The channel is a powerful, productive route to market. Yet, many vendors doubt the value of partnerships. Here are Channelnomics' top reasons why working with channel partners is essential for technology vendors.
An old joke in the channel industry paraphrases Winston Churchill’s famous quote about democracy: “The channel is the worst route to market except for all the others.” While this may seem derisive, especially from an organization like Channelnomics that advocates for and supports channel strategies and programs, it reflects a common sentiment.
Many executive teams and sales leaders doubt the channel’s value and effectiveness. Questioning the return on investment of selling with and through partners, they believe that direct sales are often more effective, efficient, and economical than indirect sales.
This skepticism primarily stems from inherent distrust and professional bias. Direct salespeople and senior management believe that no one knows their products better than they do, so they assume that no one can sell and support their products more effectively. While their expertise is undeniable, acting on this assumption doesn't necessarily translate to superior market effectiveness or efficiency.
The channel ecosystem presents inherent complexities and variations in performance. It consists of diverse partner types — independent businesses operated by management teams with varying capabilities, ambitions, goals, and risk tolerances. Although the channel represents a powerful go-to-market medium, individual partners may not consistently meet vendor expectations or deliver anticipated results.
As a result, channel chiefs and program managers find themselves having to regularly defend their strategy in the face of skepticism from executive teams and organizational stakeholders. Through extensive research and industry experience, Channelnomics has encountered numerous criticisms of the channel model. However, our analysis consistently demonstrates that leveraging the channel, as a whole, remains the most effective way for vendors to penetrate markets, deliver high-caliber customer service, and streamline the economics of their operations.
Channelnomics presents 12 compelling reasons why vendors should sell with, through, and/or to channel partners.
