Partnerships glossary
Plain definitions of the terms partner managers use every day, from deal registration and MDF to co-selling, nearbound and partner-sourced revenue. Each term has a worked example and links to the guide or template that goes deeper.
A
- Account mappingAccount mapping is comparing your customers, open opportunities and prospects with a partner's lists to find the companies you both know. Each overlap suggests a next step, such as asking the partner for an introduction to an account you are trying to win.
- Affiliate partnerAn affiliate partner is a person or company that promotes your product to an audience through a tracked link and earns a commission when someone they sent signs up or pays. Affiliates rarely talk to your sales team.
- Agency partnerAn agency partner is a services firm, such as a marketing, web, development or consulting agency, that recommends, implements or manages a vendor's software for its clients. In return it earns referral fees, discounts or other partner benefits.
C
- Channel conflictChannel conflict is when two of a company's sales channels compete for the same customer or deal, such as two partners, a partner and the direct sales team, or a partner and self-serve signup. It is usually prevented with rules of engagement and settled with timestamped deal registrations.
- Channel partnerA channel partner is a company outside your business that sells, refers or delivers your product to customers, such as a reseller, distributor, MSP, agency or referral partner. Together they make up your indirect sales channel.
- Channel salesChannel sales is selling through partners such as resellers, referral partners, agencies and distributors, rather than only through your own sales team. The partners find, influence or close the deals, and earn a fee, margin or discount for it.
- ClawbackA clawback is a rule that lets a company take back a commission or referral fee it has already paid, usually because the customer was refunded, canceled early or never paid. The amount is normally deducted from the partner's next payout.
- Co-marketingCo-marketing is marketing that two partners plan and run together to reach both audiences, such as a joint webinar, report, case study or event. Both companies share the work, the cost and the leads it produces.
- Co-sellingCo-selling is when a company's sales team and a partner's team work the same deal together toward one close. The partner brings the relationship, context or services, the vendor's rep brings product expertise and pricing, and both agree up front who leads and how each is credited.
D
- Deal registrationDeal registration is the process a partner uses to claim a sales opportunity before it closes. Once the vendor approves it, the partner is protected for a set period and earns the commission, margin or discount on that deal.
- DistributorA distributor is a company that buys products from a vendor and sells them on to resellers, rather than to end customers. It handles volume, credit and logistics for the channel, and is the first tier in two-tier distribution.
E
F
I
J
M
- Managed service provider (MSP)A managed service provider (MSP) is a company that runs part or all of another business's IT for a recurring fee. MSPs choose, set up and support software on behalf of their clients, which makes them a common channel for B2B software vendors.
- Market development funds (MDF)Market development funds (MDF) are money a vendor gives channel partners to run marketing that sells the vendor's product, such as webinars, events or paid campaigns. The partner proposes an activity, the vendor approves it in advance and reimburses approved costs once the partner shows proof.
N
P
- Partner attributionPartner attribution is how a company decides which partner gets credit for a lead, deal or customer, and what kind of credit it is. It decides who gets paid and how much revenue the partner program reports.
- Partner certificationPartner certification is formal proof that a partner's staff have completed a vendor's training and passed its assessment. Programs use it to show which partners can sell or implement the product well, and often tie tier status or rewards to it.
- Partner ecosystemA partner ecosystem is the full set of outside companies that help a business reach, sell to and serve its customers, such as resellers, agencies, referral partners, technology partners and integrators, along with the relationships between them.
- Partner enablementPartner enablement is the training, content, tools and support a company gives its partners so they can find, pitch, sell or implement its product on their own. It starts during onboarding and continues for as long as the partner is active.
- Partner managerA partner manager is the person responsible for recruiting, onboarding and growing a company's partners. They are the partners' main contact and are usually measured on the revenue their partners source or influence.
- Partner onboardingPartner onboarding is the process that takes a newly approved partner to their first referral or registered deal. It covers the signed agreement, tax forms, portal access, a kickoff call and short training.
- Partner portalA partner portal is a website where a company's partners sign in to submit referrals, register deals, track commissions, take training and find sales material. It is the partner-facing side of a partner program, usually provided by PRM software.
- Partner programA partner program is the set of rules, rewards and resources a company uses to work with partners at scale. It defines who can join, what partners do, how they are paid, what support they get and how they move between tiers.
- Partner QBRA partner QBR, or quarterly business review, is a meeting a vendor and a partner hold every quarter to review results against goals, discuss pipeline and issues, and agree on goals and actions for the next quarter.
- Partner recruitmentPartner recruitment is the process of finding, qualifying and signing new partners for a partner program. It runs from defining the ideal partner profile through outreach and agreement to the partner's first referral or deal.
- Partner relationship managementPartner relationship management is the practice of recruiting, onboarding, enabling, motivating and paying the partners who help a company sell. It covers the processes, rules and people behind a partner program, whether they run on spreadsheets or on PRM software.
- Partner scorecardA partner scorecard is a regular review that rates each partner on the same weighted metrics, such as sourced revenue, pipeline, engagement and certification. The total score is used to compare partners, guide reviews and decide tier changes.
- Partner tieringPartner tiering is grouping partners into levels, such as Registered, Silver and Gold, based on measurable results like revenue sourced, deals closed and certifications. Each tier earns different benefits, so partners who do more with you get more back.
- Partner-influenced revenuePartner-influenced revenue is revenue from deals someone else created, usually your own sales team, where a partner later did something specific that helped the deal close, such as introducing a decision maker or joining a technical call.
- Partner-sourced revenuePartner-sourced revenue is revenue from deals a partner created: the partner introduced the customer, and your team had no open opportunity with that account at the time. Without the partner, the deal would not exist.
- PRMPRM is partner relationship management software: the system a company uses to run its partner program. Partners log in to apply, submit referrals, register deals, take training and see what they are owed, while the company tracks their activity and pays them.
R
- Referral feeA referral fee is the payment a business makes to a partner for introducing a customer who goes on to buy. In B2B SaaS it is usually a percentage of the customer's first-year revenue, a recurring share for a set period, or a flat amount per customer.
- Referral partnerA referral partner is a person or company that introduces prospects to your business and earns a fee when they become customers. Your own team runs the sale, bills the customer and owns the relationship.
- ResellerA reseller is a company that buys a vendor's product, usually at a discount off list price, and sells it to its own customers at a price it sets. The reseller signs the customer, bills them and usually provides first-line support.
- Revenue shareRevenue share is a partner payment model in which a company pays a partner an agreed percentage of the revenue it collects from customers the partner brought in or serves, for each billing period over a set term or for the life of the customer.
- Rules of engagementRules of engagement are a short written policy that says who owns an account or deal when partners and a vendor's own sales team overlap, and how disputes are decided. They are shared with partners and referenced in the partner agreement.
S
- Sales performance incentive fund (SPIFF)A SPIFF, usually expanded as sales performance incentive fund, is a short-term bonus paid for a specific sales result, such as closing a deal for a new product or registering a deal before quarter end. In partner programs, vendors pay SPIFFs to partners or their reps on top of normal commission.
- System integrator (SI)A system integrator is a services firm that designs, implements and connects software for its clients. When it partners with a vendor, it recommends the product, deploys it and often influences which product the client buys.