Members of the news media frequently contact Gartner for independent commentary, insight and expertise. In a typical month, Gartner receives hundreds of media calls worldwide that result in thousands of press quotes each year. Our interaction with the media is a two-way relationship; Gartner commentary adds an objective perspective and authority to news stories, and our prominence in the media reflects Gartner’s thought leadership on the most critical priorities of our clients.
This PR policy (a more detailed version is available to Gartner associates via the corporate intranet) applies to all Gartner associates. It outlines the rules and processes we follow in our interactions with the media for all interested external audiences. For more information, please contact any member of the Gartner PR team.
Accepting media interviews
Gartner experts should only accept an interview that focuses on their coverage area or vertical industry expertise. Comments should be consistent with Gartner’s published position. If a reporter asks about topics or an industry that is not in their coverage area, associates should take the journalist’s contact details and forward them to the Public Relations (PR) department, or provide the journalist with the contact details for their local PR team member. The PR team will help the journalist further.
Gartner experts can accept interviews if they have time available and approval from their manager. Gartner experts may need to decline interview opportunities if demand on their time from client commitments prevents them from being prepared for the interview. If this is the case, the Gartner expert can recommend that the journalist contact the PR team to see if anyone else can help, or they take the journalists’ details and pass that on to the PR team.
Sharing information with journalists
Gartner tries to keep a balance between providing journalists with enough information to use in a story, while not giving away too much of what our clients pay for. When sharing content with journalists, Gartner experts should make sure that content has already been available to clients. The content can come from published research, presentations, the Gartner Blog Network, Gartner podcasts and/or webinars.
Comments to the media should be consistent with Gartner’s published research. Not all answers to a journalist’s questions can be directly pointed to Gartner research, but general positions should be consistent with published Gartner content.
Providing quotes for external press releases
Gartner can provide factual information about industry trends in third-party press releases, but Gartner experts cannot provide custom quotes on specific products and/or companies. No custom analyst quotes — formal or informal — are allowed. This is because the quote may imply endorsement within the context of third-party materials. Gartner comments should be based on published research that is less than 12 months old.
Gartner experts do not provide final approval on other company releases. The expert can work with the company on the content/quote from published research that is being used, but final approval for all Gartner mentions and Gartner quotes for third-party press releases must be done through the Gartner Content Compliance team. Companies should submit their press releases to this online submission form that grants approval for certain use cases.. More information is available in the Gartner Content Compliance policy.
Brand journalism/content marketing/company-sponsored content represented as news
Gartner experts should not conduct interviews with writers who are producing articles for company-sponsored websites or magazines, commonly referred to as brand journalism or content marketing. Although many companies are producing news-quality content, this type of material is often not independent from commercial objectives due to the source of funding.
Company-sponsored websites or magazines can quote Gartner published research, but any material used must be reviewed (in the full and final document) and approved by the Content Compliance team. Gartner experts cannot provide “custom quotes” or be interviewed.
As such, writers producing third-party sponsored content should follow the Gartner Content Compliance policy.
Writers producing this kind of branded content for third-parties can register for Gartner conferences as attendees. Media passes are reserved for journalists at independent media organizations (more information can be found in Gartner’s Media registration for conferences policy).
Attending third-party conferences
A Gartner expert should not automatically accept an invitation to present at a third-party event. Permission must be obtained from the expert’s manager, and Gartner Conferences. This is to ensure that Gartner is not compromising its objectivity or presenting at a conference that competes with Gartner.
Participating in Press Conferences/Roundtables
Gartner experts should refer all invitations to attend press conferences/roundtables organized by a third party to a member of the Gartner PR team.
Commenting on media speculation
The media will at times report on industry speculation, such as “company X is rumored to be in talks with company Y” or “it’s widely believed that it was company X that caused the problem, but they haven’t confirmed or denied it yet.” As a general rule, Gartner experts should not comment on a specific company that is the subject of media speculation or rumor. If the expert is not sure how to handle a media situation such as this, they can contact their local PR manager.
Participating in webcasts, podcasts, web-based video and broadcast media webcasts
A company produced webcast, podcast, or video interview with a Gartner expert must be submitted to Gartner Content Compliance for approval in advance of participation.
Gartner does not permit clients to record (visual or audio) a Gartner expert. Gartner experts can only be recorded by Gartner Media Products for Gartner produced programs.
Contributing to external blogs
Gartner experts should not share a new or previously unstated position(s) on a company, company action or product in a blog post. This must be created through the official Gartner research process.
While Gartner supports the open exchange of ideas, as a company whose products and services center around information, we must be mindful that blogging by Gartner associates can have an impact on our business. We also recognize that blogging by Gartner associates carries with it certain ethical and legal responsibilities.
What to avoid
Gartner experts should not discuss externally Gartner financials or Gartner corporate strategy. The Gartner PR department will help with these requests. Other areas to avoid include stock-market-sensitive information and information under embargo or nondisclosure agreement (NDA). In addition, detailed comparative information is reserved for clients.
Reproducing Gartner content
Companies who wish to reproduce Gartner content or graphics (any Gartner copyrighted materials, including that which is already in the public domain such as a press release), must submit their request via the online Content Compliance submission form. A copy of our copyright policy is available online.
Conclusion
If there are any issues that arise that are not addressed in this PR Policy, please contact the local Gartner PR representative for assistance. For a complete list of the Gartner PR team, by region, please visit the Gartner Newsroom.