Posts under “Channel” Category

Reseller and channel online communities – 1o1

Nov 15, 2010 Posted Under: Channel, Digital, Social Media, Technology

Recently i was asked to put together my views on channel and reseller online communities and so i thought it would a good idea to share the overview slides with the readers of ‘Corridor Conversations. The enterprise community space is definitely hotting up with many organizations looking at linking up their partners and channel customers online in the form of communities or social networks. A simple but structured strategy is needed to make sure we understand what we as principal companies want out of this, and also how the channel can benefit from these communities. I hope that the simple concepts highlighted in the slide set helps you build out your own online channel community plans better. Click the ‘Read more’ button to see the slide show.

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Channel Events: An affinity exercise or an opportunity to train?

Sep 15, 2009 Posted Under: Channel, Marketing
Most large to mid size companies that market and sell their products through channel/ dealers would maintain a dealer/ channel meet calendar. It could vary in frequency depending on size of their business contribution and number of channel partners attending as well. Having channel events can have strategic objectives that impact business.
Some of the objectives could be as follows
- It helps the company to get to know their dealers more personally and foster closer relationships.
- It gives them a chance to pamper their partners and make them feel special.
- It’s a platform to give them strategic direction and vision for your business as well as their business.
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Smart Retailing

Sep 19, 2000 Posted Under: Channel, Marketing

Published in The Economic Times in the HardSell Column on the 14th August 1999

WHEN THE CHIPS ARE DOWN, ADD-ON SALES IS THE ONLY WAY TO SMART COMPUTER RETAILING

In an industry where retailers are continuously under pressure for lower pricing by both the consumer and the competition, the value of an average sale has taken on greater importance in retailing business. It’s not what you sell, but what you sell with ‘ it ‘ that’s more important. Because of this, add-on sales opportunities could make the difference between being profitable and going out of business. The recent years have seen a sharp decline in margins on personal computers. In order to cover his overheads a retailer has to sell solutions and not boxes. Unlike any other product, the personal computer has virtually unlimited add-on sales potential. It’s the perfect product to keep your customers coming back to your store over and over again. In the current market scenario computers carry margins of 5% to 8%, while other computer accessories like printers, modems, scanners, line conditioners could fetch margins as high as 20%, thus making a higher net profit. There are literally tens of thousands of solutions for home, business, and personal use. Some of them are as follows
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Welcome to the boomtime rap

Jun 19, 2000 Posted Under: Channel, Marketing, Technology
Published in ‘The Economic Times’ and ‘ The education times’ on 19th June 2000
AS COMPETITION hots up companies have realized the need to concentrate on core competencies. Corporate houses are now leaving unrelated activities to specialized organizations. This practice has created a market for outsourcing IT-enabled services. IT-enabled services are IT-based, decision-enabling and deliver services from a remote base through high-speed telecom links. India is emerging as a preferred destination for IT-enabled services largely because it has a 12-hour lead from the American subcontinent, it has a huge, cheap, English speaking computer-literate work force. Industry experts estimate the IT-enabled service industry at Rs 81,000 crore by ’08. Some of the IT-enabled services applicable to India are call centres, medical transcriptions, back office operations, payroll and logistics etc. And, the sectors that are likely to gain the kost from such services include the airlines, banking, legal firms, financial institutions, hospitals, manufacturing companies and software companies.
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Catch the client by the ‘re’tail

Jan 01, 2000 Posted Under: Channel, Marketing
Published in ‘The Economic Times’ India and ‘Educations Times’ on December 7th 1999

Retailing has finally arrived in its true sense in India. Today every nook and corner of most metros seem beaming with outlets, with neon signage and well dressed up windows screaming for attention. Boutiques, discount stores, mom and pop corner stores, mall’s, supermarkets, shopping complexes they have all arrived in a big way. We are slowly moving away from the typical counter stores, which have existed over the years. Today’s retailer has to ensure that he provides the same goods at the same price with additional value-added services, which would ultimately act as a differentiators for the customer to choose which store to buy from. One of the mediums to offer this difference is by having trained and skilled manpower in field of sales, store management and merchandising. Sales force makes a lot of difference in marketing high value consumer durables and high value service products. Adequate product knowledge in such situations is of outmost importance. Training has to be provided on both sales and product front. Many management institutes are now offering an elective in retailing in the second year of the M.B.A (Marketing) program. Also a lot of retailers have developed their own in house training program to suite their own store needs. Some of Jobs titles with their job profile and skill set required are listed below.

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