Motivating Partner Channel with Incentives

Nowadays, numerous companies opt to sell their goods and services through a partner channel distribution network. The partners within the channel transport these products from manufacturers down to end consumers, showcasing an efficient process that has proven its effectiveness in generating maximum profitability. This emphasizes the important roles of partners in the network which calls for the need to provide them with incentives.

Why is it important for you to give these companies incentives? First of all, the fact of the matter is that channel partners are not your employees. They are separate organizations or are businesses that represent other organizations (they may even be your competitors) that all gun for maximum performance and optimal profitability. The point is that they are independent and have their own company objectives, methods and management strategies. This means that they won’t perform or simply sell some products for you. You’ll have to inspire and drive them to make you money, and the best way to do this is to give them money, that is to say, to offer them options that open opportunities for them to do what’s best for their own interests.

A big motivating factor is generating a lot of money because it keeps organizations running. Incentive programs should allow affiliates to recognize the need and the desire to keep their own customers happy and satisfy their bottom lines in such a way that they are not inconvenienced or burdened.

Here are some factors to consider when developing a partner channel incentive program:

Compelling Them to Participate – It is extremely important to consider motivational factors because quite frankly, resellers and other channel members have their own agendas to focus on. To compel them to participate, parent companies should make sure that these partners’ managers are sold or enticed by their mission and vision. An incentive program, no matter how mutually beneficial, will be useless if partners are not interested to align themselves with you.

Knowing and Understanding Who to Focus On – It is important to determine who you’re targeting. If you plan on targeting the salespeople with an incentive program, then you should consider how the reseller will take it. They would be grateful for it if the offerings supplement or complement theirs. However, there would be instances when they would resist such programs because external support and incentives that motivate their salespeople may prompt them to perform on someone else’s behalf instead of theirs.

Building Stronger Partnerships – Understanding the real essence of what business partnership is all about can help you design a very effective channel incentive program. It is critical to discern what the relationship means to each member and how you can help them improve in different aspects such. Being a true partner is the best kind of motivation. A true partner is an organization or firm that helps resellers build and expand their companies. For many, this is more motivating than extra commission here and there. To build a strong partnership, you can invest in better quality performance assessment and training programs.