Business Case – Channel Marketing

Training and Non-Cash Incentives Inspire Next-Generation Product Sales!

Target Audience
 Third-Party Partner Principals
Third-Party Partner Sales Reps
Client’s Channel Managers

Situation
A major telecommunications company wanted to increase product sales made by its third-party partners—particularly sales of their newest products. The partners’  Sales Reps—lacking sufficient knowledge of those new products—focused on selling older products more familiar to them. A bold move was called for. These Reps needed to go where they’d never gone before—by selling a broader mix of products, and Anderson Performance Improvement made this happen!

Challenge
The major challenge was inspiring the Sales Reps, first, to learn about new products—and, then, to feel confident enough to sell them. A second challenge was motivating Partner Principals and the firm’s Channel Managers to participate in the program. The goal was aggressive: to increase sales of new-product families by 25% over trended baseline in one year.

Solution
A performance improvement campaign was implemented in two, three-month phases. Fun communications kept the program top-of-mind for all participants, and the online platform provided Partner Principals and Channel Managers with timely sales reports that encouraged coaching and feedback. Participants earned ePoints, redeemable online for a wide variety of top-brand merchandise found in the online Rewards Catalog, when they exhibited desired behaviors.

Phase 1: Training – Participants were required to achieve product certifications in order to participate in Phase 2. An early registration bonus allowed participants to increase their earning opportunity when they engaged right away.

Phase 2: Sales Incentive – Partner Sales Reps and Channel Managers earned ePoints for new product sales; Partner Principals earned when Reps exceeded new product revenue quotas.

Results Chart

Results The goal to increase sales of new product families by 25% over trended baseline was eclipsed. Sales of Product Family 1 increased 111% over trended baseline, and sales of Product Family 2 increased 303% over trended baseline. This represented an increase of over $39 million in product revenue.