Channel Voices
Channel Voices is The Podcast for Future Channel Leaders, where we learn the ins and outs of partner ecosystems through casual conversations with channel professionals from a variety of industries, partner types and geographies.
Channel Voices
Proving Channel ROI | Channel Chewsday
This Chewsday, we chew on how to make channel ROI undeniable with aligned goals, clean data, and human stories that win over finance, boards, and partners. From MDF benchmarks to advisory boards, we share practical tools you can use this week.
• Aligning channel activity to broader business goals
• Building real-time dashboards for pipeline and velocity
• Using case studies to turn skeptics into supporters
• Creating partner advisory boards and feedback loops
• Quick-win metrics like deal registrations and certifications
• Measuring MDF from lead to closed-won with 10x target
• Combining story and statistics to defend investment
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Until next time 👋
Welcome to Channel Chewsday, a new weekly episode series of Channel Voices Podcast, where we chew over some of the biggest challenges and opportunities facing channel professionals. This week's topic, proving ROI to skeptical stakeholders, a subject that's never been more urgent as budgets tighten and every dollar, euro, pound must show measurable impact. Let's dig into why proving return on investment should be top of mind for every channel pro and exactly how you can do it with confidence. So have you ever had someone, maybe your CFO, CRO, maybe a board member, or maybe even an inquisitive partner, raise an eyebrow and ask, How do we really know this channel investment is paying off? Well, those folks holding the purse aren't satisfied with jargon or buzzwords anymore. They want simple stuff. Tell me what you did, show me how it generated revenue, prove it's working for more than just one project, and convince me that you will keep delivering even if things change again next quarter. It does sound straightforward, but sometimes it feels like you're jumping through hoops. The best vendors like you know, some of those award winners you see around in CRN's reports, are crushing it by connecting every dollar spent to real business wins. They point to new customers acquisition, more deals closing faster, or partners walking away with fatter profit margins than last year. Stakeholders from finance chiefs to board members, even key partners, they want proof. In a world where AI, cloud marketplaces, and cybersecurity spend are booming, but procurement cycles are lengthening, it's not enough to promise future gains. You need hard evidence and not just hope. But here's what I've picked up from talking to both experts and those very skeptical stakeholders. It all starts with aligning what you're doing with bigger business goals. If your targets only focus on sell more widgets, you lose folks who care about things like risk management, compliance, and how those sales feed the company's overall health. Bring it back to practical value and do it every time. Then you absolutely must get obsessed with your data. Build out those real-time dashboards, show off pipeline growth and highlight how new partners are actually waking up and log deal registrations and make new sales. Don't just say it's better. Prove it with numbers and stories your stakeholder audience can relate to. And nothing turns a skeptic into a believer like a good case study, right? Lay out the before and after. Say something along the lines of We've invested X and because of that, we saw this market open up, grabbed a bunch of new customers, and the bottom line improved by Y. That makes the story real, especially if you sprinkle in customer wins and shortcuts to revenue thanks to smarter channel strategies. I love hearing about channel leaders who actually listen to their partners. When they ask for feedback, they set up regular advisory board meetings, and they are willing to change track if something isn't working. It's amazing how much goodwill you build by treating partners like real humans instead of just another line on your spreadsheet. There's a whole episode in our archives where Lynn D. Tinney unpacks the blueprint on how to create a successful partner advisory board. Feedback from the field helps adjust investments accordingly and it builds trust with your partners. Want a couple quick wins for your ROI pitch? Point to numbers like increased deal registrations, partners picking up new certifications like crazy, chopping down the time it takes to get new solutions to market. These are the things that everyone can understand and appreciate. It gets even more complex when proving ROI of marketing development funds, where each of the partner activities results need to be closely monitored. How many leads were generated, how many turned into a deal registration, and how many opportunities were closed won. You'll then have a really good view of how much you spent versus how much revenue was generated. And 10x seems to be currently the standard expectation in the SaaS industry. So as an example, if you invested 1000 in a partner's digital campaign, you'd expect 10,000 in return revenue. Proving ROI is about story and statistics. Bring clear data, real stories, and show that your channel investment is not just sound, but a competitive advantage. For more best practices, dive into CRN's partner program guides or join round table sessions at your next channel event. But that's it for this week, my friend. Next week I'll be back chewing over another juicy topic. Thanks for hanging out with me today.
