a16z Video: Distribution and Sales Channels

Ben Horowitz

watch time: 6 minutes

What is a sales channel? It’s a route to market for a product or set of products, from a website to a sophisticated sales force. Selecting the right channel is critical for any business — products often fail because the company chose the wrong route to market — but when designing a distribution strategy, one should never begin with the sales channel itself. A properly designed sales channel, shares a16z general partner Ben Horowitz, is a function of your product and your target customers or market; and in this video he shares a simple formula for thinking through all this, as well as a simple case study for how it can play out in practice.

credits: music by Chris Lyons; all trademarks are the property of their respective owners