Best KPIs to measure the success of your channel partnerships

When it comes to sales KPIs, there are specific performance metrics that are considered the gold standard by many. This holds within the SaaS sales world with metrics such as revenue, leads, customer lifetime value (CLV), and churn rate. 

However, the metrics for measuring channel partner success are not as simple as that of a sales team. The metrics required are different as measuring the engagement, or the success of a relationship is more challenging than gauging a standard sales pipeline. 

Here are a few metrics to measure channel partner success: 

Partner Portal Activity

The PRM is your best friend here. Tracking the number of logins the partner portal receives using the PRM helps estimate how engaged the channel partners are. Within this context, metrics such as the frequency of logins, training completion, and deal registration establish how dedicated the channel partners are and the platform’s quality and ease of use. 

An excellent way to check the portal’s quality is to ascertain if partners are downloading or using the assets provided on the portal. If a single partner is consistently not using the materials, it could demonstrate their disinterest.

However, if the problem is program-wide, the platform interface and accessibility or the materials’ quality could be the reason. It is crucial to modify the existing setup or deploy a PRM solution that offers a joint marketing portal in such a scenario. 

This will allow the organization to measure channel partnerships’ success by seeing if partner engagement metrics show marked improvement.

Communication 

Monitoring and analyzing the level of communication between the channel account manager and the partners are essential. Frequent usage of the portal’ does not always translate to a fantastic sales record. 

Being in touch consistently ensures that partners are in tune with the latest tools and learning tracks capable of improving the sales game.

Sales Meetings

Sales personnel are necessary for an organization’s products or services to sell. This requires initiative and enterprise from the sales personnel. Channel partners need to actively set up meetings with prospects and customers. In the absence of this, there is little to no chance they are pursuing sales opportunities.

Tracking a salesperson’s calendar is a crucial performance metric. It can demonstrate with ease their ability, inclination, and effort. This makes it critical to compile and measure sales meeting data to predict channel partners’ sales pipeline. Further, product demonstrations are highly essential, particularly for SaaS companies. 

Events Attended

While workshops and live webinars are secondary to sales meetings with prospects and clients, they offer a great chance to generate leads. Partners not participating in these events will prove to a huge loss both in the long and short-term.  

A great way to measure channel partners’ commitment is to track the number of events they have attended, the amount invested towards market development, and the number of leads generated. 

Attending events, conferences, and webinars is a great way to touch the domain while generating leads. 

Joint Marketing Campaigns

One way to measure channel partner success is by tracking the number of downloads marketing assets receive in the channel partner portal. Another is by monitoring the frequency and number of joint marketing campaigns executed with channel partners. 

In these areas, the initiative, drive, and dedication of channel partners come to the fore. Partners who make an effort to create customized, joint campaigns are more engaged and committed. 

These campaigns need to be within the allotted budget and efficiency managed so that they be replicated in the future with different channel partners across products and services. 

Revenue, Performance, and Profit

The success of a channel-centric organization depends on its ability to maintain a stable base of profitable channel partners. A crucial performance metric here is the amount of margin channel partners make on the product they are selling for the company. 

Channel partners whose profit margins are low will inevitably turn their attention towards your competitors. If they are not a great fit for your company based on other metrics, this will not have significant repercussions. However, suppose multiple channel partners can meet the various performance and engagement metrics mentioned in the list above but cannot make a profit. In that case, the sales practices of the company are probably the reason. 

The Final Word

It is not possible to measure the success of channel partnerships using the same metrics as sales teams. Relationships are nuanced and layered. They require a comprehensive analysis of various factors, starting with effort, initiative, enterprise, and communication. 

Other aspects to consider are the number of demonstrations partners book, the leads they generate, and the conferences attended. Engagement levels can be tracked through the channel partner portal. This will give a clear idea of when and with what frequency the joint marketing materials are being used. 

The above-mentioned performance metrics are central to effective channel management. They will go a long way in helping the organization figure out as they can help you figure out if the right candidates are being recruited or if the materials need to be modified.

How can Zaggle Propel help?

Zaggle Propel is a simplified platform to manage your employee and channel partner rewards and engagement programs. We work towards developing the best tools and programs for companies to serve their channel partners better. 

Zaggle Propel will help you work towards reimagining the relationship with your channel partners. Our tools and services will ensure a smooth transition with high performance. 

Zaggle Propel comes with a centralized dashboard, customizable integrations capable of working with complex KPIs. Our customizable platform works towards building and strengthening engagement for employees, consumers, and channel partners.
Please reach out to us in case of any queries.