Trends come and go.  What worked 6 months ago may not work today.  Keeping up with trends and being able to measure what works for yourself is integral in developing and implementing successful marketing campaigns.  Maximizing channel partner’s use of market development funds and having a more hands on approach towards tactics and partnerships appears to be the over-arching theme in channel marketing today.  Here we take a look at seven channel marketing trends for 2018 and beyond.

Through-Channel Marketing

Increased communication and the sharing of marketing strategies and content is perhaps the biggest trend in channel marketing today.  Providing your partners with the resources needed to launch successful marketing campaigns and ensuring their execution of those campaigns is known as through-channel marketing.  Active involvement in the marketing practices of your channel can increase partner engagement and encourage collaboration.  Duplicating campaigns across your channel and communicating a uniform message can bring about greater brand awareness and online reach.

Marketing Technology

The number of companies offering marketing technology these days is staggering.  From automation platforms to SEO tools, figuring out what works and will fit your business can be a daunting task.  However, properly leveraging marketing technology has become necessary for  B2B organizations to remain competitive. 

Data Analytics

Automation platforms have made it possible for channel managers to easily analyze the effects of marketing campaigns and determine where to focus their resources.  Improving the return on your MDF and co-op funds can only be done through extensive testing and data analyzation.  This ties in closely with marketing technology and inbound marketing, as measurable campaigns and the analysis derived from them can be easily tracked with their implementation.

Inbound Marketing

Capitalizing on changes in the way people make purchase decisions as well as the need for better data and a clearer indication of ROI, inbound marketing has proven itself a very effective tool for the channel.  Inbound marketing allows for extensive A/B testing as well as detailed campaign analytics.  Driving visitors to your website through blog posts, social media and SEO, inbound marketing tactics have become the go-to for B2B organizations looking for effective and measurable solutions.

Increased Budget

According to shipearly, 40% of channel marketing budgets are set to increase over the next 12 months.  Recognizing the need for additional resources to compete companies are expected to put more of an onus on providing MDFs for campaigns and outsourcing for current partners while providing closer guidance on how to use them.

Account Based Marketing

Personalization has become a central part of marketing campaigns and account based marketing provides the framework for highly targeted messaging.  Identifying key accounts and implementing several elements of multi-channel marketing to reach them will help your partners close their most profitable accounts.

Channel marketing continues to evolve with personalization, analytics and clear ROI being the central factors driving trends in the industry.  As we all know things change quickly in the marketing world, but the above trends appear to have real staying power.

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