It can be difficult to scale a business on your own. This is why developing a strategic partnership that will help you grow your business at scale can save you tons of time and energy. Not only can you leverage someone else’s network, but you can also add value to your existing customer base. In addition, you add value to your partner’s existing customer base by strengthening both of your value propositions.
I have built partnerships with Fortune 500 companies, industry associations, and non-profits throughout my experience as a four-time startup founder and leader. I hope this article provides you with the tips and tricks you need to get started in partnerships and grow your business successfully.
Table of Contents
1. Do your research
The first step when it comes to partnerships is to decide what your goals are. Generally, you are looking to increase your brand awareness by adding value to existing customers or clients. This means the best place to start is by talking to your customers and understanding the challenges they face. If they have three major problems and you can solve two of them, consider how you can form a partnership to help your client solve the third problem.
Once you’ve identified some areas to focus on for a partnership, you’ll want to continue your research. But this time I’m looking at potential partners. If you want to partner with a training provider, don’t go to the first person you meet. Browse all training providers that match your criteria to see their reviews. Also, if they have other partnerships in your space that could disqualify them from being partners. In this example, you may not want to work with a supplier that is overpriced or has a poor track record. Especially if they’re not going to add value to your customers over one of their competitors.
Once you’ve narrowed down the list of potential partners that match your criteria, you’ll want to think about how you can best add value to the partner and their audience. Partnership is a two-way street. Thus, it is critical to spend as much time thinking about their benefits from entering into a partnership as you think about your own benefits. This will help you deal with any objections. In addition, it will concisely demonstrate the value proposition of a mutually beneficial partnership.
2. Add value
While working with a cold partnership can be successful, you will have more luck if you partner with someone who familiar with you and your brand. Asking mutual acquaintances to introduce them to former or current employers, colleagues, or classmates is a great way to bridge the gap. You can do this pretty easily using LinkedIn’s search filters.
In addition to using reciprocal links, expanding your presence on LinkedIn Commenting on posts by employees and companies of potential partners can be a great way to draw attention to you and your brand before you contact them.
Finally, tagging a company or employees to greet them in conversations can add value to potential partners and those you help. For example, if someone is posting sales software recommendations, tagging your potential partner’s company page or posting a thought leader from a partner can go a long way in getting you noticed in seconds.
3. Take the lead
When you contact someone about a potential partnership, don’t just ask to talk. Some organizations receive thousands of partnership requests every year. Many don’t have the bandwidth to read and answer them all. That’s why it’s important to focus on what’s in it for them to grow your business. Explain exactly how you envision partnership.
Often, founders share information about their company and offer time to discuss partnerships. There are two problems with this approach. First, busy professionals don’t see the point in reading huge ads about your company. Secondly, it is the responsibility of the recipient to check if he is suitable. Because you’ve done your research, you’re more familiar with their company than they are with yours. This means that it will be much easier for you to outline your ideas, saving them the mental faculties associated with thinking ideas from scratch. If you send a short email outlining why they should care and the real ideas you have for a partnership, they are more likely to respond.
4. Be patient and pay attention to details
Patience is key when it comes to partnerships. They’re often not the number one priority on your or anyone else’s list, so it might take a few extra steps to schedule the conversation on your calendar, especially if the other party wants to bring in a few of their team members.
While some partnerships may only require one conversation, this is often not the case. You and your potential partner will most likely have to go back to your teams and hear their input. Because you and the person you were talking to may not be the ones doing the potential next steps. Teams are busy, especially in the summer due to holidays, so budget for a week or two between your initial call and the next call.
At this time, remember not to put all your eggs in one basket. The deal could fall apart at any moment. Thus, it is important to keep your options open until a deal is agreed in writing. It’s also a good idea to stay out of a long-term partnership in case it doesn’t go as planned. Starting with a short-term trial partnership on a smaller scale has many advantages. This allows both parties to evaluate the effectiveness of the partnership, collect the views of their audience, and re-evaluate the next steps to move forward.
Final Thoughts
Even failed partnerships can be great experiences to help shape future partnership conversations and strategies. If a certain type or format of partnership is not working, be sure to think about the reasons for this behavior. So you can create a better one next time. Done right, partnerships can be a great way to grow your business and add value to your audience.
