Strategic Channel Management

Selecting the right distribution partners and developing a right marketing communication approach

•  Identifying selection criteria and developing a weighted template to select your ideal distributor
•  Matching the region’s market characteristic with distributor’s geographical advantage, sales and marketing strategy and business operation to allocate products
• Defining your offering and market positioning
• Understanding your Unique Selling Points (USP) that differentiate you from rivals
• Developing integrated marketing planning and promotion programmes to provide maximum communication impact

Reviewing the channel mix issues

• Analysing the benefits and pitfalls of a multi-channel strategy
• Determining the mix of channel partners required to service the target market segments
• Discovering the impacts of internet on channel strategy
• Utilising techniques for guiding customers to appropriate channel
• Effectively allocating and distributing products to selected distributors in different regions

Evaluating channels performances from a financial perspective

• The rule of thumb: What, Why and How to measure performance?
• Identifying the cost of servicing customers through each channel
• Calculating margin and profit generated from each distributor
• Establishing pricing policies to match the strategies Cost Calculating Exercise

Managing conflict of interest between companies and channel partners by reinforcing working partnership and getting both parties on the same page

• Influencing your partner and enhancing long-term vision for business growth
• Identifying the source and reason of conflict by drawing a channel map that reflects the company’s position and goal in relation to the existing partners
• Turning channels‘ conflict to mechanism to improve market performance
• Managing conflict of interest between distributors whilst encouraging fair and healthy competition in term of sales and marketing strategy without breaking company’s rules
• Negotiating a mutually beneficial common goal to increase commitment

Open and honest dialogue: The foundation for successful long lasting working partnership and high productive performance

• Moving from purely profit-making relationship to higher level of partnership: Sharing information and conducting joint market research with distributors for a clearer picture of market
• Encouraging feedback from your channel partners and customers for products types, market demand quantity, and timing to respond quickly to market changes
• Supporting and providing training to distribution partners to enhance their selling technique and knowledge
• Assisting your distribution partner to build up strong and capable sales force
• Supporting Package Exercise

Developing a marketing plan for your channels

• Setting and agreeing on the importance of a joint business planning process with your distributors
• Planning a comprehensive marketing strategy by including the cost issue of each channel
• Determining the frequency and focus of formal review sessions of channels
• Leveraging customer satisfaction surveys to evaluate performance of distributors
   

Making the plan work by motivating the channel partner

• Selling the importance of channel philosophies internally
• Motivating your channel partners, the organisation and staff through providing incentives and recognition of achievement
• Practical methods used in ‘encouraging‘ your partners to follow the rules and policy you expected
• Motivating distributors to take your company as a partner for their business development
• Review and Action Plans