PRM Software in a Nutshell

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PRM (Partner Relationship Management) software is a powerful tool that empowers businesses to run, manage and optimise their partner ecosystems. It serves as a centralised platform for nurturing relationships with partners, such as resellers, distributors, and affiliates. Through automation of manual tasks, PRM software empowers teams to build stronger, more profitable partnerships. It helps streamline partner onboarding, manage deal registrations, track performance metrics, and deliver exceptional partner experiences.

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Key PRM Software Considerations

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1. Revenue Acceleration - is the PRM software built to help you accelerate partner sourced and influenced revenue?

2.  Partner Productivity - are you going to equip partners with the right tools to share leads, access resources and collaborate on joint deals?

3. Data-Driven Insights - are you able to leverage data-driven insights to optimise partner performance and identify growth opportunities?

4. Scalability - are you able to grow your partnerships through PRM or will it require costly process optimisation within your CRM?

Remember, a well-chosen PRM solution can be a powerful tool for driving your partner ecosystem revenue.

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Understanding Your Unique Needs

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Before going into the technical details, it's important to assess your organisation's specific requirements. Consider these key factors:

• What tools are needed to manage and optimise your partner network?
• How can technology streamline and shorten lead sales cycles? 
• What technologies can equip your sales team with the tools they need to succeed?
• How can technology enhance the customer journey through partnerships?
• Do you know which partner activities bring the most value?

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Core Components of a 2025 PRM Solution

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PRM software is a cornerstone of any successful partner program. It centralises partner information, streamlines onboarding, facilitates collaboration between sales and partner teams, and empowers sales teams with the tools they need to close deals faster, all while gaining valuable insights through data analytics to optimise partner strategies.

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Resource Hub (often referred to as Partner Portal)

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A well-designed Resource Hub is essential for running successful partner programs. By empowering partners with the tools, knowledge, and resources they need to thrive, you can accelerate certain processes even further. A robust Resource Hub should provide self-service access to essential documents, training materials, and marketing assets. Additionally, it should offer a centralised knowledge base, sales tools and templates, and co-marketing resources such as joint customer success stories to equip partners with the tools they need to present solutions to potential prospects.

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To provide a truly unique partner experience (PX), consider personalising content and resources to the specific needs of each partner segment based on their categories and tiers. Having a community forum where partners can ask questions, connect, share ideas, and collaborate is a great way to quickly address partner inquiries and resolve issues.

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Some key considerations for a Resource Hub (Partner Portal):

• Is it intuitive and easy to navigate for both you and your partners?
• Does the platform enable direct messaging between partners and your team?
• Can partners access and manage their resources?
• Can you easily adjust the partner application process and tailor the experience for different partner segments?
• Can you effectively promote special offers and commissions to incentivise partner performance?

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Lead Sharing

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Seamless lead sharing is a critical component of a successful partner program. It enables partners to identify and capture high-quality leads, while streamlining the lead qualification and handoff process.

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Key Considerations for Seamless Lead Sharing:

Real-time Lead Distribution

• Define clear lead qualification criteria to ensure that partners are receiving leads that are a good fit for their business.
• Use consistent lead scoring models to prioritise leads and allocate them effectively.
• Implement a real-time lead distribution system to ensure that leads are assigned to the right partners promptly.
• Consider using a lead routing engine to automatically assign leads based on specific criteria, such as geographic location, industry, or partner specialisation.

Transparent Lead Tracking and Attribution

• Track the progress of leads through the sales pipeline to measure partner performance.
• Implement a clear attribution model to determine how credit is assigned for closed deals.

Effective Lead Handoff

• Provide detailed information about each lead, including contact information, company details, and specific needs.
• Establish clear communication channels between sales and partner teams to facilitate a smooth handoff.

Robust Lead Management Tools

• Utilise CRM and PRM integration to enable an instant two-way sync.
• Implement features like lead routing, lead scoring, and lead nurturing to optimise the lead lifecycle.

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Multi-touch lead attribution 

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Accurate partner attribution is critical for CROs. It ensures that partners are rewarded fairly for their contributions, which can significantly impact their motivation and engagement. By tracking the origin of each deal, CROs can optimise their partner programs and allocate resources effectively. A PRM solution should be able to accurately attribute revenue to the right partners and events (including partner events, co-marketing or other marketing activities) leading to improved lead attribution. Empowering your partner team with the right tools and resources will further enhance their ability to succeed and contribute to your overall business objectives.

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Deal Registration

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Deal registration is a critical process in partner programs. It ensures accurate tracking of deals, prevents channel conflicts, and enables efficient revenue attribution. To streamline this process and maximise its impact, consider the following tips:

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Automated Workflows

• Use simple, intuitive forms to collect essential deal information.
• Implement real-time validation to identify and correct errors.
• Send automated notifications to relevant parties involved in the deal.

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Clear and Concise Guidelines

• Provide clear guidelines and FAQs to help partners understand the process.
• Keep partners informed about any changes to the deal registration process.
• Offer dedicated support to assist partners with any questions or issues.

