Data Storage Buyers Survey: How to build the most effective marketing and PR strategy

Any vendor should regularly review their marketing and PR strategy. This is not just to ensure that this is still in line with the business direction and requirements, but to check that the tactics used are still as effective as they were when first adopted. PR, marketing, advertising, digital, social media, and the other communications channels, should always work together to provide the most effective combination for any given organization at any one time, and should be underpinned by a solid understanding of each target audience. A3 Communications, the data storage industry PR agency, recently polled IT decision makers in the UK and Germany to understand where they turn to in order to keep up to date with developments in the data storage industry. 

Unsurprisingly, news sites continue to figure as the number one source of information; investing in PR is therefore still a good move for most technology vendors. But to carry out PR in isolation would be a mistake. With IT decision makers also turning to a variety of other sources of information before they buy, data storage vendors should consider developing and implementing integrated communications strategies that fold analyst relations, marketing, and customer reference programs among others into more traditional PR activities. 

In order to provide PR professionals with a detailed insight into the current trends among end user organizations, A3 Communications has turned the findings of the survey into this whitepaper. The study, carried out by market research provider Vanson Bourne, polled 200 IT decision makers split equally between Germany and the UK. The respondents were asked: When it comes to keeping informed about, or researching, the data storage industry, what are the sources you tend to use the most?

The respondents represented organizations with 1,000+ employees, in the following sectors:

1. Business and professional services
2. Financial services
3. IT, technology, and telecoms
4. Manufacturing
5. Retail, distribution, and transport
6. Other commercial sectors.

Although this whitepaper touches on news sites’ continuing popularity, its purpose is to help communications professionals pinpoint where extra investment could make the most difference, by looking in detail at IT decision makers’ other sources of information.