Is PRM (Partner Relationship Management) still relevant in this fast-paced, ever-evolving business landscape? You bet it is! According to a recent Canalys report, PRM isn’t just alive; it’s more critical than ever before. As businesses embrace modern ecosystem strategies, PRM platforms serve as the bedrock, helping you measure, manage, nurture, and empower an extensive network of diverse partners.

📌 The Resurgence of PRM

A decade ago, there were whispers of PRM’s impending demise as CRM systems like Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics took center stage. PRM lost its “source of truth” for partner management, and many believed it couldn’t compete with feature-rich alternatives.

However, reports of PRM’s death were greatly exaggerated. Why? The business landscape has become more complex with diversified partner strategies, new collaboration tactics, and various routes to market. Managing this complexity has driven the need for more effective, personalized, and automated partner management, and PRM tools are stepping up as foundational solutions to meet these demands.

🌐 What Is PRM?

PRM platforms are your secret weapon for automating partner program management, partner lifecycles, onboarding, training, deal registration, collaboration, and more. They streamline communication, lead management, and co-marketing efforts. In essence, they offer a personalized and efficient partnership experience.

📊 The PRM Landscape

Canalys’ research paints a vibrant ecosystem software industry with 233 active companies generating $5.3 billion in revenue. By 2028, this number is projected to soar to $11.8 billion as more businesses focus on data-driven ecosystem strategies.

There are currently 38 PRM players in 2023, delivering $710 million in PRM revenue. Each PRM has its unique strengths and focus areas, catering to various partner strategies and program maturities. The PRM arena is evolving rapidly, with many platforms striving to become comprehensive end-to-end solutions.

🚀 Embracing the Power of Gen AI

The next-generation Gen AI is set to transform the partnering space, and PRM platforms will play a pivotal role. Gen-AI is changing the entire GTM stack making channels and partnerships that much more critical. And in the future PRM’s will help build and fine-tune large language models (LLMs) using invaluable business intelligence accumulated over years of partnership. From training and certifications to incentives and co-marketing, the possibilities are endless.

Imagine a world of partner self-service, powered by Gen AI, enriched with behavioral data, partner-specific workflows, and hyper-specialized partner programs that cater to individual contributors within partner companies. It’s a thrilling prospect!

🔍 Evaluating PRMs – What Matters?

When it comes to selecting the right PRM, tech vendors need to align the choice with their partner strategies and existing infrastructure. Scalability, usability, integrations, security, customizability, and pricing models are crucial considerations. A user-friendly interface, seamless integrations, content management, and mobile access are key.

Also, take into account important factors like partner types, user experience, customizability, reporting and analytics, security and compliance, training and support, vendor reputation, future roadmap, integrations, and content management capabilities.

Torchlite: Building Successful Partnerships, One Platform at a Time

 With Torchlite, you’ll have the partner relationship management tools you need to streamline processes when managing and evaluating relationships. From contact management to accounting and even performance tracking, you’ll have comprehensive insight into every aspect of your partnership. By using a system like Torchlite, you can simplify and streamline your workflows, as well as quickly identify opportunities for optimization.

Torchlite provides various capabilities that address these key elements, including things like:

• Affiliate Program -Link Tracking
• Deal Registration
• Partner Portal and Directory
• Partner Resources
• Account Mapping with Intent Data and Followup
• Channel Marketing and Journey Building
• Channel Management / Reporting
• Partner Co-Selling
• Marketplaces
• Playbooks

Our solution makes it easier to run PRM strategies, and it also connects those strategies to your business in a much more comprehensive way. Your leadership team will never have to guess which partnerships are working, and why—plus, your partners will have access to that same information.

💡 The Future of PRM

PRMs will continue to evolve, incorporating Gen AI functionality and supporting more integrations. They’ll become smarter, with enhanced personalization and customizability, and the ability to manage partner interactions with utmost flexibility. In summary, PRMs are evolving from a nice-to-have into an essential tool for supporting robust ecosystems and successful channel strategies.

🔮 What Lies Ahead?

PRMs will expand to support various emerging routes to market, including white-labeled marketplaces, cloud distributors, technology services distribution, and managed services platforms. Gen AI will drive smarter automation, chatbots, predictive insights, and centralized data and analytics, offering deeper insights into partnership management.

In conclusion, PRMs are the cornerstone of world-class partner organizations. When implemented, integrated, and managed correctly, they act as the hub for partner-related data, content, and relationships, significantly enhancing visibility, productivity, and efficiency. PRM isn’t just foundational; it’s the future of successful partnership ecosystems.

[Read the full Canalys report here: https://canalys.com/insights/prm-not-dead]

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