In this episode of Train to Gain, Erin and Katie welcome their very first guest—Kameron Olsen, founder of The Channel Advisors. Kameron brings 20+ years of channel experience to the table and shares real insights on supplier enablement, sales strategies, and what it takes to succeed in the growing TSD ecosystem.

From the evolution of indirect sales to the importance of partner-focused content, this conversation is full of actionable strategies and industry context—delivered with humor, honesty, and a healthy dose of “content nerd” excitement.

💬 Highlights & Stories:

• The “gold rush” of the TSD channel: 500+ suppliers and counting
• The difference between enabling direct vs. indirect sales teams
• Why co-branded messaging matters more than ever
• Kameron’s Channel 2.0 framework and the “producer vs. seller” personas
• A real-world story about a rep who missed a cybersecurity sale due to lack of enablement
• The biggest content mistake suppliers make—and how to fix it
• The key to making your PRM, LMS, or knowledge base actually usable for partners

✅ Key Takeaway:

The most successful channel programs prioritize clear, accessible, and co-created content that helps partners translate product features into real business outcomes. If you're hard to work with, you're easy to replace.

📢 Call to Action:

Enjoyed this conversation? Subscribe, follow, and leave a review!

🎙️ And don’t forget to check out Kameron’s podcast, Channel 2.0, for more insights on thriving in the channel.

Hi everyone. Welcome back to Train to Gain, B-Lynk’s podcast covering all things product training, sales enablement, onboarding tips, strategies, and ideas.

I'm Erin Raitt, one of your hosts today—and I always point in the wrong direction on camera—wherever you are, Katie!

Hey Erin! We’re really excited about today’s episode because we have our first-ever guest on Train to Gain. Welcome, Kameron Olsen! He’s with The Channel Advisors, and we invited him on after he shared a really insightful LinkedIn post about the most commonly used supplier enablement tools in the channel.

He covered everything from case studies and quoting templates to QBRs and feedback loops. Erin and I talked about it and thought it would be great to bring Cameron on to dive deeper. So Kameron, welcome!

Let’s kick it off. I think everyone would love to know a little bit about you and The Channel Advisors. Maybe we can start there.

First of all, thank you for having me. It's an honor to be the first guest on your show—I’ll wear that as a badge of honor.

A quick background: I’ve spent 20 years in the TSD channel ecosystem. I started out as an owner of a UCaaS platform. We found the channel kind of by accident—we were located just over the freeway from a TSD and saw it as a great go-to-market strategy through an indirect model. I did that for about 14 years.

I joined a company called Polaris for a short time and then started The Channel Advisors just over two years ago.

The Channel Advisors came out of my time at Polaris. I saw the TSD ecosystem being flooded with suppliers eager to break in, but there wasn’t a lot of education or training. There was no structure—just a lot of individuals sharing knowledge without a real roadmap for success in the space.

So, I launched The Channel Advisors to help suppliers find relevance and revenue, either by launching a new channel or improving their current one within the TSD ecosystem.

I remember you mentioning that growth—how it’s gone from around 50 to 500 suppliers. Can you talk more about that?

Yeah, 10 years ago, Polaris had around 50 suppliers. Today, they’re getting close to the mid-400s. Across the industry, we’re estimating 500+ suppliers in the space. TSDs are getting applications from 30 new suppliers every month. It’s a gold rush.

Studies show that 10 years ago, about 25% of companies used some form of third-party advisor to procure SaaS and telco products. Today, that number is 75%. The world has figured out that using a channel program is the way to go to sell products.

I’ll be candid—I’m not a professional interviewer or podcaster. So I do have a list of questions, and I’ll be reading from them.

Starting with this: With the growth you’re seeing in the channel, how and why is sales enablement in the channel different from direct sales?

In direct sales, you're enabling someone who works for your organization. They know your brand and live it. In the channel, partners are selling their own value first. They won’t sell your product unless they believe in it.

So you need to promote both them and your brand—and make sure your messaging aligns with theirs. It's all about co-branded messaging that delivers the most impactful message to the end customer.

Makes total sense. As Katie mentioned, we reached out to you after your LinkedIn post about successful tools. Why that list? What gaps are you seeing?

Great question. The TSD channel is still relatively young—only about 20 years old. Compared to other industries, it’s a baby.

Before this, I spent time in the MSP, VAR, and distributor space, selling premise-based phone systems. There, you needed deep product knowledge—your techs installed it, you invoiced it, you had full integration.

But the TSD channel grew on the back of introductions. Partners didn’t need to know the product deeply. They just had to connect customers to it.

Where we’re maturing now is toward a more integrated selling approach, like the VAR channel. It’s hard to sell something you don’t understand.

That’s why I created the list. Suppliers kept asking, “What do we need?” So I built a playbook of what’s actually important for trusted advisors to have.

When you’re talking to suppliers and advisors, do you see certain tools performing better than others?

Absolutely. In my Channel 2.0 methodology, I talk about personas—specifically, the producer and the seller.

Producers already know how to sell the product category—say, UCaaS—so they don’t need education on what UCaaS is. They need to understand your unique differentiators and the verticals you specialize in.

Sellers, on the other hand, may not have experience with your product set but have clients. For them, enablement needs to be supplier-agnostic—focused on identifying needs, asking the next question, and bridging gaps in knowledge.

For example, I once talked to a rep who sold 98% UCaaS. When I asked if he saw cybersecurity needs, he said yes—but didn’t know how to have that next conversation. So he dropped it. That’s a missed opportunity.

Alright, I’m going to nerd out now because we’re content people. Let’s talk delivery. What have you seen that works best—PRMs, LMSs, knowledge bases?

It depends on the maturity of the channel program. A PRM might not be your first investment. What’s most important is how easy you are to work with.

Can a partner get a one-pager quickly? If it takes four days to respond, they’ll move on. These partners move fast—they go where they can get revenue with the least effort.

If you’re hard to do business with, there are 109 other UCaaS suppliers in a TSD portfolio. Being responsive and clear with content is key.

Early on, broad content is okay. But we often skip the crucial step of sitting down with the partner to understand their verticals, marketing, and strategy. That’s how you co-create content that supports their journey.

Yes! Those conversations are critical. They help you build meaningful assets, not just generic overviews. I’ve always hated overviews—they don’t get watched. Get to the details that matter.

Exactly. Trusted advisors want just enough info to qualify a lead. They won’t dive deep until they know it’s something they can sell. Give them upfront guidance, then support them along the journey.

That accessibility can be a differentiator. If your content educates clearly and on time, that sets you apart.

Alright, in the spirit of keeping it short and sweet, let’s wrap up. Kameron, any final thoughts?

Yeah. Content creation is critical, but what really matters is translating features into business outcomes. Trusted advisors need to convert features into value for the customer.

If you can help them do that, you’ll find more success.

Thank you! You were our first guest—hashtag guinea pig! Thanks for being brave and joining us today.

Yes, thank you Kameron. We really appreciate your insights.

That’s right—Channel 2.0. We talk all things channel: best practices, real-world insights, and interviews with industry experts. There’s not a lot of guidance out there on how to do this, so we’re trying to help fill that gap.

Definitely check it out. Kameron, thank you again.

Thank you for having me. I really appreciate it.

Alright, we’ll see everyone next time on Train to Gain!