Transforming channel marketing: B2B’s new growth imperative

As you’re tying up your 2024 budgets in the next few weeks, spare a thought for the humble channel marketer – those who strive to recruit the resellers and other partners that are the lifeblood of many B2B brands, and then help them perform their roles effectively.

Channel marketing is the Cinderella of B2B marketing – the discipline that is pushed away into the corner or under the stairs, albeit with no lesser expectation that it will deliver results.

But, neglected as it may be, we all know how the Cinderella story works out. Just as the downtrodden sister in the family becomes a princess, channel marketing has the potential to be the shining light of any organisation. Indeed, it will need to be, as right now it has the task of helping partners undergo a crucial transformation in how they sell and operate.

With the need for effective collaboration and IT security moving up the agenda in an era of hybrid working, B2B brands’ channel partners will play a critical and strategic role in helping businesses of all sizes to adapt. What’s more, partners must increasingly get to grips with cloud-based offerings, online buying journeys and elevated customer expectations.

They will need new sales and delivery models and can only achieve them with careful management by channel marketing teams, which won’t necessarily be an easy transition. It will require B2B brands to shift their focus onto channel marketing’s long-term outcomes – a focus that is often lacking.