What is Through-Channel Marketing Automation?
Many brands see value in consumers buying their products or services through a Distributed Marketing ecosystem, composed of indirect partners (retailers, agents, dealers, franchisees, distributors, branches or resellers). Partners are very in tune with their local markets. They build relationships in their local communities rather quickly, and they are also the local experts for the products or services they sell.
Some of the major challenges in selling through indirect partners are that local business owners are not always sophisticated marketers, and the brand’s internal systems and processes may be complex and out of date. This makes it difficult for brands to market through partners effectively, thus brands turn to a Through Channel Marketing Automation (TCMA) platform for help.
What is a TCMA platform?
Through Channel Marketing Automation is a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) marketing platform solution that enables brands to efficiently and economically scale advertising and local marketing messaging through their distributed marketing networks of indirect partners, resellers, retailers, dealers, distributors, agents, franchisees and branches. TCMA platforms are also called Distributed Marketing platforms. In The Forrester Wave™: Through Channel Marketing Automation, Q2 2018, author Jay McBain writes, “TCMA is now a critical component of the marketing portfolio that amplifies customer-facing content and messaging.” TCMA revolutionizes how brands go to market through their partners because it gives brand marketers the software, services, and channel marketing automation support they need to make marketing easier for their partners.
Forrester also states that TCMA enables “partners of all types to leverage vendor content, messaging, branding, and demand generation initiatives in their local markets.” Vendor in this instance is referring to the brand that they are operating under — whether that be a luxury travel brand, equipment manufacturers, automotive and recreational vehicles, telecommunications providers or insurance companies just to name a few. Having access to a large array of content — whether it be logos, images, customizable content, raw files, marketing campaigns, etc. — is critical for all types of partners even if they each use the platform differently.
Benefits of a Through Channel Marketing Automation Platform
Through Channel Marketing Automation changes how brands operate by aggregating and centralizing very complex single-point solutions into one comprehensive TCMA platform — including ad builders; creating, selecting and customizing brand-approved local marketing campaigns; digital asset management; fulfillment and execution of digital marketing and traditional marketing campaigns; vendor management; email marketing engines; print production including direct mail; funding Co-Op Advertising; claims reimbursements processing; and local marketing analytics. This offers a variety of benefits, such as increasing speed to market, decreasing OpEx and enabling brands to have better insight into what is working and what isn’t so they can optimize marketing spend.
If you are having difficulty getting your partners to engage with your marketing campaigns, consider how TCMA can help you. As Forrester mentioned, TCMA is a critical component of the marketing portfolio, so it is time for you to add this technology to your marketing stack. It will transform your internal processes as well as how you market through your indirect partners. Driving marketing efficiency, brand awareness, leads, and most importantly sales will positively impact your bottom line.
Learn more about SproutLoud’s Through Channel Marketing Automation platform.
