Rotterdam-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) startup Channext has recently raised €250,000 through informal investors with extensive experience in IT and the platform economy.
The company has developed an online connection between suppliers and resellers which enables them to efficiently market to the end customer together and measure important KPIs in the channel. The platform is already operating for clients like Dropbox, HP and Quantore. The investment will be used for further development of the platform and to grow the user base of suppliers and resellers.
Indirect sales channels are key drivers of economy
More than 75% of all world trade goes through the indirect sales channel (WTO), meaning that products move through a chain of intermediaries (typically manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers and resellers) to be made available for purchase by an end customer.
Within the channel, less than 5% of supplier marketing content and activities reaches the end customer through the resellers. There is limited insight into what works and what doesn’t. Channel marketing euros are wasted and revenue is left on the table for both suppliers and resellers. Channext aims to achieve a higher ROI of channel marketing budgets by means of leads and sales. They do this by automatically distributing campaigns to resellers and their customers and measuring all relevant KPIs throughout the channel.
Giving local SMEs the marketing power of corporate brands
Founder and CEO Rick van den Bosch, said:
End customers have increasingly higher expectations and want information 24/7 at their disposal. If they can’t find what they are looking for on the website or online channels of a reseller, they will move on to a competitor. Therefore, it is important to have a strong online presence as a reseller. As local SMEs often don’t have enough resources or knowledge in-house to fulfill the online information need of the end customer, they lose a lot of potential customers.
Corporate brands have large marketing teams and invest millions per year in high-quality content and marketing campaigns.
Van den Bosch adds:
Our platform creates a digital connection between suppliers and resellers. Campaigns and content are published directly to the local reseller websites and marketing channels. In this way, resellers can leverage the marketing power of their suppliers to activate their local customers.
Unique insights of the channel to efficiently market together
Hennie Jansen, shareholder and CCO of Channext, said:
With the Channext platform, suppliers and resellers get insight into important data throughout the entire channel. All necessary channel data is collected and displayed in a central dashboard. “I have been working in indirect channels for over 25 years, for companies like Siemens, Microsoft & Vodafone. What was always missing, was a central channel data dashboard where we could see what happens on a reseller level. The only output we could measure, was revenue.
That’s what got me so excited and why I decided to join Channext. The 360 dashboard that gives insight into everything that’s happening in your channel. Reseller activity, total marketing reach, customer interaction, number of leads collected. It would’ve been my ultimate dream to have this as a channel executive. I am very passionate to implement this successfully for channels all over the world,” adds Jansen.
Main image picture credits: Channext
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