7 keys to overcome the challenges of your product training to partner
Nowadays, direct online sales channels have been extraordinarily boosted for many companies. However, other companies require the action of partners or commercial associates to increase their sales. This article will be focused on the latter ones.
This article can be useful to B2B software manufacturers, insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies, manufacturers of industrial components, car companies, multilevel marketing distributors and even some banks. In short, to companies that sell their products through what we will call partners, a name that also includes resellers, intermediaries, agents, freelancers, mediators and consultants.
For this business model, channel training is a push to increase sales. And everybody knows that it is impossible to activate the sales of a product or service without providing an initial training to the new partner.
Due to the pandemic, lots of companies have reduced (or even stopped) their partner enablement and channel training programs, making it difficult to achieve their business goals. In fact, if we analyze the complete cycle of incorporation of a new partner, we will find issues in each one of its stages: recruitment, training and sales.
- Recruitment
Some companies have waited for the softening of the measures against COVID-19 to reactivate their face-to-face recruitment activity. However, potential partners are no longer found in the usual places, such as trade fairs or events, not even in individual visits.
- Training
The situation here is quite similar. Requirements to carry out face-to-face trainings make them very difficult to give and the alternative, online training, has not been prepared to generate enough attraction, commitment and interest in partners.
Many companies have simplified and leaped to video conference training, with different results. While it has worked for some, presentations are simple, designs are unattractive, speeches are heterogeneous and the dynamics designed for face-to-face format not always work.
- Sales
As per partners in the pipeline, it is also difficult for them to sell because they were used to doing it by face-to-face means. Now, their clients are not willing to see them and, if they do, meetings are short and ineffective.
As you can see, issues are found throughout the whole conversion cycle of a new partner. But ... do you want to know which are the 7 challenges that we have detected in our clients and the 7 keys to overcome them?
After several conversations with our clients, we have categorized their challenges into 7 categories:
- Key 1: Promotion of the training program
- Key 2: Commercial dynamization of partners
- Key 3: Training format
- Key 4: Tecnology
- Key 5: Content
- Key 6: Learner success
- Key 7: Data analytics
It is possible that some issues that you would classify in these categories have already come to your mind. This is why we want to talk about the challenges of channel training, but also about the solutions that are, based on our experience, the 7 keys to face them.
In addition, and just in case you do not know how to improve some items, at the end of each article you will find some questions that will help you self-assess the maturity level of your partner training program and detect items for improvement.
We will tell you about all this in detail in our next articles!
