Reading a channel mix without vanity metrics

GMV by channel is a headline. Service load is the plot. Marketplace volume that consumes support tickets at three times the direct channel is not a growth engine; it is a transfer of cost into a team that was never staffed for it.

In Channel Mix Intensive we put partner margin, returns, and ticket volume on the same worksheet as billed revenue. Distributors who look expensive on paper sometimes cheapen the model because they absorb installation. Direct looks virtuous until weekend WhatsApp support is costed.

Vanity metrics we bin on sight: follower counts used as channel proof, “brand awareness” as a substitute for reorder rates, and exclusive partnerships that have no volume floor. A partnership without a floor is a press release.

The worksheet is deliberately ugly. If a regional partner cannot be scored, we leave a blank rather than invent a 7/10. Blanks are information. They tell you the relationship is unmeasured, which is a decision in itself.

Operators leave the intensive with fewer channels, not more. That is the usual outcome. It is also why some guests arrive hoping for a launch plan and leave with a stop-list. We consider that a successful reading.