste of time. On the other hand, if you’re doing something in consumer or personal technology and we haven’t spoken, that’s not a good thing.

4. Financial Analysts aren’t the same as Industry Analysts. See above. While we care about numbers, we don’t care about them in the same way as the Wall Street folks do. Don’t confuse the two jobs.

5. Provide A Single Point of Contact Where Possible. This seems basic, after all a good part of succesful AR is about relationships. One of the best companies I have worked with over the years has a head of PR that keeps all of AR in house. They also have a dedicated point of contact for each analyst. There’s someone I know I can call anytime to get an answer about something or to deal with any issue. If that person is out, I always know who is covering. By contrast, other firms I know outsources AR to PR agencies, oftentimes, different products  get different AR folks and those folks can easily shift to different roles over the course of the year. Even worse is when in-house AR folks and outsourced AR folks seem at odds with each other. 

Most of the AR folks I have the pleasure of working with are fantastic, they’re hard working and whether they’re part of the in house team our outsourced do really get it. There’s an art to establishing analyst relations and if you’re not getting in front of the folks you need to, give me a call and I’ll give you a crash course.

Ethos, Pathos and Logos

I’ve talked in the past about the importance of vendors to understand Ethos, Pathos and Logos when they present to analysts and discussed the issues of analyst relations.

It’s important to understand that many vendors actually need to be prepared to tell three different stories as well as deal with three very different types of people who, in the end, have very different goals.

I’ve mentioned in the past that I’m an analyst, a blogger and a journalist. When I write a syndicated research report, it’s a very different process than writing a blog post, which in turn is very different than writing a column for Computerworld. I won’t even begin to get into the differences among analysts and analyst firms (and how they need to be approached) or the difference between industry and financial analysts.

The big disconnect is that analyst relations is not public relations, even though it’s often handed off to be done by the same folks who don’t differ in their approach. 

As I’ve said in the past, analysts are not here to report a story or be first with some "scoop". We’re here to make sure we get it right and to make sure can put whatever is happening in the world into the context of other things that are happening. There is a difference and the best PR and AR folks know and understand that.