Once you have a product to sell, it is important to determine what sales channels and partners are suitable to aid in building and growing the business.

Direct Channel Sales Development is usually accomplished at first to obtain the first sales for a company. It is very dependent on the product whether direct sales are the most cost effective channel, as they are very expensive.  With direct sales, the company is on the hook for prospecting, actual sale, service, billing and own the accounts receiveable.  In addition, there is the cost of sales reps themselves including salary and benefits.  Your product might require a 1:1 relationship with the customer and this might be the best channel for you long term, or as you grow your business, you might want to investigate indirect channels to market.

Indirect Channel Sales Development can be be built to either supplement direct sales channels or can replace direct sales over time depending on the product and channels selected.  Indirect Channels can include Referral Partners, Sales Agents, Resellers, Distributors, OEM, Affiliates, or Managed Service Providers to name a few. Understanding your product and the market aids in helping you determine what channels will be best for your product.

Partner Development includes other partners which will aid in moving your business forward.  This could include a technlogy vendor who has a product that makes sense for you to use with or embedded in your product to get you to market sooner.  It could also include a co-marketing partner that you just do marketing together or a strategic partner where there are many synergies between the two companies and partner on many levels.

Goal of Service 

• The goal of this service is to aid a start-up or small business in determining what channels and partnerships would work for their business and aiding them in developing the strategy to move forward.  This could also include development and recruitment of these partners as well. 

Back to top