Channel Marketing

Insights

Blog

Channel Data Is A Competitive Differentiator

Jay McBain January 11, 2019
Leverage Channel Data To Give Partners A Better Experience: Winning In The Channel Requires Data-Driven Program Innovation     Brands that provide an enhanced partner experience grow faster than their peers, are more profitable, and drive higher customer satisfaction and retention downstream. Smart channel professionals are looking at data across the partner journey as a […]
Blog

Why Learning Matters to Your Success

Heather Loisel December 21, 2018
  • B2B marketing, product and sales teams need to have the right skills and knowledge to support business goals
  • Team members who feel their employer is invested in their success are more likely to stay
  • Because SiriusDecisions learning is based on our research, it’s already aligned to business initiatives
Blog

Three Ways Data Can Make or Break Your 2019 Channel Strategy

Jessica Lillian November 29, 2018
  • Channel leaders often don’t even realize they have insufficient data – or they’re focusing on the wrong data – until performance starts suffering
  • As suppliers restructure partner programs to accommodate new go-to-market models and partner types, data gathering becomes even more important
  • Focus on getting the right data for partner programs, demand generation plans and customer advocacy initiatives
Blog

Channel Software Tech Stack (2019) — INFOGRAPHIC

Jay McBain November 22, 2018
*** ALERT: NEW 2021 STACK NOW PUBLISHED HERE! ***     (CLICK FOR HIGH RES) The channel technology stack is a group of technologies that brands leverage to manage and improve their indirect sales processes and partner programs. Often, the focus of channel technologies is to make difficult processes easier, automate workflows, measure multi-tier activities, […]
Blog

Four Reasons Why Reddit Is The No. 1 Social Media Platform For Channel Professionals

Jay McBain August 30, 2018
As of June 2018, Reddit surpassed Facebook to become the US’s most-visited social media platform.[1] And it’s the US’s third-most-visited overall after Google (No. 1) and YouTube (No. 2) and ahead of Facebook (No. 4) and Amazon (No. 5). Furthermore, Reddit users on average spend twice as long on Reddit (more than 15 minutes) as […]
Blog

Through-Channel Marketing Represents The Third Stage For Sales And Marketing Leaders

Jay McBain April 25, 2018
  Over the past few decades, sales and marketing leaders have been transforming themselves into predictable, data-driven business units. The CRM stage started in the 1990s and accelerated quickly a decade later with lower-priced cloud offerings. The marketing automation stage began to grow exponentially around 2008 and has reached critical mass in its first decade. […]
Blog

SiriusDecisions 2018 Summit Is the Place to Be for Channel Leaders

Sallie Morris April 2, 2018
  • SiriusDecisions Summit 2018 is a great source of channel-specific content that addresses the needs of today’s channel sales and channel marketing leaders
  • Summit provides an opportunity for channel leaders to network with peers
  • Marketplace, a key part of Summit, is a one-stop shop where you can learn about cutting-edge channel technology
Blog

Is It Time to Modernize Your Channel Partner Program?

Kathy Contreras March 21, 2018
  • B2B organizations often struggle to establish partner programs that can support their channel strategy and growth objectives
  • Many partner programs have not been transformed or adapted to address new and expanded routes to market, or to consolidate/simplify disjointed programs
  • Suppliers must modernize their partner programs to incorporate value measures, specializations and competencies
Blog

Five Steps to an Annual Sales Force Automation Audit

Steve Silver November 27, 2017
  • Maximizing the value of your sales force automation system requires value delivery for end users and the company
  • Sales operations should conduct an annual audit of data entry requirements and mandatory fields
  • Reducing data entry time has benefits in terms of sales productivity and data quality
Blog

The View From Backstage: How We Helped Get Customer Obsession Working For You At Forrester’s B2B Marketing Forum In Austin

Caroline Robertson October 17, 2017
Just over a week ago in Austin, I achieved another professional milestone — hosting my first Forrester B2B Marketing Forum. While the team did a wonderful job of preparing me and all the speakers at this event, the one thing I was unprepared for is how different the view is from backstage. The upside was […]
Blog

Meet the SiriusDecisions Channel Operating Model!

Kathy Contreras October 10, 2017
  • Continued changes in channel strategies and new trends and related best practices have inspired this recently evolved model – the Channel Operating Model
  • The new model represents the key processes and activities to support partners and establish channel excellence
  • Alignment between channel sales, channel marketing and channel operations remains a critical focus
Blog

Are Your Partner Channels Still Relevant? Invitation To Forrester’s B2B Forum

Jay McBain August 29, 2017
The shift in technology buying trends favoring line-of-business (LOB) leaders is having a significant impact on traditional partnering, reselling, and value-added services. With business buyers now leading or influencing 65% of new technology projects, partner business models that we built around product sales are struggling to stay relevant. Business leaders do not have the patience […]
Blog

Do You Want To Be A Channel Chief?

Jay McBain August 16, 2017
[begin sarcasm]   The head of indirect channels for an organization is the best job an individual could hope for! Traveling the world to glorious destinations, hosting parties and galas for partners, spending millions of dollars in marketing funds, and striving to drive more boondoggles than last year — all while not being held accountable […]
Blog

Does Your Channel Run In A Silo?

Jay McBain July 21, 2017
I have spent my entire career in the channel. With 75% of world trade flowing through indirect channels according to the World Trade Organization, I’m always interested in seeing how businesses organize, manage, and execute their partner and alliance programs. We know that B2B marketers have been working to break down silos for years to […]
Blog

Partner Enablement: Insights from a Channel Roundtable

Angela Leech April 18, 2017
  • Most suppliers have focused their enablement on sales personas, but many are considering expanding their programs to address more personas
  • Most suppliers focus enablement efforts on new offering launches rather than using a continuous learning approach
  • Incentives are a vital ingredient in driving partner enablement success
Blog

Tech Spotlight: How GE Cleaned Up Its Channel Data

Jessica Lillian March 16, 2017
  • When channel data becomes disorganized and difficult to use, using a channel data management (CDM) vendor can help
  • Learn how GE deployed CDM and helped its channel partners regain trust in its data
  • As with any technology, CDM requires strong processes and capable teams for the best chance of success
Blog

Finding Value in Marketing Automation

Laura Cross March 2, 2017
  • A marketing automation platform (MAP), combined with process definition, should enable buyer engagement at scale
  • Marketing must ensure that business value and ROI are achieved from the MAP investment
  • MAPs must contribute to the efficiency and effectiveness of marketing programs
Blog

Events and Technology: Enhancing Attendee Experience and Data

Drew Zalucky February 23, 2017
  • Events give an organization a powerful opportunity to present its ideas, brand and culture
  • Event tech support is now much more sophisticated, which enhances the event experience and allows for greater personalization
  • By making appropriate use of the latest technology, events professionals and marketers can keep people engaged with the event
Blog

Localization vs. Translation: What’s the Difference and Why Does It Matter?

Jessie Johnson February 9, 2017
  • The targeted and personalized nature of B2B marketing underscores the need for a localization strategy
  • Consistency in a localized customer experience is critical for success, and it requires cross-organizational support
  • Localization includes every touchpoint in the buyer and customer lifecycle – in addition to the ways data is gathered, classified and analyzed
Blog

The Partner Relationship Management SiriusView

Jacques Begin December 14, 2016
  • Partner relationship management (PRM) platforms are purpose-built to support the complex challenges of a supplier-partner relationship
  • Given the rapid maturation of PRM solutions, buyers must understand the full range of available features to discern differences in functionality
  • SiriusDecisions evaluated the strengths and weaknesses of the qualifying vendors