Gathering and analysing global feedback from analysts for SageCircle.

Challenge  

One of the world’s largest hyperscale providers sought an independent assessment of their industry analyst relations (AR) program. As a market leader, their share of voice and power of voice in analyst research is already outstanding. But they faced the challenge of supporting analysts with limited resources and addressing their boundless curiosity.

Enter SageCircle, a US-based AR evaluation consultancy, and CCgroup’s analyst relations team, joining forces to gather and analyze global feedback from analysts.

Consultancy  

Previous online surveys showed that AWS, Google, and Microsoft had highly effective AR programs with unique strengths, suggesting different goals. However, more than online surveys were needed to understand the analysts deeply.

CCgroup and SageCircle devised an innovative year-long research process involving qualitative follow-up interviews, propelling the firm from best practice to next practice.

Consequence 

Under the guidance of CCgroup’s Director of Analyst Relations, Duncan Chapple, and SageCircle specialists, 298 online interviews were conducted with industry analysts following our client and its peers. Valuable insights were gathered, and a significant percentage of analysts even volunteered for follow-up interviews.

These in-depth interviews revealed how innovative AR leaders delighted the most valued analysts across various industries. The firm also gained valuable insights into the impact of AR advocacy and the potential that lay in untapped areas.

Barry Stuart, SageCircle’s COO, praised CCgroup’s can-do approach, which enriched their work. “The continuous flow of insights from Duncan’s interviews allowed for flexible data collection, empowering our client to make substantial improvements in resource allocation and discover pockets of excellence to share globally, especially in Asia-Pacific.”

Incredible work by CCgroup, the largest AR consultancy outside the US, significantly enhanced SageCircle’s ability to expand their global data collection and deliver outstanding results!