I was recently part of a panel of experts, gathered to advise an agency about updating the channel program for their client. The client wanted to get their channel partners to adopt digital marketing, and the agency asked questions about how to get the partners to make the move, including an incentive of MDF and possibly taking away MDF if the partner didn’t make the move. We were halfway into our time when I could no longer hold back and had to ask “Why is the vendor wanting partners to make this move? What are the benefits to the partner? How will it improve their sales, or ROI?” From the response, it seemed to me that the vendor didn’t have this point of view at all. The vendor had an agenda and wanted the partners to simply go along.

My experience is that channel partners come in quite a variety of business types. Some are run by sales people, work directly with only a handful of customers and they do no “marketing”. Some have a person who spends up to half-time on marketing and they want marketing content provided for them. Some send a newsletter to their customers once  quarter and that’s all the marketing they do. Some have quite sophisticated marketing teams, sending email campaigns and offering joint marketing programs to their vendors.

Nowhere in the discussion with this agency did they talk about how the vendor learned what their channel partners wanted. Or how they segmented their partners as to who might benefit most from moving to digital marketing. Or who, among their channel partners, had the capability to move to digital marketing. I’d call this a classic rookie mistake but it became clear the vendor was a big company who’s been in business for decades. Whatever caused their tunnel vision, focusing only on what they want, I predict they won’t get their desired results.

How do you listen to your channel partners? Do you survey them? Have them complete a scorecard to rate you, as a partner? Have quarterly account reviews? I strongly believe if you don’t have a regular way to engage them about how the business is going, and how you can best help them increase it, you’re leaving money on the table.