Written by a human
84% of b2b decision-makers say they read reviews as part of consideration for a purchase. But these days, it’s hard to know just how unbiased online reviews and recommendations really are. With influencers and partnerships clouding transparency, many users approach online reviews with skepticism.
Thankfully, Gartner’s Digital Communications Governance Reports are totally unbiased, and even reviewed for independence by an Office of Ombuds. This means that Gartner’s reports are incredibly important to both the companies who feature in them, and the end users searching for technology solutions.
In this article, you’ll learn about the significant impact of Gartner’s Digital Communications Governance Report and hear from an expert that’s worked directly with the organization.
Why are Gartner’s Market Guides so important?
Each Gartner Market Guide is important because it provides an overview of the most pressing industry trends, and helps users to partner with a technology provider that best fits their needs.
Elena Georgieva is a senior strategy and analyst relations consultant of almost ten years, and has been working with Gartner since the very beginning of her career. She explains the importance of market guides;
“Gartner’s reports and consultancy helps organizations to navigate very complex market dynamics through rigorous research, comprehensive data gathering, and methodologies that put the focus on unbiased analysis.
Overall, the Market Guide can help leaders and decision-makers with questions such as ‘How suitable is it to buy a certain solution today?’ or ‘What key capabilities are providers generally able to bring to this market this year?’.
This will help tech buyers manage the risk of investing in an emerging market because they will have clear insights into its potential and the direction it is going.”
All of Gartner’s guides use the same methodologies for reliable and impartial support, increasing their importance and trust among consumers.
Overview of the Digital Communications Governance report
The first Gartner Digital Communication Governance (DCG) Report was published in 2023, after it replaced a long-standing alternative – the Enterprise Information Archiving category. The latter was retired in favor of DCG to expand the scope of vendors. Instead of purely archival tools, the category now features ‘supporting communication connectors’.
This shift represents a wider broadening of the industry and provider complexity, with multipurpose tools now at play. While some of the other Gartner research exists to guide users in new and emerging markets, the DCG market is more mature, and the research aims to reflect this.
Elena explains, “this can be useful when a market is so mature that there are virtually no innovations, and offerings have become fairly interchangeable. Comparing solutions, in this case, is not as important as having an analysis of and recommendations about the market itself.”
The Digital Communications Governance Report includes a Magic Quadrant™ which is a visual comparison of the technology solutions. Providers are categorized into the following groups:
- Leaders: complete future vision with a high ability to execute today
- Visionaries: complete future vision with a lower ability to execute today
- Challengers: incomplete future vision with a high ability to execute today
- Niche-players: focused on a small proportion of the market, maybe lacking a future vision and execution for widespread application today
The report combines the Magic Quadrant™ with peer reviews to give a well-rounded analysis and comparison of digital communications governance providers.
How does Gartner select digital communications governance vendors?
Gartner research publications are known for being unbiased, research-driven recommendations, operating on the values of independence and objectivity.
There are a number of rules for analysts to follow when selecting and analyzing vendors for reports, they must:
- Follow a code of conduct, analysts cannot own stock in companies they cover and are not permitted to be board members of any company within the scope of research
- Have no vested interest in whether businesses succeed or fail
- Be prepared to interact with the Internal Office of the Ombuds protects the integrity of analysts and their research
Gartner takes up to two years to review the buying-decision needs of clients. Each communications platform is rated in the categories of weak, caution, variable, positive and strong in categories like:
- Product or service
- Support
- Pricing
- Technology
- Strategy
- Corporate viability
In the DCG space in particular, Gartner also analyzes the scope of communication channels for each vendor product, their market direction, and whether they meet must-have, standard or desired product capabilities.
Why does Gartner include peer reviews?
Once vendors are selected, Gartner enables a Peer Insights™ feature to gather extra feedback about each solution. This is useful because it offers personal experiences about some of the practical implications of each technology, and readers can apply these learnings to their individual situations.
Since the industry is fairly nuanced, peer reviews provide a significant advantage. Elena explains that all reviews on Gartner Peer Insights™ are verified by the analyst firm, so it’s very unlikely that any of these reviews are false.
Who relies on Gartner’s Digital Communications Governance report?
The DCG report is important for both end users and the technology companies themselves. Vendors featured in the report can use it as social proof, increasing sales and generating revenue.
From a reader perspective, the primary use of the Gartner Digital Communications Governance report is to compare various technology providers before a purchase or longstanding subscription.
Undergoing a total digital transformation as an enterprise costs an average of $3.9 trillion in 2024, and so choosing an unsuitable provider is an expensive mistake to make. When considering new investments, Gartner Magic Quadrant™ and Peer Insights™ provide details into real-world experiences and offer a trustworthy perspective, thanks to Gartner’s independence.
A further benefit of resources like the DCG report is to highlight emerging trends and new technological innovation, especially in a market that’s maturing, like RegTech.
“Companies can consult these reports to gain insights into trends such as artificial intelligence, helping them to identify which technologies to adopt and which vendors to consider for future projects. This is crucial for organizations aiming to stay competitive in rapidly evolving markets”, noted Elena.
Annual conferences sustain the impact of Gartner’s reports
Alongside the reports, Gartner conferences, such as their Data and Analytics summit, described as ‘highly influential’ by Elena. These, combined with Gartner’s Hype Cycles, prove the impact that the organization has on industry.
“Gartner summits are must-attend gatherings for IT professionals, business leaders and technology vendors. Presentations by senior analysts on topics like AI, cloud computing and digital transformation often serve as a roadmap for organizations looking to understand future trends and technologies. They set the tone for what the next big trends are, helping organizations to adjust their strategies accordingly”.
It’s the connections made at these events that often lead to collaborations, partnerships and even vendor selections, extending the event’s influence well beyond the few days it lasts.
“The exchange of knowledge between peers is invaluable for professionals who want to see how others are solving the same problems they face”, explained Elena, “it becomes a key venue for accelerating the implementation of ideas, shaping industry-wide technology adoption”.
Selecting a provider from Gartner’s Digital Communications Governance report
Reports like Gartner’s Digital Communications Governance documents are a great place to start when evaluating potential new vendors. Firms can map their requirements and get feedback from previous technology users to gain insights that they might not find elsewhere.
Selecting a provider with confidence means that partners can directly match needs to capabilities and oversee third party risks. In the governance and regulatory world, there is no excuse for mistakes, and even the smallest error can lead to financial and reputational damage.
Therefore, we recommend using the Gartner reports alongside other resources, like product demos and records of compliance, to have full confidence before signing the dotted line.
Global Relay provides communications capture, surveillance and archiving across every channel, including our in-house compliant messaging app. Why not explore how our suite of products can help you stay ahead of the regulators?