One truth about a partner relationship management program is that the one-size-fits-all approach just won’t work. You need to understand your partner base, divide them into different personas and see what works with each of them and what doesn’t. The next step is to apply that knowledge to help your channel partners. The solution is simple. If you want your channel partners to sell more, help them to market, to sell, and to reach out to you. It is up to you to put an end to your channel partner’s inertia. Channel partners are never going to tell you what they need, and no matter how much support you offer, no matter how many sales and marketing campaigns you create or assets you provide—they are not going to use them unless it is easy for them to do so. Browsing through multiple emails or folders for that presentation is a turnoff, so is having to contest with another channel partner for their lead. Successful vendors know what their channel partners are up to—at any given point in time. They know what their channel partners want, their strengths, weakness and they work to protect their channel partner’s interests.
So, understand your channel partner’s mindset and tailor your PRM program around it.
