scorecard · no email needed
choose a distributor with your eyes open.
One copy per country. First check whether you need a distributor at all, then which kind, then score up to three candidates on the criteria that matter for a security product. The weights are mine; change them.
do you need a distributor here?
- Can you reach the resellers and customers you want in this country without one?
- What would you have to do yourself instead: credit, logistics, local contracts, partner recruitment, technical support in the local language?
- What would those things cost you over two years, in people and money?
- Is that more or less than the margin a distributor would keep?
If doing it yourself costs more, build a shortlist. If it costs less, check once more that you counted credit risk and local-language support, then consider selling to resellers directly or through a marketplace.
which kind of distributor?
| your partners mostly need | look for |
|---|---|
| Credit, logistics and fast ordering | A volume distributor. Efficiency and scale decide. |
| Presales, POC support, training, partner recruitment, demand generation | A value-added distributor. Competence decides, size matters less. |
| Both | A specialist for the value-added work, possibly with one broadline distributor for ordering. |
score the candidates.
Score each candidate 1 (weak) to 5 (strong). The weights should add up to 100.
Weights add up to 100.
Candidate A–not scored yet
Candidate B–not scored yet
Candidate C–not scored yet
questions to ask, and what they'll ask you.
ask the distributor
- Which vendors did you take from zero in this country in the last three years, and what did their first year look like?
- Who would work on our line, by name, and how much of their time?
- Which of your resellers would you bring to us first, and why them?
- How do you support a partner's POC? Who goes on site?
- Which competing products do you carry, and how do you keep the teams apart?
- What do you need from us in the first 90 days?
- What sales data will we see per deal?
- What would make you stop working with a vendor?
be ready to answer
- Do partners already ask for your product in this country?
- Will you invest in the channel here, and do you have a budget for two years?
- Your technology, finances, team and how long you plan to stay in the market.
Distributors are wary of vendors who expect orders to flow the day the contract is signed. Bring a plan for the first 90 days instead.
before you sign.
- Exclusivity: its scope, how long it lasts and what ends it.
- First-year targets, and what happens if either side misses them.
- Point-of-sale reporting written into the contract.
- A review of the contract under local law. This page is not legal advice.
- Three reference calls with resellers who buy from this distributor, at least one you chose yourself.