How to Do More with Partners When You’re Already Sprinting

Are you doing everything you can do for your partners? Likely you’re working very hard, but there is always more that can be done to better equip the partners in your channel program. What’s stopping you? If you are like the channel chiefs that join our Channel Chief & Chill discussion, it might be a lack of time, lack of resources, lack of understanding of tools, or something else. Our channel chiefs voiced these challenges and talked solutions.  

Here are a couple of suggestions from those same channel chiefs who are on the front lines every day, just like you. 

Advance your channel program from “nice to have” to essential 

Take a step back and start with the big picture. Many channel programs are viewed internally as “nice to have” but not absolutely essential to the business as a whole, as they truly are. This is either because the channel is not producing or more likely because the fruits that come out of the channel are not accurately portrayed to the rest of the company. If your organization as a whole doesn’t prioritize its own channel program, it can be difficult to find the proper resources and time to truly strengthen that program. 

Make your partner program more relevant to your business by having the correct conversations and showing the proper metrics to the leadership team. Use detailed reports and real numbers to show how much of a difference your partners are making and create a business case for spending more time and resources on these partners…then do exactly that! As the business gets behind the program, more resources can be allocated, and you can focus on your partners. 

Feed and feed from the same channel trough  

Channel becomes more relevant when the vendor starts to simultaneously feed and feed on its partners. Vendors cannot just take, take, take. They need to feed opportunities back into the channel as partner-shared leads. Offload deals to the channel that are not the right fit for your direct teams to work on and then pull leads out of that same channel that is brought in by your partners. As this symbiotic relationship continues and strengthens, you will see stronger and more loyal partners who will continue to fill up the channel trough.  

You may be surprised at how many channel chiefs are experiencing the same challenges you are. If you would like to meet with and talk to these other channel chiefs and find out how they are working through their obstacles, join our Channel Chief and Chill discussions every Wednesday morning at 9 am MST for North America and every Friday morning at 9 am GTM for Europe. You can sign up for your respective region’s discussion here.