We know how many analysts from ‘rival’ research concerns read HotViews, so this post is as much for my fellow analysts as for our normal readers.
I guess back in the 1980s and 1990s, I was considered quite a tech ‘media star’. I built up strong personal readership. In 1996 my thoughts turned to building a more sustainable company that was not just dependent on me. Anthony Miller and others of the current TechMarketView team joined. But I was very keen that they became ‘stars’ too. Even when we sold to Ovum in 2000, the concept of analysts as ‘stars’ continued. It was only when Ovum was bought by Datamonitor in late 2006 that I realised that this view was not shared by all.
You see there is a downside for any company promoting personal ‘stars’. They build up personal loyalty which can move with them if they jump ship.
This came to mind when I read the FT 29th Jul 11 – Media groups eye reporters’ Twitter feeds. It’s all about how the BBC’s political correspondence Laura Kuenssberg moved to ITV and immediately took her 60,000 Twitter followers with her. Indeed, social media just increases the risks of this happening.
For newspapers it is a major problem. I am a great Lucy Kellaway fan from the FT. But Lucy posts all her columns to her personal Twitter account. If she jumped ship, I doubt I’d notice. Same applies to many of my other favourite columnists.
As sales of print newspapers decline, and as readers turn to digital versions, the problem will just get worse. It is a bit like what has happened in the music sector. You used to have to buy a whole album (newspaper). Now you buy just the tracks (articles) you want.
I’m sure many firms – including analyst/researchers like us - will be changing their employment contracts to cover this. Ie making it more difficult for people to take their Twitter followers with them.
But the answer is not to discourage the ‘stars’. It is to ensure, just like record labels, that your stars are happy to stay with you. Because, as TechMarketView and its predecessors have found, a star-studded analyst list is the best route to success.