Member Article

Boost Your Startup's Growth With Partnership Marketing

Scratching your head about how your brand can grow its audience? You’re not the only one. Audience growth is painfully difficult, expensive and time consuming. Partnership marketing could be the answer. Teaming up with a complimentary brand for promotional purposes can open the door to thousands of potential customers in a very short space of time. Here are a few tips to ensure your brand gets the most out of any partnership marketing collaboration.

Target Brands with Access to Potential Customers

“Look outside your industry for examples of successful partnerships you can replicate” – Ryan Leighton (CEO, Leightons Group).

You should take a strategic approach to any partnership marketing campaign. Ideally, you want to pair up with a company that speaks to a pool of your potential customers. Never approach a competitor but instead opt for a brand that provides a complimentary product or service. For example, if your brand manufactures headphones, consider teaming up with a business that sells gig tickets.

But why? What are the benefits of partnership marketing? • It allows both brands to reach a broader audience • It adds value to existing and new consumers • It builds trust • It boosts your brand’s reputation

Research Your Target Market “If you are operating on a limited budget, partnership should be the first thing on your marketing to-do list” – Xaver Matt (MD, Netleadz and Angel Investor).

You need to partner with the right brand. To get this right, it’s worth looking to your target audience. What are their buying habits? Have an open mind, this could surprise you. The best collaborations aren’t always the most obvious. When you think you’ve found the perfect brand, ask yourself a few questions: • Are their products/services relevant to your customers? • Do you share their values/ethics? • How can you help them? • How can they help you?

Start-Off Simple “Simple APIs are a great way to hook new partners and gain instant access to their audiences” – Nick Lyons (CEO, Kaptur Software).

There’s no logic in diving straight for the ambitious and big-money campaigns. You need to test your new found business relationship first. Take time to see what the ROI is likely to be. Social media is the perfect place to begin. Consider a Twitter competition, Facebook campaign or content exchange to test the water. These ideas will cost little but will allow you to gauge the success of your partnership marketing venture.

Make Full Use of the Data “Partnering with Zoopla increased our audiences tenfold overnight, gaining us vital user data to refine our proposition” – Barry Bridges (CEO, Property Detective).

The data is at your fingertips, so use it. Consistent analysis of how your campaign is performing allows you to take action if you’re not seeing the results you’d hoped for. But first, you need to consider which metrics are most important to you. What are you actually trying to get out of the collaboration? This could be a number of things: • Site traffic • Click-throughs • Social media engagement • Conversions • Trust • Etc.

Once you understand which metrics you’ll use to measure success, you can begin looking at how your campaign’s performance compares to similar solo promotions. With the right partner, approach and constant analysis your partnership marketing campaign will open the door to thousands of potential customers.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Charles .