Channel Edge

Planning a successful MDF or CoOp program is challenging enough without having to worry about whether or not your activities are contra vs. opex. While there are some gray areas, the reality is that determining how to classify your program is pretty straight forward - especially with the right guidance. While your program objectives are always your "North Star," it's always a good idea to get the funding right the first time.

Please join us in a spirited conversation with Craig DeWolf, VP of MDF Product at 360insights as we discuss how to define, align and manage around the right funding model.  

MDF, CoOp, or BDF? What do these acronyms really mean and when do you use one over the other? Can you combine them? When are they most effective? How do you measure them for success? What my good friend Craig DeWolf, VP of MDF Product at 360insights, likes to say, “it depends”.  Your program objectives and the lens through which you view the needs of your program, are far more important than the labels used. However, there are real difference and real consequences if you don’t pay attention to the details – like funding sources.

Please join us as we unpack the real world definitions of MDF, BDF and CoOp, and discuss when and where to use each effectively, as well as how to manage challenges when trying to align each of these programs to channel sales goals and success.

MDF has never been so important to partner and dealer success. ROI resulting from MDF programs is now the prerequisite KPI for keeping the investment in this essential sales tool moving forward. Post COVID, CFOs are more critical of costs and are looking for proven ROI or it's on the chopping block. This is true for MDF and marketers must be able to effectively answer the following questions: 1. Why are we spending company dollars on MDF? 2. What are we getting out of it? 3. How are we measuring success?

Join us on the ChannelEdge Podcast for a spirited discussion with Craig DeWolf, VP of MDF Product at 360insights, as he talks about why MDF matters more today than ever before (think digital marketing enablement in a digital COVID world) and some of the best ways to measure MDF ROI regardless of the length of the sales cycle.

So many MDF conversations today begin with questions about ROI including, "how do I measure, how do I manage and how do I report?" However, the questions that everyone should actually be asking about MDFs are, "how do I create great engagement and measure ROI at the same time," along with, "how do I live up to the customer obsession mandate, continue to drive loyalty and still get what you need to keep the funding going?"

Please join us as we begin a series of podcasts with Craig DeWolf, VP MDF Product at 360insights, on just that subject. Craig and I will discuss these questions, try to answer them and provide insight about how other channel organizations and leaders should be approaching their MDF strategy. 

Ecosystems in the channel have traditionally been ad hoc, partner driven and not particularly efficient. However, as complexity in sales increases, efficient vendor-managed ecosystems are a necessary part of delivering successful customer experiences and outcomes. But, managing those ecosystems can be a significant challenge - especially if you're still using spreadsheets. Well designed programs bring together all the right partners and influencers, enlist incentives to reward and engage those within the ecosystem, and then utilize automation to track, manage and create a frictionless experience.

Please join us at Theresa Caragol, founder and CEO at Achieve Unite, as we talk about how to effectively manage your ecosystem. Whether this is a new endeavor for your team or you're an experienced pro, Theresa offers some great ideas and insights.

We are becoming more and more addicted to getting data when we want it, getting it fast and getting it anywhere. From life altering support of remote heart monitors, to everyday activities like checking how much milk is in the fridge from our mobile device while actually at the grocery store, our dependencies on IOT and data mobility is surging. So what does that mean for the channel? How can vendors like T-Mobile enable their B2B Business partners to make the most of this opportunity.

Join as Paul Spencer, Director of Channel Sales at T-Mobile talks about how to drive partner success, how to remove friction for his dealers, delight his end users and incentivize his channel to capture all the market share they can.

90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual and it is perceived 60,000X faster than text. What does this tell us? Video marketing is no longer a "nice-to-have." Rather, it is a necessity for brands of all sizes to better connect with customers and partners, communicate your messages, improve brand experiences and break through the noise to capture attention. Video use cases are endless - from partner training and engagement to product introductions and sales pitches. Video can also be the key to gaining traction with a customer at the right time throughout their entire buying journey. We know video works, so why do so many companies still shy away from creating an arsenal of video marketing content?

Robert Cassard, CEO & Co-Founder of Voodoo Video chats with 360insights' Reggie Waterman about the power of video, the latest video trends, its perceived challenges and ways to use this medium to achieve mind-blowing ROI. 

Customer obsession takes patience and creativity today. The need for that customer obsession in the home appliance market is more critical than ever. The Wall Street Journal states that retail spending rose by 10% in March, with everything from mid-range refrigerators to high-end coffee systems flying off the showroom floors. It's clear that home appliances are in high demand and today's consumers are willing to spend money on them. However, the challenge is, how do you delight the customer and enhance your brand when consumer expectations, sales enablement, consumer incentives and supply chain are not all aligned? How do we get the most out of our incentives? How do you make customers feel good about waiting 12 weeks for a refrigerator? While we don't know what the supply and demand relationship will look like in six months to a year, customer obsession in this space needs to happen now.

Please join us as Melina Aguilar, consistently one of the top high-end appliance sellers in all of Southern California, talks about what she sees as the challenges and the opportunity in retail today, and what vendors can do to capitalize on all the action.

Right now, Channel Enablement is a top priority for everyone that interacts with partners and/or dealers as their route to market. In fact, Sirius Decisions indicates that 62% of high-performing organizations having some sort of ongoing Partner Enablement in place for multiple partner personas for 2021. So, how do you get ahead of the curve in these particular areas? How do you maximize your time and efforts in optimizing your relationships with your partners and dealers - resulting in better business outcomes?

Join us in a candid conversation about these critical topics and more with Taylor Macdonald from Sage Intacct. Hear how Taylor has solved the sales enablement challenge by giving his partners the chance to not only learn the skills they need to drive revenue, but also the opportunity to teach and learn from each other in a community environment.  According to Taylor, nothing is more effective than learning from those that face the same challenges as you do every day.

So what happens after International Women’s day? How do we extend these critical conversations beyond just one day or one month and leverage all that attention, celebration and honoring? One way is to tell stories, even if they are painful.

I went into my podcast interview with Adele Hedrick, talented data scientist at 360insights, believing that this was going to a solemn 30 minutes, then I got to know Adele better. She was incredibly open and told her own personal story about success,  joy and a celebration of the moment. Through this authentic conversation, I believe I made a friend. Please join us as Adele walks us through her journey, the abuse and harassment that altered the course of her life, and how she refused, with purpose, to let it keep her from achieving everything she wanted.