Technology evangelist: a promising career
Have you noticed that new professional careers that were not imagined at the beginning of the century have emerged recently? Can you tell what a tech evangelist does?
The acceleration in the development of new disruptive technologies is causing changes in the labor market. Some careers are becoming extinct, as anticipated, and others are undergoing changes, demanding new skills and knowledge. It is also predictable that professions will emerge, but some cases transcend what was imagined for the labor market of the future.
In this scenario, the technology evangelist is becoming more common in companies in this market. Professionals dedicated to this métier advocate certain technologies, products, and services that require a passion for innovation, combined with good networking and marketing. There are other ingredients and skills as well.
One piece of advice: do not walk into the simplistic reasoning that puts this professional as a poster boy. The concept of this new profession, experts in this market explain, achieves dimensions, skills, and tasks that go beyond — in quantity and complexity — the constant participation in commercials for a particular product or brand.
An evangelist is the face and voice of the company’s mission. It tells a compelling story, engages, through interaction across multiple channels, and builds a community of users and customers who help the product or cause achieve a viral, multiplier coefficient.
In the case of technology, we are talking about someone who raises awareness and creates a mass of users for a specific technology, product, or service. Their work covers many aspects of the business, including sales, marketing, and leadership.
Companies invested in the success of a technology or service typically pay technology evangelists to defend their product. However, the key to their work is transparency and the delivery of authentic content and communication to their audience.
This persona educates customers and other key market participants about the benefits of a specific technology, including platforms software tools, and applications. Their goal is to raise awareness and generate credibility for a product or service.
A constant reference of credibility in this profession is Guy Kawasaki, a North American born in Hawaii who disseminated the concept of technology evangelist for the marketing of Macintosh computers. As an evangelist at Apple, he impersonated the concepts of evangelism marketing, technology evangelism, and platform evangelism in general. Today, Kawasaki is the ambassador of the Mercedes Benz brand in the United States.
What are the characteristics and abilities of a good technology evangelist?
Work experience in the technology industry is an imperative factor among professionals in this area. And it could not be different: it takes an in-depth knowledge of various technologies, applications, products, and services to be able to provide valuable information to customers, understand the industry as a whole, and interpret competitors’ movements.
The target is to build up thought leadership, somebody capable of clearly explaining and convincing the reasons why a specific technology is essential.
Thus, speaking well in public is a key component of technological evangelism. Resourcefulness and competence are mandatory to make informative and interesting presentations. After all, a constant in this professional’s career is participation in conferences, fairs, technology exhibitions, and launches.
Furthermore, verbal communication among colleagues is also critical to an effective work environment. Writing coherent and concise texts and messages on all platforms helps to establish credibility for the product, brand, or concept.
The well-succeeded technology evangelist does not rest or have long vacations. Research must be a daily habit to keep up to date on emergent technologies, necessities, and trends. The work does not stop between one big launch and another, as well as in periods when there are no major events and meetings.
Creativity is a core ingredient to entering this work market. The average remuneration is US$ 100 thousand per year. A constant challenge is to develop creative ideas on how to spread their message and to reach the public efficiently; to implant a social media strategy to expand the reach, especially in user-saturated platforms.
After all, would you like to become a technology evangelist? There is no finished formula or course with a specific certificate, but the role is performed by professionals with clear-cut profiles and a range of expertise common to the innovation, marketing and communication areas. Creating relevant content in the social nets and studying the market daily may give a hint of what this profession entails.
Are you willing to take a disruptive step in your career?
