We know you’ve heard it: “you’ll always be my little girl/boy.” Well, mom, we made it. We’re adults! Your mom can’t tell you not to eat ice cream for dinner anymore, but there are still a few pieces of motherly advice you should take with you to work;  no matter how big of a channel partner program you’re running, or what your job title is. Here are five pieces of moms advice that you should take to your partner program:

1. Treat others the way you want to be treated.

In the world of PRM (partner relationship management) and channel sales, you talk to an abundance of people, we understand. It’s easy to get wrapped up in your never-ending to-do list and forget about the human aspect of your job. This was probably the first lesson you learned as a kid and it’ll apply to the rest of your life: treat others the way you want to be treated. In terms of your partner program that means having the most up-to-date content ready and uploaded on your PRM platform, give them incentives to sell, and acknowledge when your partners are exceeding your expectations. Would you want to know about the status of your deals/rewards? If the answer is “yes” (and we bet it is), then let your partners know before they have to ask.

Lifehack: treating your partners the way you want to be treated can save you both time. If that’s not a win we don’t know what is.

2. Money doesn’t grow on trees.

This piece of advice definitely becomes more real the older that we get. The paper comes from trees argument now falls flat, who would have thought? If you utilize channel partners then you probably have MDFs or have heard of them. Market development funds are used to help improve the results you get from partners and can be anything from rebates and discounts to cash. It’s nice to think that our partners spend their days selling just for us, but unfortunately, that isn’t the case. Ask what your partners need in order to increase sales. Discounts may work for one partner whereas rebates may work for another. MDFs aren’t a one size fits all category and should be used strategically. But once you’ve decided to utilize MDF’s then it’s imperative to set KPI’s. Key performance indicators ensure that your MDF’s are being used properly and you’re seeing the results you originally projected.

3. Everything happens for a reason.

Picture this: your PRM platform is finally live, you think you’ve uploaded every piece of content a partner needs and within 24 hours you get an email asking for something you forgot. Ring the alarm! Pull out the emergency kit! Just kidding. This motherly piece of advice might just be the one that keeps you sane. While a new partnership takes a lot of planning and prep, it’s impossible to prepare for every possible outcome. It’s an unfortunate thing, but there are going to be partnerships along the way that don’t work out. If you work hard to get a partnership off the ground and it still fails, it’s not the end of the world–you’ll both be okay, we promise. That loss might be the thing that gets you to the partner of your dreams. Be flexible.

4. Sharing is caring.

The importance of sharing is still prevalent as an adult, even though we traded our Hot Wheels and Barbies for spreadsheets and sales. Sharing insights to your partners about how their deals are performing through the pipeline can boost morale. Partners should also be notified when there are updates with your product or within your company. Your partners are an extension of your team, it’s time to start treating them as such. Transparency between you and your partners leads to greater understanding, trust, and communication within your partnership. Partners that feel like they’re a part of your team will be more inclined to boost their performance for your company versus a different partner who’s more distant. Scheduling recurring meetings biweekly or monthly is a fantastic way to get open communication going and further build on your relationship.

5. You can be anything you want to be when you grow up.

Don’t limit yourself, don’t settle for the first PRM to come your way. Where do you see your partner program in five years? What do you need in order to achieve that level of growth? Make a list of the features that are important to you, and don’t be afraid to let the PRMs that you’re demo-ing know what your needs are up front. You know how big you want your channel to grow and it’s worth waiting for the PRM that allows you to develop your partner program as you envisioned.

We might be all grown up, but the best advice we’ve ever received still comes from our mothers. Let your mom know how much she’s done for you, and your channel partner program, this mothers day.
Have a question or comment about the blog? We’d love to start a conversation!

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Slack recently hit an impressive milestone: According to reports, more that 10 million active users log in to Slack every day to chat with coworkers, share files, and collaborate on projects.

We can’t say we’re surprised — at CallRail, we’ve used Slack as our primary messaging tool for years. We love the way it brings team communication into a single interface, and have found real value in the ability to customize Slack with third party integrations.

