June 16, 2020

Is it Time for a Cooperative Marketing Program Check-up?

Let’s face it, the times they are a-changin’. Be it the work from home woes to the disruptions in supply chain, the world is not that same today as it was three months ago. One of the many business trends that has gained momentum is the mad dash towards digital transformation. Whether it be updating your current business model to include e-commerce or revitalizing your antiquated internal IT systems, there is no doubt about it. Digital IS the future, and the future is now. During this metamorphosis, it’s a good idea to also look towards revamping or instituting a new marketing automation strategy and system for your cooperative (co-op) marketing programs to better service your channel partners and help them boost sales.

Managing a cooperative partner marketing program is a tedious job. From creating and managing brand assets, to accepting and approving advertising claims, to making sure your channel partners get reimbursed in a timely manner, it’s enough to make any co-op program manager curse the day they accepted this responsibility. Cooperate Marketing has spent over a decade building and managing cooperative marketing programs, so we feel your frustration. With our vast experience and learnings, we have identified three major pain points our clients typically experience with their current cooperative partner marketing programs:

Tedious Process

Who wants to manually upload, approve and reimburse thousands of annual co-op claims? OR, deal with an automated system that has zero human touch and no one to help when the system isn’t functioning properly? OR even worse rely upon multiple systems, processes and spreadsheets to make sure the entire program is being managed correctly? These challenges can make co-op managers’ job unnecessarily difficult and likely overwhelming. Luckily technology is readily available to help streamline the entire process and make it enjoyable once again.

Low Utilization Rates

Your channel partners are busy representing and selling your brand locally. They are savvy business owners yet need your assistance in order to effectively run local marketing campaigns to sell MORE of your products. If your program and process require a considerable amount of time, effort, updates, and/or training, then your channel partners will not be happy, and unfortunately far less likely to participate.  A turnkey program is paramount to maximizing utilization rates and providing optimal results for not only your channel partners but the master brand as well.

Antiquated Marketing Tactics

Does your current program still offer Yellow Pages advertising? Does it NOT include or offer limited digital advertising options? Are the mediums that you offer still relevant to your target market or have they been overtly impacted by media fragmentation? Conveying the right message, at the right place, at the right time is more important than ever in the “always on” world that we live in. And doing so by utilizing the latest digital, social, retargeting, and geo-targeting services is imperative to keep you top-of-mind with prospective consumers.

If you are experiencing any of the above pain points in managing your cooperative marketing business, it’s time for a check-up. Click HERE to schedule your free  program assessment by one of our highly trained business professionals. This assessment and strategic direction on how to make your cooperative partner marketing program run more smoothly is completely complimentary and yours to keep, with no future obligations whatsoever. So, take the assessment, share what you learned with your team and be the marketing  hero that you are. At the end of the day, Cooperate Marketing is here to help make your job easier, your channel partners happier and your sales stronger. Go ahead, be the hero and click HERE and learn how.  

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lora Dircz is a Senior Account Director at Cooperate Marketing.  Lora has over 15 years of experience in sales and marketing across multiple industries including tech, sports, lifestyle brands and CPG. Lora holds two undergraduate degrees in Psychology and Exercise Sciences from the University of Utah and a Master’s degree from George Mason University, completing her advanced degree at University of Oxford, UK. Lora oversees business development for Cooperate, and enjoys extreme sports and road trips on her motorcycle.

 

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