Forrester Research acquires FeedbackNow and GlimpzIt

Forrester Research has added another layer to its existing customer experience (CX) consulting practice and its existing content marketing consulting practice.

In doing so, Forrester Research has taken steps towards being a technology owner instead of a technology advisor, evolving from a traditional research-based firm towards real-time analytics.

Similar to Oracle, Salesforce, Adobe, and many more, the acquisitions are the precursor for a forthcoming CX Cloud by Forrester Research which will integrate the two businesses within it and is expected to launch next year.

"What’s missing is real time," said George Colony, CEO of Forrester Research. "Companies won’t stand out unless they can monitor and improve experiences on a minute-to-minute basis — and perfect themselves through a continuous Darwinian process of adaptation."

Capabilities

With FeedbackNow and GlimpzIt, Forrester Research has opened its revenue pipeline to the subscription-based software sales model, similar to Salesforce.

While FeedbackNow is a data collection program that plugs into Wi-Fi networks to enhance CX, GlimpzIt recognizes content to gauge the sentiments around customer satisfaction.

Combined with the forthcoming CX Cloud by Forrester, they could potentially help a brick & mortar business identify customer concerns in real time and address them.

Analysis

Industry sources showed concern over the move, adding that it may impact the credibility and integrity of the Forrester technology industry reports by Forrester in ranking cloud-based products. The sentiments echo similar concerns expressed when Accenture announced it would offer programmatic-based buying and planning services.

Forrester views the acquisition as being a critical step in helping the company better understand the needs of CX cloud customers, with the shift towards technology owner offering it the ability to see the gaps in the market and fill them at scale.

According to the latest SEC filing by Forrester, the acquisitions of both FeedbackNow and GlimpzIt are worth under $5 million when stock-based compensation, acquisition, and integration loads are taken into consideration.