This month, we’ve been interviewing 26 different tech vendors asking them how they manage their MDF and partner promos.  What strikes me is that few actually PUBLISH and SHARE their criteria for what they deem “fund-worthy” within their own partner channel.

Is there a downside to publishing your intent to fund certain types of partners and projects?

Consider this:

1. Sharing your MDF priorities also shares your business priorities with your channel. Now your business partners can line up around those priorities.
2. MDF criteria gives your entire channel something to aspire to _even to your non-elite channel partners who may not qualify today.  Your channel will know what you expect of them and can work to get there.
3. The very act of defining your objective criteria within your own company is healthy.  It gets you thinking of your process in a more disciplined, fiscally-responsible way.
4. Subjective funding-under-the-table tactics are no longer desirable in our newly transparent world.  People expect you to share more openly.
5. MDF is highly interesting to your channel – you have their IMMEDIATE attention.  It’s a magic word like “Free” in the consumer space.

So put it out there.  Sharing your MDF criteria isn’t “tipping your cards” it’s giving your friends information to get them on board with you.  If your criteria are open and objective, those that don’t quality will not respond and you won’t have a heap of partners coming your way.

If you have trouble getting started, here’s a sample I pulled out of thin air.

Gadgets-R-Us is seeking co-marketing candidates and offering 70% funding to anyone who meets the criteria below:

• Must be a Platinum or Gold Gadgets-R-Us Partner
• Must be conducting face-to-face, lead-generating activity
• Have at least one previous customer outreach success to a base of 500+ customers
• Must have an in-house list of at least 500 SMB prospects with at least one previous contact with them in the past 2 years
• Must promote our Gadget-ator IV product within your own solution or combined with other complimentary vendor solutions
• Commitment to run the campaign for >6 mos and fund 30% of the campaign cost
• Must be started by July 1, 2009 and funding spent by September 1, 2009
• Must be willing to provide reporting on leads-generated for up to 60 days post-campaign
• Gadgets-R-Us will select 10 partners and fund up to $40,000 per partner campaign

The terms above are non-negotiable and those not meeting the criteria above need not apply at this time. We will be offering this funding opportunity again and encourage you to gain the resources and experience to meet the criteria above.

Now that wasn’t so hard, was it?  Try it and let me know how it goes.  I’ll bet it will be a raving success.