Channel management, by definition, is the practice in which a vendor or supplier directs sales and marketing activities by actively involving and motivating members of its channel distribution. Therefore, channel management decisions are necessary to ensure that there are no interruptions in the channel distribution flow. Creating a strong partner relationship is one of the most common factors that share in their channel management process.
An effective channel management process takes into consideration the power of partner engagement and how it contributes indirectly to more sales. Implementing a comprehensive channel management process incorporates all of the following 4 key components:
1- Selecting Channel Partners
The channel management process at times requires selecting new partnership applicants or reassessing current partners. When selecting new channel partners or re-evaluating existing partnerships, channel managers need to take into consideration their channel partners’:
- Level of cooperativeness
- Reputation
- Years in business
- Growth and profit records
2- Managing Channel Partners
This is one of the most important ongoing steps in the channel management process. In this stage of the partnership, managers need to:
- Sell through and also sell with their channel partners
- Recruit, train, and organize the members of their channel
- Establish a long-term relationship with their channel members
3- Motivating Channel Partners
Aside from training and establishing a close relationship, channel partners need to be constantly motivated in order to sell your product. Remember, you may not be the only vendor your partners deal with. So, to win against the competition, you need to motivate your channel partners and offer incentive programs. To do so, your channel management process needs to create the steps for:
- Establishing expectations and goals
- Developing recognition programs
- Not only rewarding but also, incentivizing best channel partners
4- Evaluating Channel Partners
When developing, implementing and measuring the effectiveness of channel sales and marketing programs as well as partners’ performances, businesses should consider:
- Sales quotas
- Average inventory level
- Customer delivery time
- Treatment of damaged and lost goods
- Cooperation in company promotions as well as training programs
- Services offered to the customer
At Computer Market Research (CMR), we seek to assist businesses in their channel management process. To help you make profitable and lucrative business decisions, we offer many solution applications that can be applied and customized to maximize your business profits.
With locations in Las Vegas, Nevada, and San Diego, California, CMR delivers cost-effective, web-based applications and services to manufacturers across the globe. CMR aims to assist manufacturers in managing channel data as well as maximizing the effectiveness of distribution channels.