What is Partner Marketing - The Ultimate Guide

Business owners and marketers are always on the lookout for the best marketing strategies to integrate into their business operations, all in a bid to scale up their businesses. One of these strategies, which has recently garnered more popularity, is partnership marketing.

Also referred to as Partner marketing, this model has been around for a while, manifesting itself in different forms, but its potential had just begun to be fully recognized. If used properly, partner marketing solutions can boost the business growth and productivity. If you are new to partner marketing and need to learn more about it, we bring in this article - an ultimate guide to partner marketing platforms.

 

What is Partner Marketing?

Partner marketing, as the name suggests, involves businesses or firms collaborating to provide mutual benefits. Typically, this collaboration occurs between brands offering similar, closely related, or supplementary products targeting the same customer group.

In a marketing partnership, both brands pool their resources. Each promotes the sales of the other brand's products to its customers, benefiting both parties. This approach helps them acquire new customers and achieve their business goals. Frequently, these arrangements are formalized with specific conditions, supported by various partner marketing tools, ensuring the partnership operates smoothly over a defined period.

What is a Partner Program

A partner program is a specific setup that works on the principles of partner marketing. Also termed channel partner program, this is a business setup employed by vendors to encourage others (partners) to be involved in the marketing and sales of the vendor's products. There are various types of partner programs according to the nature of the business and objectives set for partnership.

It is most commonly practiced as an affiliate program where partners sell and market the product for an agreed-upon commission. However, the partner program is essential to help brands carry out campaigns, recruit partners, communication, and all other modalities.

What Are The Key Elements oF a Successful Partner Marketing Program?

Partner marketing's flexibility enables variations in program elements based on the specific needs of vendors and channel partners. This flexibility eases the integration of elements tailored to each partner's position in the channel marketing cycle. Effective partner marketing management involves utilizing partner marketing software, and key elements of a successful program include the following::

• Assessment and Analysis: This is essential before setting on any partner program. Proper assessment factors to a great extent in the success of a partner marketing program. It entails the evaluation of the capability and brand engagement of every partner in the network, followed by an analysis directed at identifying partners and grouping them in a manner that allows targeted market support and provision of the right content and tools to maximize campaign success.
  
  
• Goal Specification And Proper Tracking: Another key element in the success of your partner meeting is goal setting. Again, the goal should be SMART and effectively communicated to the partners involved. Measurable goals give insights to the partners on how to conduct their marketing activities and are key to monitoring the performance of your partnership. Based on individual partnership programs setup, the metrics used to measure success differs. Still, common examples include the amount of revenue generated within a specified period, amount of customers asked within a particular time frame, a specific percentage increase in website visits, and lead generation. To succeed, ensure that you employ credible PRM software to help effectively collect and manage partner data and track your partner marketing performance.
  
  
• A Great Incentive Structure: In a partnership marketing program, motivation is no myth; a great incentive structure is a long way to secure the long-term success of your program. The nature of the incentive is based again on the rule of the partner program you run. This could be profitable commissions for affiliate partners in each sale, discounts, sales performance incentive funds (SPIFs) for channel partners, or even incentives for lead generation. The bottom line is that everyone desires rewards for their efforts, which stimulates partners to continue putting in the work for the success of the partner program.

 

How Through-Partner Marketing Software Can Grow Sales

Through partner marketing software, vendors can develop an indirect sales pipeline and optimize their partnership programs. To fully benefit from through partner marketing and support your partners in driving demand, follow this detailed plan:

• Identify partners who are already successful in sales generation. Their established reputation will greatly benefit your efforts as they drive more demand.
• Employ horizontal campaigns, allowing successful sales partners to utilize assets that target the largest possible segment.
• Set up your partner marketing management software for lead distribution. This will make tracking lead distribution and generation easier and more efficient.
  
  
  

How Is Partner Marketing Success Measured?

