3. Channels

The medium through which an organization provides its value proposition to its customer segment is known as a channel. There are various options for channels available to an organization, and the selection is based on the channel that is the quickest, most efficient plus with the least amount of investment required. There are two basic kinds of channels. Company owned channels such as store fronts or partner channels such as distributors. A company can opt to choose either one or employ a combination of both.

For an entrepreneur, the first step in dealing with channels is to identify the customer channels. Touch points with customers can be limited or diverse depending on company strategy. Then the company needs to evaluate the strength of the channel by conducting a SWOT analysis on the channel. Finally, the company can identify and build new customer channels.

The basic questions you must answer in this category are:

How do you reach them? Through which channel do your audience want to be reached? Which channels work best? How much do they cost? How can they be integrated into your and your audiences routines?