Juan Ortiz — August 27, 2019 — August 27, 2019
When you’re embarking on a new channel incentives campaign, the last thing you want is a labor-intensive program that adds unnecessary tasks to your already-busy agenda.
That’s why it’s important to choose a platform that takes care of most of the busywork on your behalf. The right system can continually and automatically communicate with your channel partners, helping to keep them informed and motivated to sell throughout your promotion.
Some tips on making your digital tools work for you in that regard:
- Offer strong training modules. Though effective training for participants can be key to the success of your campaign, one recent survey found only 35 percent of U.S. companies offer effective coaching and training for their channel partners. Because staging in-person training seminars can be costly and inefficient, you may wish to create training modules your channel partners can access and complete at their convenience. Consider features like WorkStride’s content management toolkit, which provides a location to upload relevant training. Next, be sure to offer incentives for those participants completing or excelling at these; this will help keep your program top of mind. Keep your content brief and easy to digest, and base it on real-life scenarios participants may encounter over the course of the campaign.
- Keep the motivation coming. By planning ahead, you can arrange for your digital tools to regularly email or text encouraging messages so your campaign stays at the top of participants’ minds. Sending messages digitally is nonthreatening and non-invasive, yet keeps them informed of how much they’re achieving compared to others. It allows you to send helpful sales tips, provide key product information they can share with customers and remind them of what they could be earning. You might also build morale by adding surprise promotions at strategic intervals.
- Provide instant rewards. The faster your system can send participants the rewards they’ve earned, the faster you will earn their trust. Setting up your tools so they’ll automatically vet claims and disburse rewards can only work in your favor, as participants will be more likely to work with you again in the future. A speedy rewards system will also help create good buzz about your program.
- Evaluate and share results. Throughout your campaign, a capable platform can gather and parse data to provide insights into elements that are and aren’t working. You can choose to share those insights with channel partners to boost your transparency, build trust and credibility, and keep them apprised of how you may be improving future campaign strategies for your mutual benefit.
- Ask participants to spread the good word. On completion of your promotions, you can use your platform to solicit feedback and ask satisfied participants for references and testimonials you can use to solicit new campaign partners. You may also wish to establish case studies reflecting on your most successful campaigns and partnerships, then share those stories through social media and other marketing outlets.
With the efficiency of today’s digital tools, the promotional messaging for your next channel incentives campaign can be friction-free.
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