Evaluate your channel
Sep 08, 2014
Evaluate your channel
Where is your
Channel Management?
Lack of resellers
Overloading processesWrong partners
Inadequate T&Cs
Channel Marketing sucksToo many resellers
The Channel Compass
A methodology to identify, vizualise, and communicate the key directions for your channel management
pragmatic and straight forwardtested successfully at many IT companieseasy to rundeveloped by Lemon Operations as open source
RecommendationsAll teams that touch the channel to be represented (Sales, Marketing, Support, Admin)
3 hours face to face meeting
Material to be sent upfront to attendees for them to come prepared
Master Principle
Best IT Channel Management always relies on
Ability (capacity, capability)Relationship (cooperation, alignment)ofChannel partnersYourself
The Channel Compass
How do we Driveour Channel?
How do we assess our channel partners?
Rating5 (close to arrow) = meet/exceeds expectation1 (close to center) = put the business at risk
Great Channel Management Weak Channel Management
Us
Fill in the tables1. Present all the tables to the
attendees to save confusion among the topics
2. Get back to the first table and start reading the questions. The list is not exhaustive.
3. Write the positive facts in the «Strong» column. Bullet points, no phrase. Keep it short and focused.
4. Write the facts to be improved in the «Weak» column.
5. Put an overall rating for this topic on the speed meter. 1 for weak, 5 for strong.
6. Get to the next table
Our Cooperation1
23
4
5Weak Strong
Key Questions Strong Weak
Do we treat our resellers/distributors as an extension of our own Company?Do we trust them?Do we have regular dialogue on the business perspectives, upfront the business plan?Do we easily share market and customer data with our channel partners?
Our Alignment1
23
4
5Weak Strong
Key Questions Strong Weak
Are the channel account managers and channel marketing well aligned?Are marketing strategies well aligned with the channel strategies and vice versa?Are there regular meetings between channel and marketing management to align strategies?
Our Capability1
23
4
5Weak Strong
Key Questions Strong Weak
Are the channel account managers skilled to coach their channel (sales + marketing)?Are our marketing managers skilled to coach their partners? Do we have the right tools in place to measure our channel performance (sales, marketing, ROI)?
Our Capacity1
23
4
5Weak Strong
Key Questions Strong Weak
Do we have enough resources to follow up our current channel partners?Do we have enough resources to expand our channel?Do we have enough resources to follow up the marketing activities of the channel?Do we have resources to work on future channel strategies?
Our Channel Partners
Channel Cooperation 1
23
4
5Weak Strong
Key Questions Strong Weak
Do channel partners demonstrate a good mindset on our products, strategies?Do channel partners proactively propose business strategies for our products?Do channel partners share their market/customer data with us?
Channel Alignment 1
23
4
5Weak Strong
Key Questions Strong Weak
Do channel partners focus on the right business priorities?Are the channel marketing programs aligned with MDF guidelines?Are channel partners selling in the right way?Are they using the right messages?
Channel Capability 1
23
4
5Weak Strong
Key Questions Strong Weak
Do resellers understand our market and demonstrate enough expertise?Do partners drive efficient marketing activities with strong ROI?Do partners have good process to deliver on their sales/ marketing?How efficiently resellers deliver on service to customers?
Channel Capacity1
23
4
5Weak Strong
Key Questions Strong Weak
Do we have too little/many resellers to address the market?Is our channel equipped to cope with the growth/decline of our business?Do our channel partners have enough resources (sales/mkt/services) to cover market needs?Do we have credit issues with our partners?
The Outcome
Our Channel CompassChannel
Capability
Channel Alignment
Channel Capacity
Channel Cooperation
Our Cooperation
Our Capability
Our Capacity
Our Alignment
Our Channel
Us
Options
By Division
By Country/Geography
By Channel Type
Compare to previous period to evaluate progress
Action Plan
Involve our partners in our next biz plan definition
Recruit new resellers
Train our team on channel management
URGENT: CALL LEMON OPERATIONS!
BenefitsA key foundation to build best-in-class channel
Great eye opener
Align channel management teams
Focus on top and right priorities
Easy and time efficient
Free