We recently had the honor of being named a Gartner “Cool Vendor in CRM Customer Service and Social.” All I’ve heard since then is, a bunch of questions and comments, like:
- Who’s Gartner?
- What does this mean?
- You’re really not that cool!
I’d like to clear this up for everyone, once and for all.
Who’s Gartner – they are the clear leader among IT Analyst Firms. To put it into perspective, they are a $1B+ organization whose ticker symbol is IT. Enough said. Specifically to us, they have been preaching for years to CIOs (Chief Information Officers) that IT needs to function as a strategic business unit, not as a group of tech people.
What does this mean? – It validates everything we’ve been doing. When I demo Engage121 I always hear prospective clients say “cool,” to which my response is always “Why?” Because nothing we do is actually cool for the sake of being cool. There is always a method to the madness; or as we call them at Engage121, Business Solutions…a.k.a.…the same thing that Gartner is challenging CIOs to deliver on a daily basis.
What are business solutions? It depends on your line of business. For Restaurants, you want more butts in seats. For Real Estate Organizations, you want more listings and more sold houses. For Financial Institutions, you want to retain and grow your client base. We help our clients achieve their specific objectives through social media every day. Heck, I challenge you to find a corporate objective that social can’t influence.
And to my friends who say I am really not that cool, you know who you are. You are just busting our chops, because you are right there with us. Together, we are in the midst of working on some stuff that is straight up revolutionary. We are changing the ways business is done on a day-to-day basis.
Things couldn’t be any more exciting at Engage121 than they are right now. I am thrilled that I get to enjoy the ride. For the rest of you, buckle up because big things are coming. How do I know? Because I’m cool.