Customer Engagement Study

In its 12th year, Foundry’s annual Customer Engagement Study was conducted with the objective of understanding the various types of content consumed throughout the purchase process for major technology products and services. This research also provides insight into the engagement preferences of IT decision-makers when it comes to vendor follow-up, advertising, and maintaining relationships.   

Key takeaways:

• Relevant and consistent content is essential – 75% are more likely to consider an IT vendor who educates them through each stage of the decision process. 

• IT decision-makers are still challenged to find high-quality content, with the main reasons being too much marketing hype/buzzwords and lack of truly independent, unbiased information. Uncertainty if content is produced by a product expert or if it is AI generated does not top the list, likely because ITDMs are familiar with what AI is capable of doing.  

• Product testing/reviews/opinions, technology news articles, and product demos continue to be the top relied upon content types throughout the tech purchase process. Presentation of content is also important, as 76% of ITDMs say that they are more likely to engage with a variety of content if it is presented in an organized experience.  

• Vendors have a higher chance of gaining customers or receiving a response to outreach by understanding the importance of trust and brand reputation. More than three quarters of ITDMs say that they are more willing to exchange contact details with a company that they already have a relationship with.

• The number one rule in tech advertising – provide value. The majority (95%) of ITDMs have engaged with online advertisements, with addressing current needs, challenges or business objectives, or educated them about a technology or an important issue, increasing the likelihood of engagement.  

• Don’t miss the window – the average amount of time ITDMs think is an acceptable timeframe to receive sales follow-up after requesting information has expedited – 13 hours on average. This decreases to 9.6 hours for Gen Z and is 11.4 hours for Millennials. 

The findings and trends in this report solidify the need that tech buyers have for consistent, valuable and trustworthy content. These individuals are tasked with researching, evaluating, and implementing new technologies while shifting organizational processes and require the appropriate educational resources and relationships to do so. 

View the sample slides below for additional insight and download the full report to better understand and engage with tech buyers.

Additional buyer’s journey resources

Research blog

Technology buyers are not short on information. They’re drowning in it. The volume of material available to IT decision-makers has never been higher. Yet paradoxically, finding content that is clear and credible, remains a persistent challenge. Here are eight research-backed strategies tech marketers can use to connect more effectively with today’s tech buyers.

About the research

Foundry’s 12th annual Customer Engagement Study was conducted among the audience of 676 IT and business decision-makers. Foundry conducted this survey online throughout December 2025 to better understand the various types and volume of content consumed throughout the purchase process for major technology products and services. It also looks to gain insight into the preferences of IT decision-makers regarding IT vendor contact and follow-up during the purchase process. All respondents had IT or management titles, with 35% based in North America, 42% in Asia/ Pacific (APAC) regions, and 22% from Europe/Middle East/Africa (EMEA).

Contact us to explore the results by company size, region, generation, and more differences.