Channel Partner Portal as an Effective Business Solution

Many companies engage in and rely on many kinds of alliances to make most out of their business. Retailing, dealership, and reselling are just some of the common terms for these partnerships.

In the Information Technology industry, particularly in software development, the term ‘channel partnership' is often used to denote the nature of the partnership between a manufacturer or producer and a dealer or reseller. A channel partner is a company or vendor that enters into a deal with a manufacturer to market and sell the products, technologies, or services produced by the manufacturer. Through this arrangement, manufacturers have the chance to promote their products or services, while the channel partners have access to profitable products or services and the necessary tools and resources to market them. This symbiotic business set up or relationship enables both parties to share in the profit.

Channel partnership is an effective business module that in fact, most major IT companies have adapted this marketing tool to enhance their production. Well-known examples are IT giants IBM, Microsoft, and AMD. Notice that these companies are international corporations, which means they all supply products and services for a global market.

To establish an effective partnership and maximize the benefit they can obtain from it, manufacturers often create a channel partner portal for their resellers. It is usually a real-time web-based application equipped with marketing resources, sales and pricing details, and technical support for a manufacturer's partners. The portal is typically hosted on the manufacturer's server, and can be accessed by channel partners through a granted access in the official manufacturer's website. Through this business tool, both parties have direct access to all strategies and solutions for sustaining a mutually beneficial business relationship.

Aside from marketing and sales, a partner portal is also an effective solution for monitoring progress, improving performance, updating certain skills of the partners or resellers. Some businesses, especially those working for a global market, will often find the need to implement an "upgrade" for a set of skills critical for boosting company sales.

An example of a channel partner portal created for this purpose is the Arabic training module recently developed and introduced by AMD for its Middle Eastern partners. The goal is to equip their partners in Middle East, Turkey, and Africa with the latest skills for better communication with their customers. To achieve this goal, AMD came up with a training portal with multimedia (text, audio, and video) integration for easier navigation. It is worth noting that the portal was created in Arabic, an important detail to ensuring that AMD's Middle East wing will have the best understanding of the head company's goals and purpose for the training.

Channel partner portals have been popular business solutions both for small and large business enterprises. If you think your business needs one, there are many channel management companies that offer customizable solutions for all kinds of purpose or goals. Choose the one with best offers, tools, and accessibility options for your needs.