How to Brief a Forrester or Gartner Analyst
What ChatGPT imagines a briefing is like - what’s up with that…Dove?
I am still surprised how many companies aren’t aware that you can brief Forrester and Gartner analysts for free - but only if your briefing request is compelling enough for them to accept!
Forrester’s form is here: https://www.forrester.com/help/analyst-briefing/
Gartner’s form is here: https://www.gartner.com/en/contact/vendor-briefings
For both firms you’ll need to register, but the account itself is free - you don’t need a seat license for this.
Gartner vs Forrester Briefings: Key Differences
While both firms offer free vendor briefings, there are some important differences to know:
Lead Times: Right now I'm seeing 2-3 months from request to briefing with Gartner in many cases, while Forrester is typically scheduling within 3-4 weeks. Plan accordingly if you're preparing for an evaluation.
Request Process: Gartner's form has strict 500-character limits on most fields (which the form doesn't tell you until submission fails!). Forrester gives you more room to make your case. This means your Gartner request needs to be especially tight and punchy.
Analyst Engagement: Both firms train their analysts to listen more than speak during vendor briefings, but I've found Forrester analysts are sometimes more willing to engage in brief Q&A if you ask thoughtful questions about market trends (not about your specific competitors or standing). Gartner analysts tend to be more strictly one-way information gathering. Don't take it personally—it's just their style.
Coverage Approach: Forrester tends to brief more liberally, while Gartner is more selective about which vendors they'll spend time with. This makes your Gartner request even more critical—you really need to make the case for why you're relevant to their coverage.
Quick tips for a compelling request:
Use their language. If you are hoping to brief the analyst who writes about XYZ your request needs to directly convey that you are a fast-growing / highly relevant XYZ vendor. Don’t make your life harder by being dogmatic about how you prefer calling the space ABC.
Prove the fast-growing / highly relevant. Name drop noteworthy clients who have switched from already-covered vendors to you in the last 6-12 months, or share other data about growth rate and customers you are adding. You’re telling this analyst that if they haven’t already heard of you, they are about to be, so they should want to spend their precious time getting to know you.
Preview how you’ll use the time. If there’s a major trend or disruption your company leans into, share a sentence of that differentiation here, along with its value to the businesses you serve. I have also had some success with Gartner where you might only get 30 minutes saying that if they give us 45 we would love to show them a short demo of X functionality.
Show you’ve researched. Before you submit, check their LinkedIn, scour their firm profile to understand their current focus areas, and try to get access to any recent research if possible. Even if you can only refer to an abstract, reference something specific in your request: "We noticed your recent report on XYZ trend—our approach directly addresses this by..." This demonstrates you're not just spray-and-pray requesting every analyst.
Be specific about timing and format. If you're requesting because you have a major announcement, product launch, or evaluation coming up, say so. "We're launching our new AI capabilities in Q1 and wanted you to have context on these updates before your major conference” gives context for why now matters.
Here’s a highly cliched fictional example to get you started:
PawTech AI is a Series B startup in the XYZ space, focused on bringing AI workflows to the fast-growing pet care space. In the past year we have implemented our technology for Fortune 500 companies such as CanineTech Innovations, PawPrint Enterprises, and Bark Industries - each of which switched to our solution from traditional technologies such as SAP (Smart Animal Pathfinders) and SFDC (Safe and Friendly Dog Care) because of their desire for a more streamlined and responsive technology. If you would be open to spending 45 minutes with us, we would love to demo how our PawBot customizes each walk to its canine recipient (our clients tell us SAP and SFDC have promised this in their roadmaps but have not delivered successfully).
Two Final Frequently Asked Questions:
Do I need a seat license / contract / or to otherwise be paying money for this? Nope! absolutely not! Analysts want and need to be hearing from vendors who are not paying them, and briefings are the main way they do that.
My sales rep offered to just set up a briefing for me, shouldn’t I just do that?
Here’s why I wouldn’t: Understanding whether an Industry Analyst will take your briefing request outside of them trying to sell to you gives you valuable information about whether you’re already showing up on their radar through inbound inquiries from buyers and creating organic interest. Don’t waste this opportunity to find out by taking the sales shortcut.
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Hope you find this helpful in making that first briefing request! If you want to talk live about more help, just scroll up and hit the big blue Lets Talk button to grab time on my calendar.
Up (and to the right!)
-Elena
Note: This piece was originally published in June of 2024 and updated in December of 2025
