A channel marketing manager is in charge of channel marketing, which is a type of marketing that uses a specific method known as a channel. This can be accomplished through reselling or distributing the product to dealers, direct sales, phone calls, direct mail, the internet (which is a very popular and profitable channel these days), and a variety of other methods. In most cases, channel sales rely on indirect selling, particularly through resellers.
A channel marketing manager’s main responsibility is to oversee the process of transferring a product or goods from the source, through one or more resellers, and finally to the end user, who is the final customer. There can be only one tier between a reseller and the source, such as when a customer orders directly from the source, or multiple tiers, such as when the product owner uses a wholesale distributor who then sells to a large number of resellers. Retailers, dealers, and distributors, or disty for short, are all terms used to describe resellers. They are the ones who sell to customers directly.
A channel marketing manager’s first decision will be which channel or channels to use. To maximize exposure to potential customers, both direct and indirect methods are frequently used. The channel marketing director ensures that there is no channel conflict. This conflict arises when there are too many channels and resellers attempting to sell the same product, resulting in competition, which is a problem when market demand is insufficient to accommodate all of the resellers. A channel marketing manager can reduce conflict in a variety of ways, including dividing the products sold different resellers. They can also limit the areas in which each reseller can operate exclusively.
There is a distinction to be made between two complementary aspects of a marketing firm. There are two types of channel sales: channel sales and channel marketing. The distribution of products to resellers and dealers is referred to as a channel sale. In marketing terms, this is known as a sell-in. Meanwhile, channel marketing ensures that all distributors and resellers’ products are sold out, a process known as sell-through.
A channel sale is a separate department from channel marketing in large corporations. A channel sales director leads one, while a channel marketing manager leads the other. Smaller businesses frequently make do with a combined channel sales and marketing department. One person is in charge of both sell-ins and sell-throughs in this case.