Aberdeen's Content Delivery Strategy Results in 141% Growth in Web Site Traffic; User-Centric Approach Redefines IT Research Market.

Business/Technology Editors

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 19, 2003

Aberdeen Group today announced the first-year results of its Web-based content delivery model. Centered on building communities of qualified technology buyers -- and providing those buyers with free IT research -- Aberdeen's strategy has resulted in a 141% increase in Web site visitors over the last 12 months.

"Our results conclusively demonstrate that Aberdeen.com is quickly becoming a premier destination site for IT research and analysis," stated Thomas Willmott, Aberdeen President and CEO. "By removing the walls from the majority of our research, Aberdeen is delivering a value proposition unmatched by anyone else in our industry. Moreover, we believe that for various business reasons, other IT research firms are unable to follow in Aberdeen's footsteps."

By providing research to qualified user organizations free of charge, Aberdeen is able to establish focused communities of technology buyers. These communities, in turn, become a resource for Aberdeen's primary research initiatives.

Just as important, this strategy has dramatically increased the number of IT buyers using Aberdeen's Web site to make purchasing decisions. For the four-week period ending January 31, 2003, Aberdeen's Web site recorded over 275,000 visits, a 141% increase over the same period last year. This is in an environment in which many other IT research sites have seen a steady decline in traffic volume. The result of this surge in traffic: Aberdeen is able to put IT supplier organizations in touch with a growing number of potential buyers.

These internal measurements are confirmed by Aberdeen's dramatic improvement on Alexa.com, an independent Web site traffic-ranking engine. As of February 7, 2003, Aberdeen's 3-month average Alexa ranking was 11,165 (meaning Aberdeen.com was the 11,165th most popular site in the world) compared to 21,701 eight months earlier. This traffic increase has vaulted Aberdeen.com into the top tier of IT research sites. "During the holiday vacation period at the end of 2002, there was a natural decline in traffic to Aberdeen.com. This clearly impacts our current three-month average," stated Hugh Bishop, Aberdeen Senior Vice President. "We expect Aberdeen's position to improve significantly when the holiday-week period is removed from the data in early April. It is clear from Aberdeen's current one-week moving average for Alexa, which stood at 8,862 on February 7, that our trend line continues to improve. Our most recent one-day ranking is 5,204, which clearly reflects our impact for IT planners during the regular business week."

To support its new business model, Aberdeen has recently announced several promotions and organizational changes. Peter Kastner, Executive Vice President, Office of Technology Assessment, is tasked with the implementation of Aberdeen's new Web site infrastructure. Hugh Bishop will oversee Aberdeen's primary research programs in his new role as Senior Vice President, Corporate Knowledge Center, and continue to recruit IT buyers and planners to the Technology Forecasting Consortium, used to drive Aberdeen's user-spending data. Mr. Bishop will also continue to drive the electronic newsletter initiatives, which have been a major contributor to increased traffic at Aberdeen.com.

David Alschuler, Senior Vice President of Strategy and e-Business, is leading the Aberdeen Enterprise Network initiative. In this role he will replicate Aberdeen's Access Web sites, which are aimed at specific communities of technology buyers. Aberdeen's current Supply Chain Access and CRM Access will be joined in the coming months by sites focusing on additional information technology topics. He will continue to direct Aberdeen's Enterprise Business Applications and eLearning divisions. Additionally, Mr. Alschuler's colleagues, including Bob Moran, Denis Pombriant, Chris Fletcher and Tim Minahan, will continue in their important roles as research practice leaders.

Sandra Tubbs, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing, will be charged with guiding the direct and indirect sales teams, as well as executing the company's marketing strategy. A key objective will be to educate the market on Aberdeen's new Web-based programs and to engage technology suppliers as active participants in Aberdeen's end-user communities.

"We are not standing still," continued Willmott. "In addition to these promotions and organizational changes, we will be making numerous enhancements to our Web offerings throughout 2003."

Specific activities underway include:

-- Replicating the success of the user-oriented www.supplychainaccess.com and www.crmaccess.com sub-sites across all nine technology areas covered by Aberdeen.

-- Delivering new products and services that allow technology suppliers to reach Aberdeen's targeted audiences of IT buyers.

-- Continuing to build partnerships and alliances with leading IT media organizations to both enhance Aberdeen's research capabilities and expand Aberdeen's audience.

-- Improving the underlying infrastructure and usability of www.aberdeen.com by implementing a new content management solution from Oxcyon, Inc.

For more details on these specific initiatives, please read the following related Aberdeen press releases:

-- Aberdeen Group's Business Strategy Takes Aim at Market Research Behemoths http://www.aberdeen.com/ab_company/press/02-13-03-alsch.htm

-- Aberdeen Group Announces Corporate Knowledge Center http://www.aberdeen.com/ab_company/press/02-13-03-bishop.htm

-- Aberdeen Group Names Sandra Tubbs Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing http://www.aberdeen.com/ab_company/press/02-13-03-tubbs.htm

-- Aberdeen Advances Web Publishing Initiatives With New Web Site Management System http://www.aberdeen.com/ab_company/press/02-13-03-oxcyon.htm

For more information about Aberdeen's Web success and future initiatives, please contact Hugh Bishop at 617-854-5215 or e-mail at [e-mail].

About Aberdeen

Founded in 1988, Aberdeen Group is a leading IT market analysis and positioning services firm that helps Information Technology vendors establish leadership in emerging markets. The firm provides IT market intelligence, positioning, and market acceleration services to established and start-up technology companies. Aberdeen's consultants provide up-to-the-minute global IT market insights in more than 25 IT market segments. Research practices focus on emerging market opportunities, market growth rates, important industry trends, and customer buying patterns. The firm also helps clients to identify new market opportunities, enter those markets successfully, and accelerate the adoption of new technologies.

Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, Aberdeen has research and consulting divisions in Palo Alto, CA and Fort Collins, CO. Aberdeen is accessible via the Web at www.aberdeen.com.