What if we told you there was FREE money out there for you to use and invest, ripe for the taking?
You’d probably scoff, understandably so. Nothing in this world is free, and as an entrepreneur running an MSP, you work hard for every bit of profit margin you can carve out.
However, there is a little-known tool available for IT businesses that is literally free! Introducing MDF: Market Development Funds. This financial resource is available for businesses and is designed for B2B marketing needs.
Many successful software B2B tech companies now use partner incentive programs like these and others to boost revenue, develop collaborations, expand market penetration, and raise brand awareness.
Finally, it all comes down to vendors providing their channel partners (like marketing firms) with resources that allow you to help them build their business while also helping you grow your own. It’s in your best interest to take advantage of this support by asking your vendors to provide MDF because they benefit when you sell their products.
Here are some great features about MDF and how to apply.
How Vendors and Suppliers Benefit
MDF is an incentive that can be offered to partners, which ultimately benefits everyone. It provides the vendor/supplier’s ecosystem partners with help in the form of marketing resources. Supporting their partners’ go-to-market plan with marketing support and other marketing resources can help raise awareness and generate demand for their product. Those channel partners–especially marketing agencies–can then use these for digital and in-person marketing activities such as conferences, trade exhibits, webinars, email campaigns, local advertising (billboards, yellow pages, newspapers), and more. In other words, MDF allows vendors to get more exposure and potentially improve their reach into unexplored markets, customer acquisition, and growth opportunities, while their marketing partners have their marketing activities funded.
How Marketing Teams Benefit
MDF is designed to be a symbiotic incentive that allows marketing firms to gather the resources they need to boost their marketing efforts for their vendors and suppliers. You get to do what you do best-run amazing, efficient campaigns that increase your client’s profitability and thrive in the marketplace. In today’s ultra-competitive market, especially in the tech space, getting a leg up on the competition is easier when an MSP can fund multiple marketing projects and more extensive campaigns. That’s where MDF comes in, providing the financial incentives for marketing firms like you to remain loyal, help build brand awareness, and drive sales for your vendor partners.
Provided by your vendors and suppliers, MDF can cover up to 50% of your marketing activities! While you’ll still have to fund the remaining portion, it’s more than worth it. These funds can be used for many types of marketing activities, similar to those mentioned above. Even traditional social media marketing or [MKCA video content creation] can be covered by MDF, as well as events and print ads.
What is more, you can use MDF to get a jump-start on a new direction you may want to explore in marketing that involves a significant investment in specialized equipment. For example, you could use a portion of your funds to purchase high-end recording and AV equipment that could then be used to reinvest in vendor campaigns to film webinars, live stream events, or record podcasts that benefit your client. The possibilities are endless.
How to Get Started
If you’re interested in taking advantage of MDF, approach your vendors about investing these funds into your business. You’ll be expected to show them a detailed plan of how you plan to use the funds to increase their business; that might mean showing proof of ROI, projected leads generation, conversion rates, projected sales numbers, and so forth. In a nutshell, be prepared to sell your idea with a hard focus on what your efforts and activities can bring them in terms of added value.
Remember that the best approach is sometimes the simplest: if you’re at a loss about how to best invest MDF for your clients, go ahead and ask them what has worked best for them in the past. Perhaps they’ve had great success when posting live videos or virtual meet-and-greets with prospective clients. Maybe a viral social media campaign was a huge hit in building brand awareness, and they’d like a fresh take on that. Sometimes, asking the supplier directly is the best starting point.
Finally, vendors can help you fill in applications and even get bigger MDF budgets if they are interested. Since they know the market best and what kind of value can be found in targeted marketing activities, they are better positioned to help you formulate a winning strategy for acquiring and using your MDF incentive.
In a Nutshell
- Check with vendors about MDF availability
- Ask the vendor what works best for them
- Look at modern, trending strategy options to use MDF
- Use the free money!
[MKC Agency] is a team of experienced, passionate marketing experts with their finger on the pulse of trending, as well as tried-and-true marketing strategies. [Reach out to the MKC Agency] to learn more about how to maximize your MDF budget, or for help building your next marketing campaign!