This document discusses trends in channel marketing for 2016 according to a panel of experts. It will focus on improved communication from vendors to partners and end users. Specifically, vendors will better segment leads for partners and ensure contextual messaging. The shift to cloud/SaaS means partners need more support implementing these solutions. Vendors also need to segment partners differently based on goals and capabilities rather than tier. Overall, digital approaches and flexibility will be important for channel marketing programs in 2016.

1. 2016
State Of
Channel Marketing
Communication, Segmentation
And Context To Drive Channel Initiatives

2. 2016 State of Channel Marketing 2
Table of Contents
Introduction .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Ken Romley, Zift Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Steven Kellam, CCI | Global Channel Management . . . . . . . . 5
Tish Williams, KnowBe4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Ali Din, dinCloud . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Heather Margolis, Channel Maven Consulting . . . . . . . . . . . 8
About Channel Marketer Report. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

3. 2016 State of Channel Marketing 3
This is the year when technology and digital channels are going to
enhance the way vendors communicate with their partners — and
vice versa.
According to our panel of channel marketing thought leaders,
the digital landscape will impact how vendors are segmenting
leads for partners and ensure that messaging to buyers is relevant
and contextual.
Read on to gain insight from our channel experts and consultants
on how the channel will develop and evolve in 2016.
Communication Is Key Theme For
Channel Marketing Initiatives In 2016

4. Ken Romley
President and CEO, Zift Solutions
The move to SaaS is driving huge channel changes that will continue
throughout 2016, impacting what prospects want, how partners sell
and how they are supported by suppliers. Integration will be a key
focus for 2016.
Prospects seek complete, integrated solutions and a scalable
payment model, leading to more emphasis on ongoing support and
long-term profits as annuities build.
Integrated SaaS systems will supply a wealth of information and
insight regarding what really makes channel partners more successful,
providing the base for Big Data analytics to improve performance.
®solutions
Over the past two
decades, Romley
has co-founded and
run a wide range
of technology and
Internet-based
enterprises while
leading innovations
in marketing
technologies.
2016 State of Channel Marketing 4

5. Steven Kellam
President, CCI | Global Channel Management
Three trends in the marketplace — better content, clearer context,
and a new sense of empowerment — are causing a marketing shift
in the channel.
In the past, vendor content tended to be more for technical
information designed for technical buyers. But smart companies have
realized that the person who makes the technology buying decision is
not always the most technically literate. Context is important, too.
Buyers no longer want generic marketing messages or boilerplate
answers to boilerplate customer questions. When buyers are satisfied
with the information they have collected, they feel much more
confident about making the decision themselves.
Kellam has
experience in both
the VAR space
— having run a
successful managed
services IT business
— and a background
in manufacturing,
where he built a
channel of more than
2,000 partners.
2016 State of Channel Marketing 5

6. Tish Williams
VP of Channel, KnowBe4
In 2016, marketing will shift more toward improved communication
from vendor through to end user. It will focus more on visibility and
collaboration with partners. SMB to mid-market companies are
outsourcing their IT more and more, which fits with moving from on-
premise to cloud-based services. It is cheaper and more cost effective
for the client.
As a result, the channel trend is shifting from the low-margin
“hardware” market to the high-margin “Cloud/SaaS” model.
This shift will increase the support channel partners will need to
implement and understand SaaS products.
Williams has
20-plus years
of experience
within the channel
marketing space.
KnowBe4 is
an integrated
security awareness
training and
simulated phishing
attacks platform.
2016 State of Channel Marketing 6

7. Ali Din
SVP & CMO, dinCloud
Channel marketing in 2016 is not going to see a big shift as vendor
channel marketing teams are not capable of extending digital
marketing into the channel any time soon.
Vendors recognize the sales and marketing approach has changed
over the years. A digital approach is a core component of maintaining
reach and engagement. So, channel marketing has to go digital —
albeit not 100%.
In a time when experimentation is critical, vendors’ channel marketing
programs are inflexible and the channel team responsible for
greenlighting marketing is stuck in the past. Only a few vendors have
been able to truly enable their partners.
Din manages
partner relationships
for dinCloud and
provides oversight
on marketing and
communication
activities
2016 State of Channel Marketing 7

8. Heather Margolis
Founder & President, Channel Maven Consulting
As always, through Partner Market is going to be a challenge for
Vendors and Partners in 2016. But there’s hope.
We see a shift in the way that Vendors are viewing their through
Partner Marketing segmentation.
It used to be that vendors gave their top-tier partners a certain
amount of support for demand generation, middle-tier partners a
lesser amount, and bottom-tier partners virtually no support .
We are finally starting to see vendors look at their partners differently
and segment based upon goals and current capabilities, or level of
interest/engagement.
In her career,
Margolis has led
channel programs
for companies such
as EMC, EqualLogic
and Dell.
2016 State of Channel Marketing 8

9. 2016 State of Channel Marketing 9
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