For the best part of the last quarter, I was ’on the road’ meeting with channel companies across the country.  I learned a lot about today’s channel business from system builders and integrators in the channel.  I learned that things don't look as bad as they did a year ago, but we can't say things look good.  We haven’t lost any customers really; they’re just not buying as much.  We need new sales to replace that revenue.  We need new sales to grow.

Big companies increase their marketing and advertising budgets in an effort to increase sales.  Channel companies don't have marketing budgets and advertising is usually limited to giveaways for our customers.  Simply put, channel companies have to actually see more [people] to sell more.  We have to see prospects and make a connection as small businesses.  It is something unique that we have in common with the small business marketplace, and the MNCs will forever envy our customer

System builders here and abroad are increasingly aware of the uncertain future of the Channel.  It all started a couple years ago at the Intel Solutions Summit when Paul Ottelini, President and CEO of Intel, shared his vision for Tomorrow.  His vision is of a world in the not-too-distant future where there exists a “billion connected devices”.  Hundreds of millions of different, discrete miniature systems connecting and communicating; consumer electronics, embedded devices, handhelds and netbooks.  And it’s scary how fast the vision has become an impending reality.

The vision creates uncertainty for today’s channel companies because only a fraction of those billion devices can actually be built by the Channel.  In my vision of the future, the Channel will probably be building infrastructure for ‘the cloud’ in the form of servers and storage.  Infrastructure projects benefit from vertical expertise, custom designs, and rapid service response; these are all hallmarks of a channel company, so we

Good companies build good sales teams.  Great companies craft a sales culture.

Culture is commonly defined as “a set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterize an institution, organization or group”.  I like to say that it is all the written and unwritten rules about how things get done in a company.  Every society has its culture - as does every business.  We should be mindful of our culture because it dictates behavior (and there are behaviors we desire over others).

Culture dictates social behavior.  I’m from Texas and culture dictates our distinctively Southern manners.  We say “Yes, ma’am” and “No, sir”, we open doors for women and carry guns in our trucks.  There are no written rules to prompt this behavior, but unwritten rules move us to act in a way that characterizes the South.  The same thing can be said for almost any country or continent in the world.

In 1844, a group of 28 artisans working in the cotton mills in Rochdale established the Rochdale Equitable Pioneers Society.  These poorly paid weavers could not afford the high prices of food and household goods, so they agreed to pool their resources and buy the things they needed at a lower price.  The principles that brought success to the Pioneers Society serve as the foundation upon which all modern co-operatives operate.

If you read the blogs I post on this site, you probably know that several dozen system builders have recently agreed to work together.  Our Channel network is like a co-operative and a trade association combined; a trade association to advertise and promote our industry brand and a co-operative to better negotiate for goods.  Our loosely affiliated group of like-minded entrepreneurs is already engaged in “Channel business” and has made measurable progress, negotiating a Volume Purchasing Agreement and Channel Discounting plans.

Channel leadership fights the 'good fight' on behalf of their peers.

Intel's Board of Advisors is a team of 15 successful Channel executives who commit their time and attention to working with Intel to create better products, services and programs for the Channel.  They are largely responsible for the creation and growth of a Channel network where independent Channel companies collaborate to improve their ability to compete in this changing marketplace.  Among other accomplishments (not the least of which is convincing Channel entrepreneurs to work together), they have successfully negotiated Volume Purchasing Agreements with select distributors and are currently engaged in raising [Channel] brand awareness in the buying public.

(This video provides insight into the Intel Board of Advisors and the independent Channel network.)

October 11, 2009

Channel Speak: EPEAT for the Channel

I just got back from Intel's Channel Alliance Summit.  The event is designed to gather companies from the vendor community to communicate (and perhaps collaborate) on subjects relating to the Channel.  Of the topics presented, I found the sessions on "Eco-smart" and EPEAT most interesting.  Environmental compliance is a big deal with the people who buy our products now and in the future, and it is encouraging to know that vendors are working on the Channel's behalf.

The impact of the trend toward 'green' became serious when we first learned of EPEAT last year.  This compliance criteria became boilerplate for a surprisingly large number of government and education organizations.  When IT stimulus money was released,  22 government agencies were among the first to roll out RFPs for hundreds of millions of dollars of work.  To the Channel's dismay, every tender issued by these agencies

September 2, 2009

Channel Speak: The Extra Mile

(Part 3 of a three-part series titled Sales Savvy for the IT Channel)

In the last blog, we talked about prospecting as an essential and often neglected part of the sales process.  We talked about how the old prospector’s advice was relevant to today’s businessman; we have to move a lot of material if we’re going to find any gold.  And salesmen should be prepared to go through a lot of prospects to find some customers, too.  Finally, we discussed the fact that prospecting is hard work, and that nobody likes hard work.  But the secret to success in prospecting (and in sales) is making a habit of doing the things that no one likes to do.

Some sales trainers call this "entering the Discomfort Zone" and others call it "walking the Extra Mile".  So what do the old sales maxims do to help channel companies run a better business?

August 19, 2009

Channel Speak: Prospecting for Riches

(Part 2 of a three-part series titled Sales Savvy for the IT Channel)

No prospecting, no sales.  No sales, no riches.  It is as simple as that...

Prospecting is the most difficult component of the sales effort.  Another term for "prospecting" is Lead Generation.  You can Google "lead generation" and you will find page after page of prospecting techniques.  They are the same techniques that salesmen have used for decades, and (the bad news is) there is no "Magic Bullet".  Prospecting techniques include:

• Newspaper or magazine advertisements.
• Local business associations.
• Public records.
• Canvassing.
• Trade shows.
• Direct marketing.
• Internet marketing.

I don't pretend to know which of these techniques is best for your business, but I do know the secret to success in Prospecting, and I will share it with you now...

The secret to success to Prospecting (and most every worthwhile endeavor) is

August 3, 2009

Channel Speak: Sell to Survive

Businesses without sales fail.
We must sell in order to survive.

* * * * *

We probably wouldn’t take time to read this stuff if sales were up.  But sales are down and we need a sales refresher.  It is time to revisit the basics; the blocking and tackling of Sales.

We can blame our numbers on the fact that our customers are buying less; and it’s true.

• Revenue from Microsoft’s OEM Channel decreased 31% is reported.
• IDC forecasting 22.1% decline in server revenue year-over-year.
• Storage spending is down over 18.6% year-over-year.

Unfortunately, those truths don’t change the fact that we have to make more money than we are making right now.  And since our customers seem to be spending less, we need to find more customers.  It is literally as simple as that.  We have to sell more.

July 15, 2009

Channel Speak: The Dream of Owning a Small Business

On Independence Day, I started thinking about Independence and Immigration at the same time and, two weeks later, I am still thinking of all those people that came here seeking freedom.  The thing that sticks with me is how many of those immigrants started small businesses with a junk cart, cobbler's box, or a bushel of apples; they shined shoes for a penny.  They understood the value of service and treated customers with care.  They did whatever they had to do to provide for their families and, in some cases, for their neighborhoods.  That work ethic and unshakable commitment to success is still alive today, just when small business needs it.

The small businessman in America is privileged to provide for his family and employees.  The taxes on his company’s profits are used for social services and to fund community projects.