Best Practice Concierge Models

Background:

Mature marketing concierge models feature two distinct roles for agency outsource specialists, one role being the Marketing Service Bureau (MSB) role and the second the ‘overlay’ role. The example described below is in operation for a number of large technology vendors with more mature programs, including HP, SAP and Cisco; it is considered industry best practice.

Outcomes and Roles:

The success of these concierge models are measured in terms of partner-demand generation, and appropriate metrics include campaign execution by partners, end-user engagement and leads generated. In exemplary concierge models these outcomes are driven by three integrated activities:

A: Creation of partner-ready marketing campaign content in appropriate languages

- Being the responsibility of the vendor

B: Partner profiling and engagement, to gain commitment and to support running of campaigns

- Being owned by the overlay agency

C: Delivery of campaign elements, including end user targeting, landing sites and lead qualification

- Being delivered through a network of local MSB

Operating a concierge model without any one of the three is suboptimal. Many fail because the vendor cannot provide appropriate campaign content. Other models lack the overlay role, and although content is available, partners are not encouraged to commit, nor are they supported through campaign execution. The result in both cases is poor ROI in terms of lead generation.

The three roles can overlap somewhat. Typically, the overlay agency will provide guidance to the vendor, collected from partners, to help with campaign creation. They may also provide translation services to localise content, as well as working closely with regional MSB to execute campaigns for partners.

The Role of The MSB:

Generally, there are two or three lead MSB in the US. It’s normal to offer choices to partners, so that they can work with a preferred agency. It’s also likely that there will be a portfolio of local agencies in EMEA, APAC and LATAM where in-country agency relationships are important.

The ideal MSB landscape is to have two or three larger providers in the US, and a lead provider in each other region, with a network of smaller local providers in EMEA, APAC and LATAM. The word ‘network’ is appropriate to MSB.

Some MSB might have specialisms, either geographic or in terms of marketing delivery, so there may be a preferred customer data provider for all of EMEA, but a specialist web content agency for Italy (for example). Partners in some regions like to work with local providers.

The MSB must be ‘accredited’, which means that the agency must pass a basic skills test to ensure that they will work within vendor brand guidelines. They are then promoted to partners as appropriate by the overlay agency for campaign execution capability.

The Role Of The Overlay Agency:

It is easiest to see the role of the overlay agency as twofold. The agency is responsible for driving partner usage, and for administering the concierge model. Let’s look at each role separately.

Driving partner usage is not simply about calling. Profiling has a key role to play, and some of this can be done ‘pre-call’ by reviewing partner websites. Advanced concierge programs offer sophisticated “score-carding” capabilities to identify partners most likely to engage and where the greatest sales uplift opportunity lie.

Once a partner is identified for engagement the Overlay agency will call out in local language, preferably with a native speaker, and will work with the partner to confirm profile and assess campaign fit. This is not telemarketing. The teams typically engaged in this activity are experienced marketers able to have value added and unscripted conversations with senior partner stakeholders. They will assess the marketing capability of the partner, and build a simple marketing plan that includes execution of a campaign supported by an MSB.

Experience shows that for every four partners that an overlay agency commits to a campaign, three of them will then run a second or third campaign without significant overlay agency contact, so it’s about teaching partners to ‘fish’, while the overlay agency will constantly ‘churn’ target partners. As partners gain experience, others will be targeted and taught.

The overlay agency will collect campaign execution case studies, and will provide reporting on lead generation from completed campaigns, as well as guiding the vendor through new campaign development.

The program administration role is all about the MSB network. Typically, the overlay agency will manage the selection and accreditation of MSB in each region on behalf of the vendor. This process can represent significant admin overhead if left with the vendor to manage.

The overlay agency might also be involved in MDF spend reporting, when campaigns are MDF-funded, and in managing deal registration when leads are captured in deal registration tools.

It is best practice for the overlay agency role to be multi-regional or global, so there is consistency in reporting, partner engagement and MSB management across the world.

Metrics And Results:

The overlay agency is responsible for program reporting. A well-run model will focus on through partner demand generation as the key metric. Sometimes ‘proxies’ are used for this, including number of campaigns run, and number of customers engaged.

For the vendor, an effective global concierge models program is a key element in demand generation strategy. There should be an expectation that there are as many leads generated through the concierge model from partners, as are generated by the vendor and passed to partners for qualification and close. Demand generation is a key benefit offered by the ‘reach’ of indirect partner routes to market. Getting the concierge model right, and having the agency roles clear, is fundamental.

#IndustryInsights