Partner relationship management software empowers SMBs to streamline partnerships and drive more indirect sales.
For a small business, partner relationship management can start informally – managed through emails, spreadsheets and handshake deals. But as your partner program grows, those quick fixes become hard to scale.
Manual tracking can lead to deals falling through the cracks. With the right setup, you can gain visibility and structure without the weight of enterprise software.
In this guide, you’ll learn what PRM software is, why it matters for SMBs and how to connect it with your CRM to drive results. You’ll also discover the six best PRM software solutions tailored for growing businesses.
Key takeaways from PRM software
PRM software gives SMBs a scalable way to onboard partners, track performance and automate partner workflows in one place.
Integrating PRM with your CRM gives a comprehensive view of both direct sales and partner sales in your sales pipeline.
The best PRM solution fits your current partner strategy, grows with your needs and integrates with tools your team already uses.
Pipedrive’s customizable CRM can serve as an intuitive PRM solution for SMBs, helping you organize partner deals and tasks in one place – try it free for 14 days.
What is PRM software?
Partner relationship management (PRM) software helps businesses manage and automate relationships with their partners (resellers, affiliates, distributors, etc.).
A PRM platform typically includes tools for onboarding new partners, a partner portal for resources, deal registration forms, lead distribution, marketing materials and tracking of partner performance.
While your CRM (customer relationship management) tool is your internal source of truth for direct sales, a PRM platform empowers partners to sell alongside you.
Here is a quick look at the key differences:
CRM | PRM |
Helps internal sales reps close deals directly | Enables external partners to close deals |
Key metrics include direct revenue and sales velocity | Key metrics include partner engagement and deal registration |
Full transparency for your internal team | Limited, secure view for each partner |
Automates internal workflows (e.g., follow-ups, lead scoring) | Automates partner-facing workflows (e.g., onboarding, asset sharing) |
Together, PRM and CRM systems provide a clear, unified view of all sales activity.
For small businesses juggling spreadsheets, email threads and inconsistent partner processes, a PRM system brings much-needed structure and clarity.
Why small businesses need PRM software
Small businesses need PRM software to efficiently grow revenue through partnerships without being overwhelmed by manual work.
If you’re an SMB managing resellers, referral partners or other channel relationships, a PRM tool can help you:
Overcome manual admin. A PRM system automates repetitive tasks like deal registrations, partner signup workflows or reporting. Keep partner activities organized and free your team to focus on growth.
Boost team efficiency. Using a PRM tool nurtures cross-team collaboration between your sales team and partner managers. Integrate it with your CRM to ensure your sales reps can track deals and status updates in real time.
Offer a consistent partner experience. Partners prioritize vendors who are easy to work with. A self-service partner portal simplifies onboarding, gives access to training and supports consistent partner enablement across the board.
Increase partner engagement. With PRM tools, you can provide easy access to training and co-branded assets. Instead of chasing partners over email, use a PRM tool as a central hub, making it easier for partners to stay active and sell effectively.
Access data-driven insights. PRM software provides real-time metrics on your partner program. Track partner performance, identify top referral sources and optimize the partner lifecycle with data-driven decisions.
For SMBs, PRM software offers enterprise-grade channel management capabilities minus the complexity. You get the same kind of infrastructure, but in a lighter, more affordable package.
Why and how to integrate PRM software with your CRM
With a PRM-CRM integration, you can keep partner-sourced deals flowing directly into your sales pipeline – boosting visibility, reducing manual work and accelerating revenue.
A strong integration ensures that when a partner registers a lead, your CRM automatically creates a matching contact, organization and deal. No more copying and pasting data across siloed systems.
With a CRM like Pipedrive, integration works both ways:
When a partner registers a lead in their portal, it automatically appears as a deal in Pipedrive
When your sales rep closes the deal, the partner automatically gets notifications
If you’re just starting, you don’t really need separate software. Simply configure your existing CRM as a lightweight PRM. With Pipedrive, you can create custom pipelines for partner activities, use custom fields to track partner type or tier and even automate tasks or reports.
As your partner program matures, you can connect a dedicated PRM tool to unlock features like partner tiering, joint business planning modules and advanced commission management.
You can achieve this integration through:
Plug-and-play apps from Pipedrive Marketplace
Custom API connections
Automation tools like Zapier
Supercharge Your Sales with This Zapier and Pipedrive Guide
Whether you start with Pipedrive alone or connect it to a purpose-built PRM, you’re setting up a system designed for clarity and scale.
