In order to both share my perspective and (perhaps more importantly) to elicit constructive feedback and new ways of thinking, I am writing a series of posts giving my perspective on the best practices of Channel Management. These are things that I have learned and have implemented with success in my career. Comments, feedback, disagreements, and additional insights are welcome, if not encouraged.

This is the eighth in a series.

Opportunity Management

In any successful sales organization, opportunity management is key. It is no less important in channel sales, as it provides structure and clarity to the sales process between your company and your channel partners. Essentially, opportunity management is a systematic approach of tracking and nurturing potential sales. It is often incentivized through cash rewards or special discounts offered to resellers for registering sales activities before the transaction is finalized. Early registration enables you to gain valuable insight into your resellers’ sales engagements, improving your ability to forecast and support deals throughout the pipeline.

There are essentially three primary goals of opportunity management:

to enhance pipeline visibility,
to minimize channel conflict, and
to encourage proactive sales behaviors

By achieving these objectives, you and your partners can identify, qualify, scope, price, propose, and ultimately close deals more efficiently and with greater success.

A quality opportunity management program includes several best practices. First among these is the establishment of a standardized, repeatable process that all parties can follow. Effective sales enablement tools and consistent enforcement of program rules are essential. So is a strong sales qualification process. Also, co-developing accounts and building compelling business cases help ensure that the right solutions are positioned for the right customers, increasing the likelihood of success.

Protecting and Motivating Partners

Deal registration is an important component of opportunity management. It is designed to protect partners who actively promote your solutions by limiting direct competition from your company’s own sales team - or your other resellers - for a set period. During this protected window, only the registering partner can pursue the deal, which both rewards their investment in generating new business and discourages opportunistic behavior from latecomers who might undercut the deal on price alone.

The advantages of deal registration are significant. Your partners are more motivated and loyal, knowing their efforts are recognized and protected. Your company benefits from improved pipeline visibility and higher win rates, since early identification of opportunities can allow for targeted support and tailored pricing. The buyers are also shielded from aggressive sales tactics from multiple parties. It is critical to design a well-functioning deal registration system. A poorly designed sytsem can lead to miscommunication, duplicate registrations, wasted resources, and even a breakdown in trust between you and your partners.

To ensure the effectiveness of deal registration, you must address key operational questions, such as program funding, approval processes, product coverage, participant eligibility, and incentive structures. The program must also integrate well with lead distribution and comply with any antitrust and price discrimination laws.

Turning Potential into Performance

Lead management encompasses the methodologies and systems used to generate, nurture, and convert new potential customers. The process involves lead generation through marketing campaigns, profiling to capture key data, qualification and scoring to prioritize opportunities, and nurturing through targeted communications. Effective lead management ensures that only qualified and developed leads enter the sales pipeline.

Closed-loop reporting is an essential. It enables your company to measure the impact of demand generation activities, identify the most effective partners, and determine which incentives yield the best results. By linking effort to outcomes, you can optimize their return on investment and continuously refine your channel strategies.

Again, opportunity management is vital for channel organizations seeking to maximize sales effectiveness and partner engagement. Standardized processes, consistent rule enforcement, and robust deal registration and lead management systems drive growth, foster partner confidence, and ensure that both your and your partners achieve your business objectives.

In my next installment, I will discuss how to handle channel data...