What is partner relationship management?
Partner Relationship Management (PRM): It’s all the software, processes, and business strategies that a company uses to make the connection between it and its partners run more smoothly.
Most of the time, PRM systems are web- or cloud-based and come with a partner portal, a customer base, and other tools that help the business and partners keep track of leads, total revenue, and sales metrics.
Synonyms
- PRM
- partner program management
- channel relationship management
- channel program management
Benefits of Partner Relationship Management
The advantages of managing partnerships with other businesses include channel partners, partner engagement, partner experience, partner success, and strategic partnerships.
Businesses that want to keep an eye on their relationships with trade partners and grow them should buy a PRM system or platform.
LogicBay says businesses that are just starting to grow need to set up a partner relationship management system. This will help them succeed as they grow and add more partners. The truth is that businesses will eventually be unable to depend on their current systems, such as CRM, email, or face-to-face meetings, to keep up with their partners and what they’re doing.
One of the best things about a Partner Relationship Management (PRM) is that it gives businesses a robust and expandable space to handle the whole relationship with their channel partners from start to finish.
As explained by LogicBay, the following are the main tasks that can be used when a PRM is set up:
Scalability for the new partner
New businesses naturally want to get more marketing partners as quickly as possible to grow and reach more people. In this way, Partner Relationship Management (PRM)systems can help bring on new partners by giving them the tools and solutions they need to become partners and make fully customized partner websites quickly. These partner portals hold all the information about the partnership, such as marketing, training, sales support, and teaching materials.
Getting a new employee up to speed
A Partner Relationship Management (PRM) system can also be used as an online classroom and learning platform that new employees can use to learn more about the company’s goods, services, and offerings. This system also makes it possible to use award and incentive systems to increase sales.
Help with marketing and communication.
A robust PRM system can store, organize, and share all channel marketing documents, communications, and other marketing materials. This gives all business and partner contacts a lot of information they can use to help them sell and grow the company. A brilliant marketing plan will consider PRM and ensure it’s part of the plan for releasing all marketing materials.
Sales Tools That Get Things Done
A PRM system gives the business and its partners a unique view of their channel success and the tools they need to communicate, educate, and track it. It also gives partners the power to record and keep track of the sales process so they can learn and analyze at every stage.
Teaching About New Products
In the same way, business contacts and channel partners can use PRM to get marketing materials in the market; the company can also use the platform to teach everyone about the start of new products.
Problems that come up when managing partner relationships
Managing your relationship with a partner well starts with ensuring everyone is on the same page. Managing partners is more than just making sure they know about your product. It also means ensuring that the business and channel partners have a business plan that works for both of them and that everyone is working toward the same goals.
The Pareto Principle says that 80% of your sales come from 20% of your customers. The same can be said about the relationship between a business and a partner. WahooLearning says you need to put a lot of work into these key partner relationships to ensure they bring your business a return on investment (ROI).
Even if there is an excellent plan to guide the relationship, problems may still come up that need to be discussed by both sides.
Deal with conflict
When things get bigger, sellers and patterns who want to get deals often get mixed up when they talk to channel managers. This can be avoided if channel managers ensure that partners and sellers are on the same page and working toward the same goal.
Portal Navigation That Isn’t Clear:
Making your partner portal too hard to use by adding too many things can hurt their success. Giving them too much information can be harmful because it can make things too complicated and challenging for them to find their way around. You should help them figure out what they need before you give it to them.
They are not being open and honest.
It is essential to create an open attitude, which will save channel managers a lot of time and work. There should never be a time when a channel manager has to spend hours a day following up with partners to get changes and updates. Making regular check-ins and reports a part of the culture will make reporting progress easy.
Best Practices for Managing Partner Relationships
Any company that works with more than one partner wants to make sure that all of their dealers, suppliers, and channels can talk to each other freely and work together to build a relationship that benefits everyone.
The technology news site TechTarget says one way to do this is to buy software that works with the software you already have to help everyone. Setting up a partner portal where everyone can receive educational materials and work together is very important.
Also, different people may be working on different parts simultaneously, but the most important thing is to develop a sales strategy that all suppliers and partners can follow. This plan will act as a road map, showing everyone the goals, targets, channels, audience, and projections so everyone works together, even alone.
Last but not least, a reward is king. Building a friendship where both people benefit is what makes things work. This can be done by establishing vital partner programs that help them reach their goals and give them rewards when needed.
Software for managing partner relationships
When you want to keep track of meaningful relationships between your business and its partners, you should buy and use software or a platform. All partners can find everything they need in one central hub. This keeps everyone on the same page and makes it possible for critical players to work together.
How to Pick the Right PRM Platform
Even though running a partner relationship management system can be challenging, having the right tools can make all the difference. When looking into which system will work best for you and your business, Allround has given you some essential things to think about:
- Should the method be automated? If so, what parts need to be automated?
- Can the system be scaled up or down, and can the process change as the business grows?
- Is there help in place to make it easy for partners to join?
- Does the method encourage partners to work together and talk to each other?
- Is it possible to use the tool to give partners incentives?
- What is the method for implementation, and when does it happen?
- Does the method work with any tools we already have?
If you ask the right questions, you can choose a strategy that works for you, your business, and your partners. It would be best if you took the time to learn about the deal before signing.
