Channel Strategies for the CIOA sales certification is a designation given to a channel professional once he or she has gained an amount of expertise that a vendor considers necessary to sell a given product.
Different from a technical certification, which confirms a partner's knowledge of more granular concepts related to deployment, implementation, configuration and troubleshooting, a sales certification usually serves to demonstrate sufficient knowledge of a given product, including an understanding of the technology's "value-add" for the customer and awareness of the cross-selling and up-selling opportunities related to the product.
Sales certifications may have varying levels, and many vendors provide in-person or online training that help partners to become properly certified.
Sales certifications often allow partners to receive higher margins and benefits from vendors.