When Will Technology Analyst Market Research be Free?

There are numerous examples of free services offered in other digital goods markets such as books, movies, music, games and software. Is it plausible that such a change could occur in technology research? Chris Anderson states in his book called Free that “If it’s digital, sooner or later it’s going to be free.” Of course, most products that are “free” are subsidized by some other revenue stream that is dependent upon the item being given away. The model has worked for Google, Radiohead and Skype? But would it work for Gartner or Forrester?

The Big Switch is Not about Cloud Computing

The Big Switch is extremely well written, with lots of fascinating historical stories and analysis of potential changes to society resulting from technology. But I think that the description on the back cover – “The Definitive Guide to the Cloud Computing Revolution” – is misleading. Because, in my opinion the book is not really focused on Cloud Computing.

Google Your Marketing Group – Encourage your Thought Leaders to Spend 20% of their Time Developing Content

Google encourages its employees to spend 20% of their time on creative endeavors – a concept it calls “Innovation Time.” Many of Google’s most popular products including Gmail and Adsense originated from these independent projects. Google executives have stated that 50% of Google’s new product launches have originated from the 20% of free time employees have to pursue these discretionary activities. I think that marketing executives should embrace a similar principle for the key thought leaders.