Rate your reseller: Harness the power of recommendations
When Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President Thomas Hoenig recently said the economic outlook for the first half of 2009 looked “bleak,” he may have felt a lurch in his stomach. Most likely, we won’t feel any economic relief until the third quarter. At the end of 2008, factory orders, home sales, and service industries were still in sharp decline. Is there even a dim light at the end of the tunnel?
How do you plan to survive the recession? How will you ensure that your customers continue to look to you for products and resources that hold significant value, even in these challenging times? If we look back through history and study successful businesses, those that stayed the course or, better yet, got it right during bad economic times survived and sometimes thrived on word of mouth recommendations. The concept, of course, is nothing new. We use it every day. Your best friend recommends you a fantastic new Indian restaurant. Your mom just had a great experience with a new dry cleaner in town that you are now sure to try. Her running partner ran 10 miles in brand new running shoes that made those miles feel like five. You get the picture. People are more likely to try new things or make informed purchases if someone else has made a recommendation. What does this mean for VARs in 2009?
Your resellers are an integral part of your sales team
Did you know that in PC retail, 67% of all people who walk into the store ask the sales rep for a recommendation and 97% follow through? That means 65% of the product coming out of that store is determined by the product name coming out of a sales rep’s mouth. I hope you see where I am going here. Your products must be those recommended by your resellers.
So how do you do this? How do you create a partnership with your customers to encourage them to recommend your products and services before everyone else at their disposal? Let’s take a look at some easy ways to promote your dealer brand.
– Resellers must use your product personally. Your resellers should always have their own personal copy of your latest software or specialty product that you want them to sell. You give them this. It’s free for them and for them to keep (marked “Not for Resale”). Everyone likes to get something for free. Giving them a copy of your product will only benefit you, because if a rep is using your product and likes it, they’ll be more actively recommending it.
– Become a teacher. Chances are your resellers have used your product in conjunction with one (or more) of your competitors, so they are familiar with the general concept of why someone would want this latest piece of software. Now it’s your job to show the sales rep why an end user should choose yours. Spend some time with your resellers and give them a hands-on product tutorial. Guide them through the special features. Show them the points of difference that distinguish your product from others. Strengthen the sales pitch for them and answer their questions. Fully educate and engage them, and welcome them into the fold! Encourage your resellers to personally use it in their daily lives. The more they use it, the more familiar it becomes to them.
– spring training Take the time and invest in regular reseller training (or refresh) with your product. Give them a playbook and offer seminars on how resellers can easily sell its product to your customers. Is your software easier to use than any other? Does it have a proprietary backup feature? Do you have an unlimited number of users per copy? During these short training sessions (30 minutes is usually ideal), teach your resellers how to, in turn, educate end users on how to use your product. Give them the value-added phrases that will help them close the sale. By making their sales job easier, they will naturally want to recommend your product to the competition.
– Communicate changes and updates. Bookmarking the reseller isn’t a one-time deal where you get in, give the reseller a free product, and walk away, hoping they’ll use it and recommend it. What happens when you create the 6.02 update? Or does the technology needed to use the product change? Encouraging personal use of your product is an ongoing effort. You want your resellers to have the latest version or new product available as soon as possible and then be able to wholeheartedly recommend it as if they’ve been using it for years. So when you have an upgrade to offer or new services or features, start the training process all over again. It is your responsibility to give your resellers the tools to want to sell your product.
– Use the Internet for virtual training and communication. Everything we have discussed so far in this article can be done online. While I’m a fan of face-to-face meetings, if you have a group of resellers who don’t have the ability to travel easily, or if it’s hard to find a good time, consider using your website as a portal for training and communication. You can publish whitepapers about your products or host webinars, training sessions, and podcasts online.
– Set elite “Members Only”. Remind your resellers that they are part of an elite group of carefully selected companies who are valued and respected members of your team. Create a password-protected place on your site for information and offers available only to them. Reward your loyalty with valuable information here, and the occasional incentive like a spiff. Maintain regular communication, reminding them of your support for their sales efforts. Check in at least once a month to see if you can answer questions or provide additional help. At the very least, it reinforces your commitment and keeps that high level of awareness top of mind!
The bottom line is that in this troubled economy, you want your resellers to sell you and your products. The easiest and simplest way to do this is to encourage them to know your services inside and out, answer any questions they have, and give them the ammunition they need to close the sale. Presenting the opportunity for a reseller to recommend something they know and feel confident about is very powerful, both for you and for the reseller. The reseller presents himself to his client as an expert and service-oriented. And you reap the benefits of the sale.