This added value of customization inspired us to build our own Slack integration several years ago, and today we’re excited to announce a brand new version with some major upgrades. In addition to the real-time call, text, and form submission notifications of the original, the new integration includes daily performance reports with automatic trend analysis, anomaly alerts when something breaks or needs your attention, and the ability to respond to texts directly from the app.

Setup gets easier

A webhook is a way for one app to provide other apps with real-time information, and webhooks are the basis of many of Slack’s third-party integrations. While useful, the process of activating an integration via webhook can be a bit cumbersome.

Our new Slack integration does away with webhooks in favor of an app that you install directly into Slack. Setup is a breeze — just access the account and company of your choice in the CallRail app, choose the workspace and channel you’d like to use in Slack, and integration is ready to go.

Daily Performance Reports

The new Slack integration also keeps you up to date on the performance of your campaigns with automatic insights and analysis of each company’s call tracking trends. These daily reports, which arrive in Slack every morning at 9:00am, synthesize high-level takeaways at a glance, so you can stay on top of performance and make adjustment as needed.

Reports include the basics, like the amount of total calls in a day, as well as more advanced metrics like which of your sources saw the highest increase or decrease in week-over-week call volume.

Anomaly Alerts

Along with daily insights, we’ve provided a useful new tool to alert you when your attention is needed. If an integration breaks or a tracking number stops working, you’ll get an alert in Slack, so you can fix the issue quickly to avoid any disruption in tracking data:

Anomaly alerts also alert you when something may need your attention, even if it hasn’t broken, such as when a tracking number is receiving an unusually high rate of abandoned calls. This is the type of thing that you may not notice if you aren’t looking for it, but could still indicate a problem that needs to be addressed.

Real-time notifications and text responding

Monitoring all the calls, texts, and form submissions that come through your tracking numbers can be overwhelming. Real-time notifications, a main feature of our original integration, have returned so you can follow all inbound communications in real time. Every contact is logged in the Slack channel of your choice as it occurs, so your team can always keep an eye on new leads.

Additionally, you can now respond to text messages directly from Slack! The convenience is unbeatable, but keep in mind that anyone with access to the channel can respond.

CallRail’s Slack integration is available for the Essentials Plan and higher. For instructions on how to install or troubleshoot your integration, view our support document in the CallRail Help Center.

The post Instant call tracking notifications are easier than ever with our upgraded Slack integration appeared first on CallRail.

By: Bianca Buliga, Digital Marketing Manager

Recently, SEED SPOT celebrated an important milestone: we have officially served 800 entrepreneurs nationwide since our inception seven years ago! It has taken a village of mentors, content experts, investors, and community members to empower each and every one of those entrepreneurs. While the list of generous supporters is lengthy and grows daily, we could not have served 800 entrepreneurs without the help of our National Sponsor, GoDaddy.

GoDaddy is the company that empowers everyday entrepreneurs. We formed a partnership with GoDaddy in 2015 to accelerate our work and in 2018 we expanded our partnership to provide access to technology for impact-driven entrepreneurs in the early stages of launching their business ventures. Since then, GoDaddy has supported our alumni by developing resources around branding, finding the perfect domain name, creating content, and marketing to target customers.

Stacy Cline, Director of Corporate Citizenship at GoDaddy, is responsible for driving the strategic direction of GoDaddy’s social impact efforts. In her role, Stacy leads GoDaddy’s signature initiative, GoDaddy GoCommunities, a philanthropic program that equips entrepreneurs in underserved communities with training, tools and peer networks to accelerate their journeys. She also crafts nonprofit partnerships and volunteer opportunities for 9,000 employees, arranges community sponsorships, and seeks grants that deliver impact. Continue reading to learn more about her passion for inclusive entrepreneurship!

Q: Can you tell us a story of an entrepreneur that has inspired you personally?