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Robust Tracking and Reporting

• Track deal progress in real-time to identify potential bottlenecks.
• Generate detailed reports on deal performance, partner activity, and revenue attribution.
• Provide partners with easy-to-understand dashboards to track their performance.

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Collaboration  

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Collaboration between partner and GTM teams is essential for keeping everyone in the loop and being able to track progress of several projects running concurrently. Many partner teams use project management tools, which help in streamlining processes, however not being able to communicate and share this intel with partner teams across organisations slows things down. Having the ability to create and customise Collaboration Cards that can be shared across partner companies is a great way to align sales efforts, target specific accounts and run complex projects among key areas:

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Co-selling 

Co-selling playbooks provide clear guidelines and best practices for effective co-selling activities. Equipping sales teams with the right tools and resources, such as sales enablement tools, can further enhance their ability to collaborate and close deals.

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Co-marketing initiatives

Partner marketing campaigns and co-branded content, can help reach a wider audience and increase brand visibility. Establishing a joint marketing fund can provide the necessary resources to support these efforts. Tracking the performance of co-marketing campaigns through analytics and measurement can help optimise future initiatives.

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“Co-branded content creation, such as ebooks, blog posts and videos, allow us to share resources and knowledge while reaching each other's audiences. By collaborating on these activities with a partner, we’re able to establish credibility through association with trusted partners and maximise ROI.”

‍Therese Paulden | Partner Lead at Pleo

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Partner Events

Joint events, such as webinars, workshops, and conferences, can be a powerful way to strengthen relationships with partners and generate leads. By co-hosting events, you can share expertise, showcase your solutions, and build brand awareness.

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API Integration and App Marketplace 

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Integration is key to seamless collaboration. API integration can streamline data exchange and workflow automation, while single sign-on (SSO) can enable easy access to multiple systems. Data synchronisation ensures data consistency and reduces errors.

Encouraging partners to develop apps that integrate with your platform can expand your ecosystem and offer additional value to customers. Establishing a rigorous app certification and testing process ensures quality and compatibility. Promoting partner apps through your marketplace and other channels can drive adoption and generate additional revenue.

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Partner Incentives

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A PRM platform can facilitate incentives, ensuring timely and accurate payments to partners. By offering competitive commission plans and tiered reward programs, you can motivate partners to reach their targets. Additionally, automated payment processing and real-time performance tracking can enhance transparency and trust between you and your partners.

Examples of commissions structures offered:

• One-off payment: $1500 from every transaction made
• Recurring Sales: 20% commission on each recurring sale
• New Signups: $50 commission for each new paid signup
• First-Year Customers: 25% commission for the first 12 months of a subscription
• Returning Customers: 20% commission for subsequent years

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Insights into Partner Performance

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Leverage data-driven insights to optimise your partner program. A robust PRM solution offers customisable dashboards to visualise key metrics, real-time reporting for up-to-the-minute insights, and predictive analytics to forecast future trends. By harnessing the power of data, you can make informed decisions, improve partner relationships, and drive business growth.

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Key Analytics features:

• Visualise critical metrics, such as deal registration, revenue attribution, and partner performance, through customizable dashboards.
• Gain real-time insights into partner activities and sales performance.
• Utilise AI-powered predictive analytics to forecast future trends and identify potential opportunities.
• Generate detailed reports on partner performance, program effectiveness, and ROI.
• Leverage data-driven insights to optimise partner strategies, allocate resources effectively, and identify high-potential partners.

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Flexibility and integration capabilities

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‍CRM Integration 

By synchronising partner data between PRM and CRM systems, organisations can gain a holistic view of customer interactions. This integration streamlines deal registration, tracks partner performance, and enhances forecasting accuracy.

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API Connectivity Leveraging APIs allows PRM systems to connect with other critical systems, such as marketing automation, ERP, and financial systems. This enables data synchronisation, automated workflows, and customises the PRM to align with specific business requirements.

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Slack Integration 

PRM and Slack integration facilitates real-time communication and collaboration between partner managers and partners. This can help streamline communication and improve response times. It provides you with a comprehensive, real-time view of deals, opportunities, and key information, regardless of your role as a vendor or partner. Partner managers are also able to simplify partner interactions with on-the-go notifications and rapid approval processes.

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LMS Integration

By integrating PRM and LMS, you can deliver tailored training programs based on partner roles, experience levels, and specific needs.  Partner certification process can automatically track partner progress and issue certificates upon completion of training modules.

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Final Considerations

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As a CRO, you're constantly seeking innovative solutions to drive growth and improve sales efficiency. If you’re looking into enhancing your partner strategy in 2025, getting the right tech stack in place might be the option. Before shortlisting PRM vendors, keep track of your initial goals. Look for Partner Relationships Management (PRM) software that aligns with your specific goals, tailors to your partner types (you might have different needs if your business is built on affiliates vs channel or technology partnerships). 

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It’s understandable that ROI will be the main focus of your selection criteria, however keep in mind these intangible business values such as partner experience, GTM engagement and overall usability play an important role too. If you’re looking for innovative partner stack solutions designed for results with partnerships at heart, make sure to drop as a line or book a consultation to find out how Journeybee (PRM) can help you launch, scale and activate your partnerships.