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Move from vendor claims to analyst-backed category proof.

BARC Compass

An open-access research and visibility product
for software vendors in emerging categories.

See how BARC Compass works

Your category may be real.
Buyers still need proof they can trust.

Enterprise buyers are skeptical when a market is still forming. They see vendor claims, feature comparisons, and category language that often sounds the same. For software vendors, that creates four practical problems:

Category Proof

Buyers need independent evidence before they take an emerging category seriously.

AI Visibility

Buyers research in AI chatbots. Paywalled analyst content often stays invisible there.

Buyer Shortlists

Innovative vendors struggle to appear where buyers compare options and build their shortlist.

AR Workload

Traditional evaluations can require months of analyst relations effort for a single placement.

That is why buyers need category proof before they compare individual products.

How BARC Compass turns market signals into category proof

BARC Compass starts with the market, not the vendor claim. Analysts identify the trends shaping an emerging category and provide buyers with a curated view of relevant trends and solution providers. Your solution’s strengths are then mapped against those trends, helping buyers understand the market before they build a shortlist.

Industry trends + Your strengths = clearer buyer decisions.

Check if your solution fits

Now open for sponsorship!

Data Quality Management Compass

Publication: May 2026
Analyst: Florian Bigelmaier
Status: Available for sponsorship

The Data Quality Management Compass helps vendors position their solutions in a fast-evolving market where trusted, AI-ready, and automated data quality capabilities are becoming more important. If your product addresses one or more of the covered sub-trends, the Compass can help buyers understand where your solution fits.

  • Data Quality Management
  • Intelligent Data Observability
  • Business-Driven Data Quality
  • Lineage & Impact Analysis
  • Data Contracts
  • Streaming Data Quality
  • AI-Ready Data
  • Agentic DQ Management

Planned topic under review: Context Engineering Compass (Q3 2026)

What you get with a BARC Compass sponsorship

Not a quadrant. Not a ranking. BARC Compass is a category-building research and visibility format. It maps your solution’s strengths to relevant market trends so buyers can understand where your product fits before they build a shortlist.

BARC Compass

  • BARC Compass Badge (Proven Solution)
  • Personalized vendor profile + capability chart
  • 90-second analyst trend video
  • Full 7–8 page PDF report (open access)
  • 1-year BARC Reviews Visibility Boost

€ 15,900

$ 18,500

Why vendors trust BARC for category credibility

BARC combines independent analyst research, broad software market coverage, and direct access to the data and analytics practitioner community. That makes the Compass credible for buyers and useful for vendor marketing and sales teams.

30
Years of data & analytics research
400
Software vendors tracked globally
15K
Practitioners in BARC community
3
Dedicated data quality analysts

How to get started

1. Analyst Introduction Call

30-minute call with the BARC analyst covering your solution and which sub-trends are most relevant.

2. Short Questionnaire

Complete a brief vendor questionnaire; designed to be fast and low-burden for your AR team.

3. Profile Review

Review your draft capability chart and vendor profile before publication.

4. Publish & Amplify

Go live with PDF, badge, video, and BARC Reviews placement, and start activating across your channels.

Let's Position Your Solution Where Buyers Are Looking.

Talk to Andreas Dietz about the Data Quality Management Compass and whether your solution fits one of the covered sub-trends.

Discuss sponsorship fit
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