Partner Strategy Ideas

from the mail bag in Oct., 2021:

“Hello Peter. I enjoyed your Master Agent article very much. You touched on some points that I wish our leadership would take into account. I am also seeing many partners going to indirect sales and some who just skip the Masters all together and signing directly with the [vendor]. So, here are my questions for you; (1) Where do you see the channel going in the next few years? (2) With so many changes in the horizon, should those in the channel now be looking to get out? (3) If so, where in the Telcom space should they focus their attention? (4) If not, what should they change and what strategies should they start with now? Thanks for the article! Have a great day!”

There is a lot to unpack from the dialog around my last post.

(1) The Channel is going to look very different in a few years. Many partners are aging and not many new ones are coming on. There will be many openings for people who want to sell AAS for commission as opposed to getting a sales rep job with salary and benefits.

If any of the roll-ups work out [and don’t become TNCI], there will be pockets of areas for partners to excel – even as a regional master agency/broker. It will take specialty and focus.

(2) Should you get out? Up to you. There are 3 options: (1) Ride it out into the sunset if you can; (2) take an exit (that isn’t really an exit); or (3) Double down!

Although many vendors (and pundits) are betting on buyers leveraging marketplaces, how many SMB owners do you know that know what they want/need and where to get it? There is far too much technology available that has outpaced the average business owner – not only to utilize but to even know about!! Luckily, most vendors do a poor job of talking Use Cases and speaking English in marketing. Most marketing is a wordle of buzz words in the hopes of SEO — a miserable strategy since not many buyers are searching for CCaaS or CXaaS. You know what I mean? Or omni-channel customer experience enhanced with ML and AI. Yeah, Paul in Procurement is really searching for that! But there is Opportunity: Someone has to help businesses procure and leverage the awesome tech that is available. And that has been the IT/tech/telecom channel and will continue to do so.

To do that, a partner has to be dedicated to learning – that isn’t for everyone.

(3) Where to focus in TELECOM? Look to your customers! Who do you sell to? What do they need? How can you help them? What will they pay for?

Another aspect may be look to what looks interesting. IoT is just now coming to small business the way it did for Smart Homes (think Ring or SimpliSafe). There are many cool tech items available including NEC’s Smart Workspaces. The best way to make hay is to specialize in a vertical or two. Learn the lingo, the vendors, the thought leaders, and the emerging tech and how it can be used. Word of mouth in a vertical silo echoes loud!

(4) The best strategy is to focus on the customers! Someone has to teach them, assist them, and help them reach the outcomes they are shooting for. That was originally the idea behind the Channel. Most people didn’t know anything about computers and software – VARs and SIs came along to help businesses utilize Microsoft, Oracle, etc.

Today, the area with the most upside is Cyber-Security. There are plenty of places to get certified including with CompTIA. Take sales training from cybersec vendors. There is a lot of room to grow and prosper.

Another area is Customer Experience which is a combination of UCaaS, CPaaS, CCaaS, AI and other stuff. Mid-sized businesses with 150+ employees will be the sweet spot to bring CX to. Or chains that have not seen technology like dry cleaners, florists, bakeries. There is a whole market for selling broadband, POS, phone system, website, marketing and self-serve.

(5) My Cloud Voice Alliance talk is tomorrow on “So you want a channel partner to sell your stuff!” One of the CVA Board members asked me how the changing channel affects white-label folks. I haven’t given it much thought. My first reaction is that as more and more vendors look to the channel to be their sales force the channel is NOT growing in numbers. Different sections of the channel are growing like developers/ISVs. PS (Professional Services) shops that can do some dev and software roll outs. But just plain sales partners are not growing. 

The biggest problem vendors have is that they are missing components necessary for a successful partner program. There are very important elements that a company has to have before a partner program can work. I am not talking about a commission system either. The foundations for a partner program are fundamental: Marketing, value prop, systems, process/procedure, service delivery to name a few. Most vendors are missing the Value Proposition — and that is the most important piece as prices decline.

I hope that helps. If you have more questions, comment on the LinkedIn post; drop me an email; message me on LinkedIn; or hit me up on twitter.

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