Unlike regular marketing campaigns, the measurements of success for partner marketing are not solely about customer engagement and conversion rates; key factors are used to measure the success rate. These include:

Partner Engagement and Satisfaction

Partner satisfaction and engagement are great indicators of partner marketing success. Great partner engagement proves that you have been able to secure their attention and dedication and is also a sign of long-term and future success of the marketing.
How do you track and measure partner engagement? Partner engagement can be gauged through the following:

• Frequent use and interaction with the partner portals.
• Regular participation in training and marketing campaigns.
• Use of resources, tools, and content.
• Connection with sale teams and use of MDF.

If the above factors are positive, it shows that your partners are very much engaged, and more engagement points to profitability. A satisfied partner would be willing to put in the work and meet up to what is required even on a long-term basis. Partner satisfaction can be measured or tracked through conducting surveys and obtaining feedback or even through informal discussions through channel account managers.

 

Effectiveness of Partner Marketing

This metric is an assessment of how well the partner program meets its objectives and impacts the returns of the partner marketing. This can be assessed through performance indicators such as

• Amount of leads generated by each partner.
• Level of end-user and partner engagement.
• How much end-user and partner engagement did the program receive?
• Several deals were closed by partners.

 

To-partner And Through-partner Marketing – What is The Difference?

Although these two types of partnerships work hand in hand to help vendors achieve their set goals, they are not the same and have their specific functions and demands.
To-partner marketing aims to enlighten partners about what is in for them or how they stand to benefit from the program.

The aim is to stimulate the customer's interest and make them see reason as to why they should work with the vendor; this way, mutual interest is achieved. The essence of to-partner marketing is to spur partners' interest through value proposition, offering products, and customer insight.
The other aspect of to-partner marketing is the sustenance of the channel partner's mindshare. This involves the provision of training, incentives, and all strategies targeted at easing business operations. In the channel partner timeline, to- partners marketing occurs across types and levels and is personalized for partners to foster longevity.

Through-partner marketing is quite distinct in its approach and is concerned with the provision of resources and support required for channel partners to ensure they can market the vendor brand and product themselves. With this, the partners can stand on their own and navigate business operations easily. In line with the objectives of- partner marketing, vendors are required to provide support throughout the customer acquisition process; This is instrumental to the success of the partnership and is attained through activities such as the provision of delivery tools, easily accessible content which can be modified to custom fit for lead generation, support groups and aiding partners to recognize end customers target. Etc.

 

What Do We Mean by Partner Relationship Management (PRM)?

Partner relationship management (PRM) integrates methods, systems, software, and web-based capacities to help vendors effectively manage their offers by incorporating effective communication and interaction systems and processes to yield profitable partnerships. This can be distinguished from customer relationship management in that it is targeted towards promoting sales through partners, as opposed to simply getting end customers to purchase from you.
PRM is a cost-effective strategy that spans basic ways to manage vendor partner relationships and extends to structured programs involving sophisticated software and data management. Several providers who offer PRM software to firms and businesses are readily available. These partner marketing software solutions entail partner tracking software systems and custom contact database, track their campaign performance, and other relevant elements.

 

Essential Functions of Partner Relationship Management

Partner relationship management serves several essential functions, the basis of which is the management of data for firms to attain their set goals. The following are functions of PRM tools.

• It oversees and helps vendors manage the lifecycle of their partners. This includes aspects of partner recruitment and entry, profiling, leads monitoring, and onboarding.
• Facilitates orientation and training of partners, gives access to webinar registration, oversees partner certification, and all other elements of partner enablement.
• Important for partner engagements such as emails and newsletter functionalities and facilitating the establishment of support groups.
• It is also involved in administering loyalty and reward programs, growth incentives, and all other aspects related to commission management.

 

Tips for building a successful partner marketing channel

• Optimize Your Products and Services For Easy Sales: There is an ongoing competition between your services and other companies at the end of your partners, so the ease of access and sales of your product and solutions gives your firm a competitive advantage.
• Frequently Establish Communication: Communicating effectively with partners is vital to fostering productive relationships. Partners should be aware and readily notified of tool and resources availability and collaboration opportunities.
• Leverage Social Media and Digital Networks: Integrating your social media strategy with your partner program is a great way to promote your brand awareness to your partner's target audience. Thus your content and resources should be designed to allow incorporation with social media.
• Ensure You Use The Right Content at the Appropriate Time: At the center of partner marketing is the availability of adequate content. Both partners and end-user consumers must be provided with the right content at the right time. For the partners, it goes a long way to help them effectively communicate the offer and value of the product and services to the consumers.

