Definition of Marketing ChannelA method of reaching customers to sell to them and/or to deliver your products and services to them.
It is common for firms to use multiple marketing channels often with different strategies for each region they serve. The following are common types of marketing channel.Direct Channels | Indirect Channels |
Sales Channels | Distribution Channels |
Traditional Channels | Digital Channels |
Direct Channels
As the name suggests, direct channels involve interacting with the customer directly. This places no partners between you and your customers such that you have complete control over branding, customer experience, prices, promotions and other things such as product launches. Some types of direct channels, such as owning your own retail shops are capital intensive and difficult to scale.
Indirect Channels
An indirect channel is the use of third-parties to reach your customer. This can create many levels whereby your partners can have partners such that your products may flow through various wholesalers, retailers and resellers without you having to orchestrate things. Generally speaking, indirect channels give you access to markets with little investment but also give you less control and access to the customer.
Sales Channels
A sales channel is a method for selling to the customer such as digital advertising. This can be contrasted with a distribution channel that allows you to provide your products and services to the customer. A channel can be both a sales channel and a distribution channel such as a retail location that you use for both selling and distribution of your product.
Distribution Channels
Distribution channels are a method for reaching the customer to deliver your products and services such as a retail shop. These can involve levels such as products that flow through wholesalers, importers and retailers to reach the customers. Services can also be delivered via digital platforms such as a streaming media service that delivers content online.
Traditional Channels
Sales and distribution channels that existed before the internet age. This include retailers, personal selling, traditional media and middlemen such as wholesalers.
Digital Channels
Reaching the customer online to sell to them. Digital products and services can also be fully distributed online. Digital channels revolutionized the economy beginning in the mid-1990s by allowing small firms broad market access with little or no investment upfront.
Summary
The primary types of marketing channel are sales channels that are used for selling and distribution channels that are used to provide your products and services to customers. These can be direct channels that you control or indirect channels provided by partners and other third-parties. All these channels can either be digital or traditional.
