For many co-op marketing programs, the enrollment process is a key element for ensuring dealer engagement and funds utilization. A clunky, cumbersome enrollment process can lead to dealer dissatisfaction up front and create an uphill battle for maximizing program outcomes throughout the year.
In 2021, Channel Fusion streamlined the co-op program enrollment process for one of its long-standing clients, reducing the time to sign up to just minutes and significantly reducing the number of support inquiries received related to the enrollment process.
A Fresh Approach
Before launching the new enrollment process ahead of the 2022 program period, many of the steps to engage dealers in the program required manual touchpoints. To put that in perspective, the annual fiscal year enrollments included multiple elements, including signing up for the overall co-op program budget; determining whether or not an agency partner would be utilized; agreeing to utilize promotional items, financing and magazine/catalog offerings; as well as seven additional parts.
While these program elements are updated every year, the process for signing up had not changed for many years and utilized the same formatting and structure. In 2021, Channel Fusion reimagined the entire enrollment process and developed a fresh approach to streamline the enrollment process.
Experience + Technology = Solution
With a deep understanding of the client’s co-op program and 20 years of experience in delivering customer experience outcomes from a technology perspective, the Channel Fusion team tackled the streamlining of the enrollment process. A key first step was acknowledging most of this particular brand’s dealers were signing up for co-op program benefits for multiple divisions.
With that in mind, Channel Fusion created a solution where dealers with budgets available across divisions could sign up for both allocations in the same registration process flow. This linkage between divisions made it simple for dealers to do everything at once.
From a workflow perspective, a user’s co-op portal login profile was used to prepopulate the enrollment contact information fields. In addition, all enrollment elements were presented similarly, creating a consistent user experience when moving from one program element to the next. A series of wizard steps allows dealers to see their progress within each enrollment sequence. Finally, if a dealer did not want to participate in one of the program elements, they were able to simply click one button to opt out of that part of the program.
Delivering Desired Outcomes
When the Channel Fusion team set out to streamline the co-op program enrollment process for this client, there were two desired outcomes defined to measure success. One was reducing the amount of time it took for a dealer to walk through the process for enrolling in nine-plus programs. The other was reducing the number of support inquiries received related to the enrollment process.
For both outcomes, there were significant, positive results. On average, it took dealers less than 10 minutes to complete the enrollment process for more than nine programs, compared to around 30 minutes before the new process was implemented. In addition, support inquiries were reduced by 87.5 percent year over year.
The efficiencies established in the deployment of the new enrollment process and technology solution in 2021 have now been realized again with the recently completed registration for the client’s 2023 co-op program. By making it easier for dealers to enroll in the program, Channel Fusion was able to improve dealer engagement and participation, as well as ensure co-op funds are used for the programs that deliver the most desired outcomes for the brand and dealers alike.
About Channel Fusion
For 20 years, Channel Fusion has been delivering strategy, customer experience and return on investment outcomes for brands and their channel partners with a wide variety of solutions and industry expertise. We continue to invest in the overall ecosystem of our channel marketing offering to ensure our clients provide their partners with an optimal customer experience. Our core technologies and configurable platforms are supported by a team of customer-centric “Fusers.” Let us know if you’d like to learn more about how we deliver desired outcomes for brands and their channel partners.