Software Tips

A quick guide to channel training using an LMS

Business effectiveness is widely dependent on the successful collaboration of a complex supply chain. This supply chain includes manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, retailers, service shops, and integrators called channel partners. And for productive information exchange and teamwork among channel partners, every global enterprise needs to build an effective channel training program.

What is the purpose of the channel training program?

A channel training program is the training program designed to train channel partners to accomplish the following:

  1. How to include new partners in the network
  2. How to certify them or authorize them
  3. How to sell your service or product
  4. Keeping the brand value and elements consistent
  5. How to provide after-service to the end consumer
  6. Compliance training depends upon the product or service
  7. How to do teamwork in accomplishing all these tasks

With such a pool of tasks to complete, channel training can be provided in varied formats like hardcover modules, audios, videos, seminars, webinars, instructor-led training combined with surveys, feedback, and certifications.

Channel training has uncountable benefits ranging from increasing ROI to brand consistency and boosting growth. These benefits can further be multiplied easily if the training can be received anywhere anytime. 

The best way to ensure training is deployed easily is by using the LMS Learning management system. Don’t worry if you are new to this term. Let us help you know more about LMS, the supreme tool for successful training development and deployment.

What is an LMS?

A Learning Management System or LMS is a software tool used to organize, track, report, automate, and deliver offline or online training programs. An LMS can deliver and manage all types of content, including text, audio, video anytime, anywhere to your channel partners. Let’s deep-dive into detail.

Check out LMS reviews to identify the right software for your business and to know how channel partners of global enterprises enhanced their overall performance by using LMS.

Why use an LMS for an online channel partner training program?

LMS provides a customized learning experience for each partner

Your business needs a training experience that feels natural to your partners to grow. Multi-portals are beneficial in this situation. In LMS, each partner may have their eLearning site, desired URL compliance modules, and branding. Thus it is also possible to create customized knowledge bases for channel partners through an LMS.

You can customize the branding, add a logo, and banner pictures to build a portal that your partners will recognize, and that you can simply administer and maintain brand consistency. Consequently, it provides them with a streamlined online learning experience that builds their bond with your company.

LMS can add and certify channel partners with ease

Certifying your partners verifies that they have met a certain level of product expertise. Learners can be automatically awarded certificates depending on the guidelines or automation you set up in your LMS. They will receive a certificate, for example, if they pass an exam or finish a series of courses.

Certification may be scheduled and alerted to occur regularly, which is convenient. Recertify your partners/ resellers every year, every two years, etc., by selecting an expiration and enrolment date.

LMS can let any channel partner sign in from anywhere

The single sign-on (SSO) feature of an LMS removes a barrier, allowing you to easily access and finish the course module. It enables learners to access your LMS directly from an intranet or partner site, eliminating the need for a second set of login credentials. If your partners can easily use the LMS, your training program is more likely to complete.

LMS helps easy course distribution

The purpose of an LMS for partners is to provide them with product or service training courses. To deliver training to thousands of channel partners simultaneously the training program should be easy to distribute and develop. The LMS feature of being SCORM and xAPI compliant allows you to use existing assets – documents, presentations, videos, etc. – to build and deploy your courses or customized channel partner training.

LMS lets you add a new revenue stream to the training program

Establishing an E-commerce shop is a wonderful approach to delivering partner/reseller training. It saves you time because the trainee is instantly registered as money is received, and it offers you an additional revenue source. Resellers may easily build up fully branded and customized storefronts where they can purchase courses, bundles, or training pathways using an LMS with E-commerce functionality.

LMS can let you get feedback from the channel partners

Productive feedback from the channel partners can help you improve your training program. It can also help you be aligned with the requirements of the business. An LMS can help you conduct supply chain-wide surveys and feedback using questionnaires on a month and year basis.

LMS can help you analyze channel partner training success

Your partners’ willingness to participate in and complete training is a critical parameter you must be able to track. An LMS allows you to observe how long it takes each reseller to finish courses, as well as the proportion of partners that pass or fail so that you can make educated business decisions.

You may also set up scheduled reports to send data to certain persons on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis, eliminating the need for them to log into the LMS.

Conclusion:

An LMS can help you easily deliver, automate, deploy, administer, customize training for your channel partners regardless of the size of your network. That too on a single sign-on option, anytime and anywhere. Isn’t it unbelievable? An LMS can multiply your ROI and network connectivity among channel partners. Thus LMS is an ultimate go-to tool for establishing a channel partner training program in your enterprise.