Top of Mind - or Out of Sight?

No doubt about it – you’re in a very competitive situation. Your channel partner is selling multiple products; he is very comfortable with some, less familiar with others, and yours – the newest product in his toolkit – is at a distinct disadvantage because one of more of the following are true:

·         Unknown product

·         Unknown vendor

·         Low margins

·         Low price

·         Weak incentives

·         New technology

Just like any sales rep, your channel partner will find the easiest path to closing a sale. And that means going back to the tried-and-true products. These are the comfortable products: the rep knows how to sell them, and how the customer wants to buy, understands the competition, and knows how to position the product and its value.

A new product, from a new vendor, especially if it represents new or breakthrough technology, requires time, learning, focus and attention. In other words, it costs the channel sales reps time and, possibly, money. It slows their ability to make their numbers. For this reason, the new product drops to the bottom of the list and doesn’t get a lot of mindshare.

Channel sales managers should anticipate this situation and prepare for it. How to get mindshare? The most important thing is to make sure the channel sales and support team are trained. Training must include the product (functionality, benefits, features, how to sell, to whom to sell, where to sell) as well as any pertinent information on the vendor background as it relates to expertise, IP, background, industry knowledge, etc.) as well as information on how to demo, install and support the product.

Once the channel team is trained, don’t stop there. Take active steps to make sure they achieve early success in selling the product. The tendency at this point is for the channel sales manager to focus on lead generation or MDF-funded activities. Don’t do this. Don’t rely on leads or MDF to jump-start a reluctant sales team. They will always say “I’ll do it later.”

My approach is to always, as a channel sales manager, is the following:

1.       I find 3-5 really significant opportunities. These come through working with the channel’s own sales organization to identify the opportunities, or finding them through my own corporate marketing organization. The important thing is that I am responsible for finding them – it’s not up to someone else.

2.       I identify two or three channel sales reps who have potential, and can be convinced it’s worth their time to take on a new product.

3.       I get in the trenches with them, develop a script, do some role-playing, then do cold calling together with them. This helps me make sure they understand the messaging, value proposition and competitive landscape.

4.       I work with them to develop the 3-5 opportunities, while developing new leads.

In this way, I can accelerate their path to early success, which builds mindshare inside the channel organization and leads to increased early acceptance of the product.