New year, new partner program? With a new year upon us, it makes sense that many organizations are setting performance goals and making business resolutions for 2019. While goal setting is always a good idea, there are a few ways you can increase the odds of your partner accomplishing their goals in the year ahead.
1. Set attainable partner goals.
When you’re identifying your partner goals for a new year, it can be easy to overshoot by setting goals that are unattainable. Instead of inspiring your partners, this will only overwhelm them. You should aim to set attainable goals that will help both of your bottom lines in 2019.
It’s always a good idea to consider the current health of your channel, as well as past performance when you’re setting partner goals. This can help you identify areas for improvement and opportunity. You can leverage the analytics in your PRM system to measure content marketing success and drive your goal-setting initiatives for the upcoming year.
2. Consider your partners’ limitations.
Your partners are regular people with strengths and weaknesses just like anyone else. When you’re setting goals for your partner program, make it a point to consider the limitations of your partners—not to mention how you can help address those limitations in 2019.
For example, some partners may seem disorganized or unresponsive. With the help of a PRM solution, you can centralize all partner resources in one place and avoid losing your emails in a cluttered inbox. This will help address any limitations that may be pain points for you currently and will offer a better experience to your partners.
3. Show that you’re accountable.
Remember that you’re in a partnership—both sides should be accountable for driving sales in the New Year. You should make it a point to demonstrate to each of your partners that their success is tied to your own. By showing that you’re also accountable, you can be a better support to your partners and encourage them to engage, collaborate, and work toward meeting your shared goals.
Not only should you show that you’re equally accountable for your program’s success, but you should also take the time to build a relationship with each of your channel partners. You want your partners to recognize their importance and the value they provide because this will motivate them going into the upcoming year.
4. Be attentive to your partners’ needs.
As in any relationship, you should make sure you’re aware of the needs and expectations of your partners—and do what you can to ensure that they’re met..
You should provide as much support as you can to help your partners drive sales and work toward meeting business goals. Be responsive to their questions, provide them with helpful resources, and communicate frequently to make sure they’re getting what they need. Your own personal goal should be to make it as easy as possible for them to sell more of your products, faster.
5. Define your goals clearly.
Don’t leave room for interpretation. Instead, you should aim to be clear and descriptive when setting your 2019 goals to ensure they’re defined clearly for your partners. This will help make sure you and your partners are all on the same page about priorities going into the year ahead.
Are you wondering what the return is on investing in a PRM solution? If you’re making plans and setting goals for your partner program in 2019, you should check out our ROI calculator to realize your company’s full revenue potential with a channel sales acceleration tool.
The post New Year, New Me. 5 Things to Think About When Setting Partner Goals in 2019 appeared first on Partner Relationship Management Software (PRM).