6 PRM software solutions for small businesses
The right PRM tool can streamline your partner operations – these six are proven picks for SMBs ready to grow.
Here’s a quick overview comparing different PRM tools and use cases:
PRM software | Summary |
1. Pipedrive | Key features: Customizable pipelines and fields to track partner deals, visual sales dashboards, task automation for follow-ups Best for: Small businesses or PRM beginners who want to manage partners within an existing CRM Pricing: Starts at $14 per user/month, 14-day free trial available |
2. PartnerPortal.io | Key features: Branded partner portal for lead registration (with direct CRM injection), partner onboarding, content/resource center Best for: Small businesses launching their first partner program or looking for a no-fuss, budget-friendly PRM Pricing: Free trial plan for up to 5 partners, $249/month unlimited plan for growing programs |
3. PartnerStack | Key features: Robust partner recruitment, referral tracking and automated payouts, access to a network of resellers/affiliates Best for: Companies looking to rapidly onboard many partners or affiliates and automate program admin at scale Pricing: Custom pricing (platform fee + commission rate, no public flat rate) |
4. Journeybee | Key features: Custom white-labeled partner portals for deal reg and content management, built-in LMS for training and certification Best for: Growing SMBs that need advanced PRM features (training, analytics) without enterprise complexity Pricing: Starts at $599/month (3 internal users, unlimited partners) |
5. Kiflo PRM | Key features: Automated partner onboarding and lead/deal tracking, built-in commission payout calculations Best for: SMBs scaling a partner program across multiple channels who need a versatile PRM with strong automation Pricing: Core plan is $359/month (up to 50 partners), 14-day free trial |
6. Channelyze | Key features: Partner collaboration tools on deals, an LMS for partner training, “through-partner marketing” features for sharing campaigns via partners Best for: Businesses with a reseller/distributor partner network who need training and co-marketing capabilities Pricing: Free for up to 5 partners, paid plans start at $495/month (25 partners and up) |
Now that you’ve seen the big-picture comparison, here’s what to expect from each and how to align it with your sales tools.
1. Pipedrive
If you have a small partner ecosystem and don’t want to add another tool to your stack, start with Pipedrive as a simple PRM system.
While it’s not a dedicated PRM platform, Pipedrive’s customizable CRM setup makes it easy to build lightweight partner workflows.
Start by setting up a custom pipeline for partners. You can create stages such as: New Partner Leads, Qualification, Agreement and Terms, Onboarding and Training, Activation and Active Partner.
Here’s what a custom partner pipeline might look like:
Get a clear, visual overview of where each partner sits in your program and how they’re contributing to revenue.
You can also use custom fields to tag partner-sourced deals, track referral revenue or filter reporting by partner type. Workflow automations can help assign follow-up tasks, generate reports or notify your team when a new deal hits the pipeline.
Pipedrive in action: Online tutoring company Air Tutors gained full clarity over its partnership ecosystem with marketing contacts, schools, students and families thanks to Pipedrive’s custom pipelines and integrations. The centralized overview allows the team to easily track partner progress and gather insights that help as it expands into new territories.
For SMBs just getting started with partnerships, Pipedrive doubles as a lightweight PRM that grows with your sales strategy. As your program scales, seamlessly connect Pipedrive with advanced PRMs to unlock more functions.
2. PartnerPortal.io
If you have just a handful of partners (like a few affiliates or local referrers) and you want to give them a basic portal to register leads and access resources, PartnerPortal.io gets the job done.
It focuses on the essentials – a clean portal for partners to register leads, track their status and see their commission history:
One of the platform’s advantages is its ability to go live quickly. You can create a live partner portal in minutes, branded with your logo and colors. There’s even a free plan available for those running a very small program on a tight budget.
Example: A small design agency launches a referral program using the free version of PartnerPortal.io. Referral partners submit potential clients through a branded portal, which automatically populates as leads in Pipedrive, allowing the agency to track ROI without paying any additional software fees.
PartnerPortal.io connects to Pipedrive’s CRM through an API token. It allows you to map specific lead registration forms to Pipedrive fields and sync deal stages so partners see automatic status updates.
3. PartnerStack
PartnerStack is a PRM platform for B2B SaaS companies seeking to scale affiliate, referral and reseller programs with automated commission payouts.
The home dashboard gives a clear overview of partner performance, active programs and payout status:
PartnerStack doubles as both a PRM platform and a recruitment engine. Its “Marketplace” feature puts your program in front of over 500,000 active partners, helping you find new affiliates and resellers.
