Blogs and online sources influencing tech buyers

Telecom service providers need to be monitoring what is said about them on the Web and learning from what they read in order to reach out to technology buyers in a positive way, said one author of Hill & Knowlton’s annual Tech Decision-Makers Study. That study, now in its fourth year, shows that consumer-generated content increasingly influences other tech buyers’ purchasing decisions.

“That is our number-one recommendation for telecom providers,” said Joshua Reynolds, global technology practice director for Hill & Knowlton. “What they read online might not be true, but it is true perception.”

While superior products and services (cited by 94%), superior customer service (91%) and a positive reputation (91%) remain key influences in determining which customers make a buyer’s short list of prospects, more than one third of tech decision-makers either always or frequently turn to blogs or online discussion boards before making a purchase, the study shows. The Tech Decision-Makers study also found that word-of-mouth and industry analyst opinions finish second only to prior personal experience when it comes to making buying short lists.

“The channels of information that technology buyers are going to are more evenly spread across the board – it’s all become much more of an equal mix of things that influence decision,” Reynolds said. “The implication in a down economy is that there is a much broader set of channels [that tech companies] have to look at more seriously, and they need to quantify the influence those channels have. It’s not just a matter anymore of doubling down on advertising and [public relations].”

Hill & Knowlton is advising its clients to get smarter about spending precious resources. “You have to know when to engage which channel for which decision,” Reynolds said. “You can’t overspend when budgets are tight, so you have to make sure which channel influences which decision so there is no waste.”

So where in the past, a telecom company might try to influence enterprise buyers by spending to increase brand awareness and promote image, today, Reynolds said, “It’s not just the ads or brands – the buyers are as influenced by trade magazines, by what they are hearing from peers in blogs and online discussion boards.”

The first step in trying to influence these Web-based sources “is to shut up and listen – you monitor, you learn,” Reynolds said. “In a down economy, it’s amazing how the Web is a cost-effective alternative to focus groups. So before you jump in, you look at it and try to understand it.”

If negative things are being said, “decide if there is a grain of truth or if they have it wrong,” Reynolds added. “If they have it wrong, engage in outbound communications to change that. If they have a point, change your strategy.”

In the US, the online versions of traditional trade publications were highly trusted, he said.