 

Differences between Affiliate marketing and partner marketing Solutions

Affiliate marketing and partner marketing are types of internet marketing. They both deliver partner sites traffic while the partner sites deliver advertisements to the affiliate's website.
The difference between the two is in the payment. In partner marketing, an advertiser pays a partner site for each click or sale they receive. In affiliate marketing solutions, an affiliate receives money from partner sites when a referred partner site clicks on an affiliate's website link or makes a purchase from the partner's store.

In partner marketing, sites use partner marketing software to manage their partner programs. In affiliate marketing, affiliate networks provide solutions for the management and tracking of affiliates and merchants, including campaign creation, analytics, payments, and reporting. There are also affiliate marketing software solutions available to help with affiliate marketing management.

In general, partner programs are hosted by the advertisers paying their affiliates for each sale made through their site. Since affiliate networks have been created, it has become easier for affiliates to support multiple partner programs using one interface.

In addition, affiliate software can help with tracking clicks that lead into partner programs and multi-channel reporting across numerous partners. Affiliate networks also allow merchants bigger margins than partnering directly with partner sites. For example, Amazon has a partner program that allows partner sites to sell Amazon products and earn a commission on each sale. As a result, the partner site sells the product for more than they paid, while Amazon receives more profits because they sold the item at more than their cost of buying it.

 

Partner Relationship Management Tools

A very accurate way to measure success and profitability is with the aid of a PRM tool. These tools can provide you with detailed insights and a breakdown of your partners' profitability through effective management and sales and marketing data analysis.

1. Post Affiliate Pro

Post Affiliate Pro, just like Offer18, is a relatively new and successful marketing software program with an extensive array of features. It offers fraud detection, affiliate management, sales analytics and tracking, and CRM integration.

Why Choose Offer18 Instead? Offer18 offers more affordable packages for a variety of features and solutions. It's easier to get used to it, while offering a true value for money, plus it comes with a free version.

2. Voluum

Voluum is an ad tracker for affiliate marketers, agencies, media buyers, etc. It maximizes ROI and boosts your overall performance, while letting you manage and scale your ad campaigns.

Why Choose Offer18 Instead?Offer18 has a more precise targeting while being more affordable compared to Voluum. The lack of features like Affiliate API and Affiliate Link Checker makes Voluum less convenient for marketers and agencies.

3. Affise

Affise is a complete affiliate marketing software offering an intuitive dashboard to track performance. It's great for affiliate agencies, brands, fintech companies, etc.

Why Choose Offer18 Instead? Offer18 comes with integrated A/B testing functionalities, as well as a more affordable price for practically the same features. Affise doesn't offer campaign automation - a feature Offer18 is indeed proud of.

4. Trackdesk

The Trackdesk supports affiliate tracking and partnership programs. It's an affordable solution for new businesses on a budget. It offers smart targeting, multi-device support, and quotation-based pricing options.

Why Choose Offer18 Instead?While the price is fixed, the features are more extensive and consistent. Offer18 comes with 24/7 support, and users find it easier to integrate with third-party apps.

5. ClickBank

ClickBank offers affiliate marketing management from one dashboard, allowing to manage the affiliated products easily. It's made for companies who need advanced solutions to manage affiliate tracking processes and payments.

Why Choose Offer18 Instead? Offer18 comes with on-premise deployment and extensive customer support. While both platforms are easy to use, Offer18 seems to offer more value for the price, especially for features like campaign analytics, management, and planning.

 

Conclusion

Partner Marketing has its challenges but when done right it will lead to happy customers that stay loyal for years, not just during their contract period. The world of marketing is changing and it's important that you keep up with the trends. Partner Marketing Solutions can help you grow your customer base by providing better exposure for both businesses.