Channel Strategy

With any product, there is always more than one distribution channel. Consumer product manufacturers use direct retail deliveries, warehouse shipments and direct-to-customer methods.

Software companies have a variety of options, including inside sales, resellers, OEM partners and "touchless" customer acquisition. Financial institutions, on the other hand, provide self-service, assisted self-service and full-service options at a variety of offline and online sites.

Because of this complexity, executives may be unsure which channels to prioritize. Each channel offers advantages and disadvantages based on target demographics and the cost of reaching them.

How to manage channels effectively so they can reach customers is another issue. The need for e-commerce and traditional retail channels to remain compatible as they expand has never been greater. Last but not least, new channels are entering the buying cycle at different points, from concept formulation to product evaluation and purchase, and they must also be properly controlled.