Solve the Issues Impeding Your Ability to Scale Partner Programs
You CAN have a successful partner program without having a PRM software. But scaling your partner program is much more challenging without a PRM software, especially during periods of high employee turnover at your organization and partner organizations.
ManoByte is proudly partnered with MindMatrix to implement their suite of partner sales enablement, channel marketing, and channel management tools.
PRM Implementation Plan
A PRM software will accommodate the organization, communication, syndication, and reporting necessary for channel managers / internal sales reps to successfully fulfill their role. This includes channel partner onboarding, training and certification, partner marketing materials, deal registration and tracking, incentive tracking and disbursement, and beyond.
How to Implement Partner Relationship Management Software
Strategy
Syndication Features
Management Features
Beta Launch
Full Rollout
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Define PRM Strategy
As we start your PRM implementation project, our first priority is understanding your partner program objectives, current initiatives, and goals. We also dig into who owns the partners in your database and why. For example, are partners assigned based on archetype? Based on purchase type or volume? Based on territory? Based on other factors? We uncover this information from the very beginning because it will inform the remainder of the implementation process.
We also look at how new partners are onboarded into your partner program and work with you to outline a plan to streamline partner onboarding where possible. We will talk you through prioritizing primary and secondary PRM module needs as best suited for Beta and then Full PRM rollout.
Setup Content Syndication Features
Content syndication tools are critical for ensuring you make it as easy as possible for your channel partners to sell your building products.
Content syndication allows your channel partners to “ride the coat-tails” of your corporate marketing efforts as they build their own local brand. This is why it’s important to implement the following inside your PRM system.
- Create Channel Marketing Collateral & TCMA Conversion Paths, to be used in content syndication.
- Implement Asset Management Modules to perform the functions necessary for content syndication.
- Implement User Management Modules to control which partners have access to which content and in what ways partners are able to make changes.
Content syndication tools decrease the amount of time and resources a partner must invest to promote your product by providing the digital and traditional marketing collateral for them. Content syndication tools likewise foster the alignment of the partner brand with the corporate brand to ensure the message your marketing team crafts is carried throughout the local ecosystems.
For example, roofing contractors, decking contractors, and fencing contractors are strongly inclined to sell the value proposition of the materials they are installing because the success of your product in their installation is what reflects on them. If a specific brand of weather treated fencing does not hold up the way advertised, customers will be unhappy with the material and the installer.
Setup Management Features
Successful channel partner management is more than have your internal sales reps and channel account managers sending marketing collateral and sales enablement information to your partners. Successful channel partner management means managing the use of specific information based on region, partner type, and time period.
Use a PRM to gate asset use and even require approval from the PRM administrator when a partner intends to personalize a specific asset like sales presentations, emails, sales brochures, and even web based marketing materials. Set expiration dates so that you have assurance that indirect sales reps are discussing the most up to date information with their customers. When handling large swaths of product’s promotion materials, go even one step further and setup asset recommendation features.
All of the partner engagement metrics will then also be compiled so that your channel program managers have the data they need to assess partner adoption, partner performance, and campaign relevance.
Even more than managing partners, your team should be empowering them and making it worth their while to actively use the channel materials you are providing to them. To incentivize PRM adoption and brand loyalty, you should use a PRM to:
- Implement Approvals Based Modules - Incentive Payouts and Tracking
- Implement Advanced Modules - Lead Routing, Partner Scoring, etc
- Develop Partner Learning Management Resources
Managing the financial aspect of partner incentives, lead routing and closed deal attribution occurs directly in the PRM and will align your channel and financial teams by minimizing friction in their internal record keeping procedures.
Beta Launch
Once everything in your PRM is set up for partner use and proper management features have been calibrated to the needs of your channel program, it’s time to launch the program with a select few partners who are willing to learn with you and provide constructive feedback without hesitation.
To launch the pilot program, we train your internal users on how to use the PRM and manage partners within the system. Then we help your team onboard the partners in this Beta Rollout and provide structure to guide feedback collection. From the feedback gathered, improvements to the system are made.
Full Rollout
We will provide training and partner onboarding support in similar ways as during the Beta Rollout, but now at a larger scale to onboard all partners to your new PRM. It’s important to have defined your measures of success within a boundary of time so that your team can assess the project.
Remember, the PRM system you use will only be as helpful as the partner enablement structure that is provided by your channel account managers and internal sales reps. Reinforce the aid that these teams should be providing to your partners relationally so that strong business relationships are the foundation that your PRM is built upon.
Successful PRM Management
Sometimes you need to start with a minimum viable product before launching a full scale PRM.
You have several options that we can also talk you through:
- HubSpot Sales Hub Teams
- ManoByte's Partner Deals Portal App for HubSpot Sales Hub
- A Custom Web Application Development Project for a Partner and/or Customer Portal
It's better to focus on the strategy and process of your channel program and grow into a full scale PRM solution than it is to think a PRM will solve all your problems. We can talk you through those options.
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