Example: A software startup lists its program on the PartnerStack Marketplace and recruits 50 new affiliates. As the affiliates drive traffic, PartnerStack automatically tracks sign-ups and creates deals in Pipedrive, paying out commissions when they convert to paid subscriptions.
PartnerStack offers easy API integration with Pipedrive, helping you sync leads and deals. When partners bring in new leads, the integration automatically creates contacts or deals, keeping the sales team informed.
4. Journeybee
Journeybee is a modern PRM platform built for B2B businesses (especially in tech and SaaS) that need deep collaboration with their partners across various program types.
It’s best for organizations looking to engage a mix of referral partners, resellers and even multi-tier alliances in a more personalized way:
You can create personalized partner portals for different tiers or segments. While a small referral partner sees a simpler dashboard, a strategic reseller gets access to more in-depth resources.
Example: A SaaS data security firm works with referral partners, certified resellers and strategic alliances. Journeybee helps it deliver a tailored portal experience for each tier, while syncing deal and attribution data into the company’s CRM in real time.
Journeybee is available as an app on Pipedrive’s Marketplace. The integration provides a real-time, two-way sync of deals, contacts and leads. It even auto-generates custom fields in Pipedrive to track partner attribution.
5. Kiflo PRM
Kiflo is best for SMBs launching or growing their first partner programs, whether referral, affiliate or reseller models.
It offers a clean partner portal for partners to log in, register leads/deals and track their performance:
Kiflo’s customizable onboarding pipeline ensures partners don’t just sign up but actually go through training and start selling. It also handles asset management and commission calculations, making it a robust all-in-one choice for growing programs.
Example: A SaaS startup uses Kiflo to manage a group of consulting partners. It sets up an automation with Zapier that instantly creates a deal in the CRM sales pipeline every time a consultant registers a qualified lead in the Kiflo portal. As a result, its sales team acts faster and closes more partner-sourced deals.
Kiflo connects with Pipedrive’s CRM through Zapier, allowing for highly flexible workflows. You can set up triggers for updates to flow seamlessly. For example, you can create a trigger to create a person/deal in Pipedrive when your partner accepts a lead in Kiflo.
6. Channelyze
Channelyze is a cloud-based PRM solution tailored for businesses that sell through distribution channels and multi-tier partner ecosystems.
It handles the full partner lifecycle from recruitment and onboarding to deal registration, renewals and even billing:
Channelyze goes beyond a typical one-tier partner portal by bringing together vendors, distributors and resellers in a single platform.
For example, a distributor can log in and see all their vendors’ product leads and deals and even invite their downstream resellers to participate. This three-tier visibility is hard to achieve with most PRM tools.
It also offers a generous free tier for small programs, making it highly accessible for SMBs.
Example: A network equipment company works with 20+ resellers. With Channelyze, each partner gets a secure portal to register opportunities, while the CRM integration ensures the internal sales team can track progress in Pipedrive without extra admin work.
Channelyze integrates with Pipedrive as an app available on the Marketplace. This two-way sync ensures that when a reseller registers a deal in Channelyze, it automatically creates a matching deal in Pipedrive.
How to choose the right PRM solution
The right PRM solution should meet your current needs, fit your budget and grow with your partner strategy.
With several good PRM solutions on the table, focus on what matters most to your partner relationship management goals. Here are a few tips to guide your decision:
Match functionality to program scope. A lean referral model has very different needs than a growing reseller or channel partner network.
Choose a user-friendly solution. A simple, intuitive interface increases partner engagement and reduces onboarding friction.
Evaluate pricing models. Many PRM solutions offer free or tiered plans. Pick one that fits your budget and expected partner growth.
Look for platforms that optimize your current workflows. Rather than forcing you to rebuild workflows, the right platform should offer seamless CRM integration (like with Pipedrive).
Seek out actionable insights via dashboards or reporting tools. These features help you track partner performance and so you can invest time and resources in what works.
The right PRM system supports how you work today and how you plan to grow. It helps with optimizing operations, enabling partners and extending your sales reach through seamless integration.
Final thoughts
Instead of wrestling with spreadsheets, small businesses can use PRM software to centralize, streamline and scale their channel efforts.
The right PRM system saves you time, improves partner experience and drives more sales revenue through partnerships. The sooner you move beyond ad-hoc processes, the faster you’ll grow.
Pipedrive gives you flexible tools to manage partner deals, track results and build a repeatable system. Start your free 14-day trial today.