A: I am fortunate to be surrounded by incredible entrepreneurs and I am inspired on a daily basis. One recent story that was incredibly inspirational comes from a recent graduate of the Iowa GoDaddy GoCommunities program. This gentleman came to the program with a real desire to grow his business. He had been selling some of his products on eBay but was ready to take his business to the next level. Unfortunately, his anxiety had slowed him down. We worked with him over the course of several months to overcome his fears and help him with his digital presence and marketing. At the conclusion of the program, he presented his business to about 50 community members and announced not only that he had been awarded a permanent spot at the local farmer’s market and craft fair, but that he had received an $18,000 grant that would allow him to travel to craft fairs around the U.S. Stories like this one inspire me and showcase why this work is important and why we need to continue building programs, resources and ecosystems for entrepreneurs to be successful.

Q: Do you believe entrepreneurship is a solo sport or a team sport? 

A: I believe that the entrepreneurial mindset is driven by individuals, but entrepreneurship is absolutely a team sport. Collaboration is key in building entrepreneurial ecosystems and boosting local economies.

Q: How do you look at “entrepreneurial ecosystems” and who are the players and stakeholders? 

A: Entrepreneurial ecosystems are incredibly important for local economic and national growth. I see the ecosystems as the connectors and communicators to bring together entrepreneurs, businesses and individuals to create vibrant growth. Entrepreneurial ecosystems are great because they are open to anyone who can contribute thoughtful ideas and resources. Some of the players include entrepreneurs, angel investors, financial institutions, the private sector, local businesses, government, universities, foundations, nonprofits, accelerators, incubators, etc. We all have an opportunity to bring something to the table to build a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Q: Each city and community has a different set of advantages and resources. Given GoDaddy’s investments into entrepreneurship, what are some of the common traits you have seen across the communities you work in? 

A: Access to capital, technical assistance resources, organizations working together and peer networks to name a few. When communities and organizations are willing to work together, I have seen a lot more success. Oftentimes, organizations are competing with one another when everyone is trying to achieve the same goal – and when they join forces, progress happens quickly.

Many communities and entrepreneurs face additional barriers due to resources. That’s one of the reasons that we created GoCommunities – to fill the gap in needed areas. We believe that anyone, no matter their age, race, gender or socioeconomic background, should have the opportunity to pursue their entrepreneurial ideas and dreams. And we believe that where you live, regardless of whether it is a thriving or struggling urban, suburban or rural community, should not hinder your ability to pursue your small business idea.

Q: What is working for communities that are investing in entrepreneurs? 

A: Working together – admitting gaps and working with folks who can fill those gaps and create onramps for success. Even if you’re not an entrepreneur, keeping an entrepreneurial mindset and being able to adapt and make changes quickly is extremely important. We have to forge connections between entrepreneurs and community members.

Q: Many communities aspire to be the next Silicon Valley, do you agree or disagree with this approach to inspiring entrepreneurship? 

A: I think it’s more important for communities to be unique and create their own brand rather than strive to be like a community that is very developed. I love going to cities with thriving entrepreneurial ecosystems and seeing their uniqueness and ties to their city roots.

Q: If you had one piece of advice for a community to invest in entrepreneurship, what would it be?

It’s really a no-brainer. Entrepreneurship creates jobs, drives change and fuels economies.

A big thank you to Stacy and the team at GoDaddy for seeing the value in impact-driven entrepreneurship and creating resources designed to help early-stage entrepreneurs succeed. We look forward to continuing our partnership and increasing the number of innovative change makers served! To learn more GoDaddy’s community impact, visit GoDaddyforGood.com.

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>>”12 Student Teams Invited to Pitch at Schools National Demo Day”

>>”32 Student Teams Selected to Pitch at SEED SPOT Schools Semi-Finals”

>>”10 Impact-Driven Entrepreneurs Pitch for $20,000 in Cash Prizes“

The post SEED SPOT’s National Sponsor is Expanding Tech Access for Impact-Driven Entrepreneurs appeared first on SEED SPOT.