The one about the Resellers

In the modern business landscape, direct sales aren't the only route to revenue. Many companies rely on resellers—partners who distribute and sell their products or services under a partnership agreement. Odoo, known for its flexibility and integration, provides a powerful way to manage resellers directly from its Contacts module.

But what exactly does it mean to designate a contact as a reseller? How do you manage and publish them for public visibility? And why should you leverage resellers as part of your sales strategy?

Let’s unpack it all.

What Are Resellers in Odoo?

In Odoo, a reseller is simply a type of partner (usually a company) that you work with to resell your products or services. These aren't just vendors or customers—they're strategic allies that help you reach broader markets without scaling your internal sales force.

Within the Contacts module, you can easily classify a contact as a reseller using tags, categories, or custom fields. From there, you can manage their relationship like any other partner, while also tracking their sales, access rights, and visibility in your ecosystem.

Why Use Resellers?

Here are a few reasons why you should consider managing resellers in Odoo:

• Expand Your Market Reach: Resellers can help penetrate markets where you have limited presence or resources.
• Lower Sales Costs: Instead of hiring and training in-house sales teams for every region, work with trusted partners who already have local networks.
• Boost Product Visibility: More resellers mean more channels where your product is promoted and sold.
• Build Brand Authority: Associating with trusted or niche resellers can increase your product’s credibility in specific markets or industries.

How to Set Up Resellers in Odoo

Odoo doesn’t have a separate “Reseller” module, but its flexibility allows you to model reseller relationships effectively within the Contacts module using these methods:

1. Tag or Categorize as “Reseller”

The simplest way to identify a reseller is by creating a Partner Category or Tag called “Reseller.” This can be added to the contact card under:

Contacts → Open a Contact → Internal Notes or Tags

You can also create more specific reseller types like:

• “Gold Reseller”
• “Authorized Partner”
• “Regional Distributor”

These tags can later be used for filtering, marketing, reporting, or access control.

2. Create Sales/Commission Rules (Optional)

If your resellers get a commission on sales, you can:

• Assign them a salesperson or affiliate role.
• Use commission rules via the Sales or Affiliate module (if installed).
• Track orders originating from resellers by linking them in the sales order’s partner field or using custom fields like “Reseller ID.”

3. Enable Website Publishing (Make Resellers Public)

Want your resellers to appear on your public-facing website?

Odoo allows you to publish specific contacts (resellers) via the Website module:

• Go to the reseller’s contact form.
• Click “Go to Website” in the top right (if Website module is installed).
• Click “Publish” to make the contact publicly visible.
• You can customize the layout, add reseller-specific info (like location, phone, or region), and even add a “Become a Reseller” CTA.

This is perfect for partner directories, store locators, or authorized dealer listings.

4. Control Access to Reseller Portals (Optional)

If you want to provide resellers with access to a portal view where they can:

• Track their orders
• View commission reports
• Download marketing materials

…then simply enable portal access:

Contacts → Action → Grant Portal Access

Customize their portal to fit your needs using Odoo Studio or developer tools.

Integration with Other Modules

Once you classify and manage resellers properly in Contacts, the benefits ripple across other Odoo modules:

• Sales: Track reseller performance, link opportunities to partners, and assign partner-specific pricing.
• CRM: Create pipelines for each reseller or tier, and manage relationships like you would with direct clients.
• Website: Publish a Partner/Reseller directory that helps customers find who to buy from locally.
• Invoicing: Generate invoices for bulk reseller orders or track commission payouts.
• Marketing Automation: Segment your email campaigns to target only resellers with updates, incentives, or promotions.

Best Practices for Managing Resellers

• Tag Smartly: Use clear tags to identify different reseller types, tiers, or regions.
• Keep Profiles Updated: Include logo, contact info, territory, languages, and certifications for each reseller.
• Activate Geolocation: Show resellers on a map so customers can find the nearest partner or dealer.
• Use Smart Filters: Segment by status, region, product focus, or activity level to run better reports and campaigns.
• Offer Incentives: Create loyalty programs or bonuses based on volume or customer feedback.
• Enable Access Logs: Monitor portal activity to see which resellers are actively using the tools you provide.

 Real-World Use Cases

Conclusion

Managing resellers in Odoo doesn’t require a separate module—you can do it all from the powerful and flexible Contacts module. By tagging, publishing, and integrating reseller data across your system, you unlock new sales channels, build stronger partnerships, and provide a seamless experience for both partners and customers.

Whether you’re selling software, fashion, or hardware, your resellers deserve to be tracked and treated as key players in your ecosystem.

So don’t just store contacts—activate them as growth engines with Odoo.