Successful partnerships can elevate any business. Both paid partnerships and collaborations can lead to increased revenue and a more significant following. However, there are some basic guidelines to ensure any partnership is successful for you and mutually beneficial.
What is a Partnership?
A partnership is an arrangement with another business that can be either paid or unpaid. Paid partnerships include an exchange of goods and services (called deliverables) for money. This can also be referred to as sponsorships or advertising. Unpaid partnerships (often called collaborations) involve a mutual trade where both parties exchange goods, services, advertising, etc., in an equal amount, and no money is transferred.
Is a Paid or Unpaid Partnership Better for my Business?
They both have a valuable place in your business strategy. Paid partnerships bring in extra revenue while unpaid partnerships can grow your audience; both are essential to scaling your brand! In addition, both types of partnerships will build your credibility because when a trusted brand endorses you, their audience will start to trust you.
Examples of Partnerships
Partnerships can be as simple as a social media post and as involved as an event sponsor and everywhere in between! A recipe blogger could partner with a food brand to curate recipes with that product to promote that brand. A candlemaker could partner with a clothing company and jewelry brand to host a collaborative giveaway on social media and cross-pollinate their audiences. A large corporation (or anyone) could partner with an event planner to cover event costs in exchange for advertising at the event. A tech start-up could partner with influencers to review and promote their app. Your creativity only limits the scope of partnerships!
How to Land Partnerships
Sometimes partnerships will fall into your lap and appear in your inbox—however, most of the time, you will need to do your research and give your best pitch. As a general rule, the larger the organization, the longer it will take to land the partnership. But keep in mind that the size of your business or the business you’re targeting is not a defining factor on “if” you’ll land that partnership. It simply translates to how long it will take to get their attention.
And when you get a “no,” often that means “not right now.” Continue growing that relationship!
Like any practice that involves good networking, it’s more about who you know. What do they do in their organization if you have a specific company or brand you want to partner with? Which of your current partnerships or contacts knows someone in that organization? Utilize LinkedIn to track the degrees of separation between you and the Director of Partnerships at that company and slowly build relationships and connections until the point person knows you.
Also, Instagram is an underutilized tool in this arena as well. Tag these businesses in your stories and posts. Make comments on your feed about how much you love their products and services. If they “accept” your tags (and comment back!), your direct message asking to connect with their Partnership Director will have a higher likelihood of being seen and well received.
The Partnership Checklist
Whether your partnership is paid or unpaid, you need to be familiar with FTC guidelines and disclose the partnership appropriately. This is relevant to social media and posts made on your site.
Make sure the partner business aligns with your values and mission. It’s OK to turn down a paid partnership! Some partnerships may be of great importance, just not to your audience. A great practice is to refer that brand to someone in your network who would be a good fit for their proposal!
Do everything in your power to ensure the deliverables are on time. This might go without saying, but it is crucial for your reputation as a brand and for a continued partnership with that business. Sometimes events are beyond your control; communicate that adequately.
Be sure to set the expectation of communication frequency. Will you check in with them every week? Every month? Whether it is a long-lasting partnership or a short collaboration, ensure everyone involved knows their responsibilities and when each party will report back.
After the partnership has ended, report back every possible metric available to you. Even if it is a collaboration between multiple brands, share all the information you have access to. Each business might measure success differently or use different metrics than you do. In addition, reporting metrics on a spreadsheet may be quick and easy. Still, you can set yourself apart (and hopefully work towards more partnerships with that brand) by making something as visually appealing as it is informational. If you need inspiration, Canva has some great templates for free.
Every business can benefit from partnerships. Whether you are the paying partner, the one being paid, or in a collaborative effort between many brands, your business will see growth. Just remember that any size business can have successful partnerships. By following these tips, you can ensure that your partnerships are mutually beneficial and hopefully lead to more paid and unpaid opportunities.
The All-Access Pass gives you even MORE!
✨ Group Coaching every month, with the opportunity to be an AMSE Group Coach yourself!
✨ An exclusive discount in the AMSE Shop!
✨ A FREE 20-second snippet on our official podcast, Owning Up, to promote your business!
✨ A feature on the AMSE Blog - all about you and your business!
✨ Access to the AMSE Cohort, an immersive 7-week course with hands-on coaching through the Building Your Business the AMSE Way coursework with Moni Jefferson.
Amie Glazier is the former co-owner of The Military Mom Collective. This article originally appeared in the Military Spouse Entrepreneur Guide, Issue 3. Read it and more articles here!
