The needs of a startup company are vast. They include everything from access to technology and professional support to publicity. However, making sales is arguably a small company's most critical requirement. One way to generate cost-effective sales is to take advantage of opportunities to generate sales indirectly: In others words, have other people do the selling for you.

Following are several structures designed to accomplish this:

Affinity Partner
If you've ever received a mailer from your college alma mater or an industry association of which you are a member offering you a special discount on a new credit card offer, you've seen affinity marketing. This is a relationship where a company--in this example, the credit card company--will partner with another company or organization that has existing customer or member relationships. The credit card company pays a referral fee to the organization, e.g., your alma mater, for any new customers generated through this mailing.

Affiliate Partnership
Affiliate partnership is nearly identical to an affinity partner, except this is the term typically used when commissions are paid through sales from clicking online links. Some fees are based purely on the "click," while others are based on purchases made on the affiliate's website.

Independent Manufacturers Representative
Most manufactured products sectors have an entire field of independent manufacturers' representatives. These are either individuals or professional companies with extensive corporate structures. These people or companies "represent" product lines made by other companies. As experts in their respective fields who have strong relationships with the sales channels in their industry, they get compensated on what they sell. They sell the products to customers, such as retail stores, but the manufacturer still invoices the customer and pays a commission to the manufacturer's representative.

Virtually every industry has an association that represents it. These associations can be a useful way to gain knowledge about the industry. Through an association, you can often find manufacturers that service the industry . Such associations include: the International Housewares Association, the Juvenile Products Manufacturing Association and the Toy Industry Association. Another avenue is trade shows in the particular sector.

Distributors
Like an independent manufacturer's representative, a distributor is a company that sells products produced by another company. The key difference is that the distributor takes on more financial risk and requires a larger piece of the pie. A distributor will buy products directly from the manufacturer, stock the inventory at its warehouse, sell and ship to the customer and invoice the customer. Because of the increased risk and services incurred by distributors, they generally require a greater wholesale discount so they can sell to their retail customers and still earn a profit.

Indirect Sales or Value Added Reseller
Similar to the manufacturer's representatives discussed above, value added resellers are experts in a particular field, usually technology, who provide services to their customers. VARs need a menu of products and services they can provide beyond their own services. Generally they will be given a wholesale price, like a retailer might for a consumer product, and then they will sell it to their customer at the sale price.

Most entrepreneurs are the best salespeople for their own products or services, and that's how a company's first sales are typically made. Indirect sales, however, can help a small company grow much more rapidly. Finding these companies can be challenging. As with most information about your marketing, the best source can be your current or target customers. Ask who it is they think are the best organizations, manufacturers' representatives, distributors or resellers that call on them. If you are going it alone, even working with just one or two indirect sales models will give you a chance to sell more rapidly.