Sales channels are places where your products can be
purchased. Your online store is considered your direct channel, where the
costumer is directly in contact with you and buy from your brand. Auction sites
can also be a direct channel, especially since you can create your own store
within the site.
The following are examples of direct channels:
- Your own online store
- eBay
- Google Base
- Amazon
- NextTag
-
Yahoo Store
Then, there’s the indirect channel, these are places where your customer
purchases your products through an intermediary. They often require you to pay
a commission so there is a bigger cost of sales when it comes to indirect
channel selling.
-
Reseller Program
-
Affiliate Program (Commission Junction,
ShareASale, LinkShare)
- Distributor networks
-
Retailers
Before you decide to on your channels, check if your product
type allows it. If the products you are selling is complicated or requires
training, then it is more suitable to go direct. To scale to indirect marketing
with this type of product, you would need to put together a training and
certification program.
Next, consider your product’s price point. High-end products
need to start off in the direct channel as the benefits have to be explained to
your potential customer in person. Brand protection is another consideration.
Choose your channels wisely and find a good balance between
the two. There are a number of factors to consider when choosing your channels
such as cost, coverage, control, support and more.
Shopster helps you expand your direct channels with datafeeds.
Sign up today to find out more about selling tools available to you.
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