Channel Enablers encourages channel managers to consider which partners, and which staff within partner organizations are achievers, believers or deceivers. You know the type even without a more formal definition. If you have ever worked in channels you can almost certainly name some achievers, some believers and some deceivers just based on your own interaction with them. But sometimes, as the name implies, deceivers parade around pretending to be something more than they are not. In fact, the deceiver will rarely pretend to be a believer. No! A deceiver wants to be seen as an achiever! And to make that facade work, the deceiver is eager to throw many terrific ideas and opportunities on the table to show just how capable he/she is at achieving!
The problem is resources are finite; there isn’t enough time or money to accomplish everything. Achievers know this and limit their scope to the most important, achievable objectives and tasks. Believers sometimes don’t know where to start, and a deceiver will dazzle eager channel managers with a plethora of ideas.
It is tempting, though! When your boss is pushing to drive sales and a partner has so many great ideas, with a lot of talk to back up the many great ideas, it seems easy to invest more time and energy there. After all with so many great ideas, even if only one or two bear fruit, the boss’ demands for more can be met! However, if the partner is truly a deceiver there may be a prioritization problem, and in the end nothing will be accomplished because everything (and, therefore, nothing) was the focus.
This is not to suggest that a channel manager should immediately disregard a partner that has many good ideas. Simply stated, it should only serve as a warning sign that channel managers musr watch out for. When a partner does have so many good ideas, it may be best to ask the partner, “What do you think should be done first?” or “What will receive your most time and investment?” Then, watch and coach what happens. If there is a lack of priority, ask yourself, “Is more of my time and money appropriate in this situation or am I being deceived?”
