A Channel Partner Program Can Drive Revenue When You Aren’t the Right Fit
As someone with a marketing background who operates in a sales role for Armada Digital, I have thoughts about how to best transition from wearing one hat to the other. This shift has also taught me a thing or two about how to build a trusted channel partner program. But first, my philosophy on marketing and sales.
If marketing is storytelling, sales involves asking the listener if they’ve heard this story before—and if so, emphasizing the parts that pertain to them. While I would never schedule an exploratory call with a prospect without first doing my research, I don’t operate with the assumption that they’ve done the same.
If I’ve learned anything—it’s to not gloss over the foundational elements of who you are, what you do, and who you serve. While I may cater that messaging to the listener ever so slightly, I am equally upfront about who we aren’t a great fit for. This approach either has the listener nodding along as we discover alignment, or we’re shifting the meeting to a place of curiosity where my goal is to gain an understanding of their need and see if I can point them in the right direction.
Because I’m direct and operate from a place of abundance, rather than a scarcity mindset (which ultimately leads to overpromising and underdelivering), trust is established quickly. We trust people who give it to us straight, even when it means leaving money on the table and we naturally place higher value on the recommendations and referrals from the people we trust.
All of the above has led me to deeply value relationships with folks who say what they mean, mean what they say, and follow through. And while the “trust, but verify” motto applies to this ethos, I’ve learned to pay attention to the clues along the way.
If I were to repeat the process to build our Channel Partner Program today, these are the 5 steps I’d follow for how to get it done:
1. Get Clear on Your Own Offer
We’re all busy people whose time is limited and valuable. While I would love to have instant recall from my mental Rolodex, I rely on Airtable instead. In this database, we store details about fellow service providers in the digital space with a short note about their offer and the industry they serve. Needless to say, those who weren’t able to succinctly deliver an elevator pitch or were willing to be everything to anyone aren’t at the top of the list.
2. Get to Know the People Behind the Business
As a process-oriented person, I have a tendency to get right down to business. I’ve since encouraged myself to get more curious and view these meetings as an opportunity to learn from one another.
Much of this shift in approach has to do with a book I’ve started reading from Alison Wood Brooks, called “TALK – The Science of Conversation and the Art of Being Ourselves.” I had the privilege of working with Alison during the website process and loved how she balanced personality and professionalism.
If I walk away from the introductory call with a clear understanding of your offer and a good idea of who you are as a person, it makes step #3 that much easier!
3. Make the Introduction Process as Easy as Possible
Once I’ve identified a need and am putting an introduction together—it benefits everyone involved when I share information that is both accurate and compelling. I want to provide everyone with as much context as possible, without inserting myself into the nitty-gritty.
I especially love an introductory deck or a list of FAQs that I can reference. Arm me with information and I will disseminate it!
4. Develop a Win-Win-Win Program
Our Channel Partner Program includes a referral fee payout so long as the agreement meets set requirements. While it benefits us to prioritize referring businesses that provide a financial incentive, our first priority is the code by which we operate. If someone in our network has a need and we know the right folks, then an introduction will be made, regardless of whether there is a sum waiting for us on the other side.
We feel that by offering a referral fee, it compensates our partners for taking the necessary time to get to know us, reviewing the assets we share, and making the sort of introductions that are win-win-win.
In some cases, we’ll need to work together to build a comprehensive strategy or joint-proposal that helps the prospect reach their goals. If that process is chaotic, we likely won’t be repeating it.
Developing a win-win-win channel partner program requires communicating where your process is flexible and where it is not. Our goal with shared clients is to ensure the client never feels like the middleman. While it isn’t necessary to create entirely new processes to relay pertinent information, the right hand does need to know what the left hand is doing
5. Give & Receive Feedback
A Channel Partner Program can only be considered successful so long as it’s resulting in consistent projects that are a success in their own right—meaning the client has their goals met and the engagement was profitable. Our definition of success will naturally shift over time as we look to achieve bigger wins and higher profit margins, but that growth won’t be possible without being open to feedback.
Whether it’s a minor note on a proposal or a larger conversation around setting expectations, we don’t shy away from tough conversations. After all, if a true partnership has been established, then we know that giving and receiving feedback is an opportunity to strengthen that relationship and develop a program that is win-win-win.
Have more questions about how to build a channel partner program, or are you looking to partner with our team? We’re all ears!