Vendors should be 100 per cent indirect

Channel partners should be totally committed to resellers, argues Tom Perry

When teaming up with a vendor, transparency is key to a successful relationship. Channel programmes are becoming increasingly complex, so partners must demand openness and honesty – rather than becoming bogged down in massively complex accreditation programmes.

First and foremost, potential partners must be clear on a prospective vendor's sales model. In my recent conversations, it has become apparent that the line between channel-oriented businesses and 100 per cent channel businesses is becoming blurred.

What's more, I believe that many vendors that are merely channel-oriented are preferring not to be as clear about their strategy as they could be.

So how channel-oriented are they really?

Vendors that claim to be channel-oriented businesses will argue that they view their partners as extensions of their team, focusing on the success they bring to the company, when in fact they often directly compete with partners for sales.

If you have the ability to take an order directly from a customer, you cannot be considered 100 per cent channel. In my view, channel-centric is a vague label, and usually used by vendors with a direct sales arm that wish to give the impression that partners are at the centre of their business.

Is it a case of trying to have the best of both worlds?

Partners must ensure their vendors do not compete with them on any level. Time and time again, we see troubles arise in a partnership because a vendor creates a programme that competes directly with the channel.

The channel must ask the difficult questions necessary to gain complete clarity, and vendors must be prepared to answer them.

A vendor that is 100 per cent channel has no ability to take an order from an end customer. Therefore, the channel is assured that any changes a 100 per cent channel vendor makes to its partner programme are designed to benefit its members' businesses directly.

I recently spoke with an employee from a VAR who had come up against and confronted this issue when choosing vendor partners.

He told me that he takes great comfort from vendors that are 100 per cent channel, as he knows changes to their channel programme are not a backdoor way of supporting a direct sales team. For him, partnering with a 100 per cent channel vendor ensures his interests are always protected.

So take a look at your current vendor relationships and ask yourself whether they are 100 per cent channel or merely channel-centric? These are very different things once you delve a little deeper.

Tom Perry is EMEA director of marketing at ShoreTel