How to Build a Scalable Partnership Marketing Strategy that Drives Growth

 

Partnership marketing has been called the “future of marketing” — but what is it, exactly? More importantly, how can you implement and scale a successful partnership marketing strategy for your own brand? 

Read on for the ultimate guide to scalable partnership marketing strategies, plus a look at partnership marketing strategy benefits and best practices.

Partnership Marketing vs. Affiliate Marketing: What’s the Difference?

Before we get into the ins and outs of building scalable partnership marketing strategies, it’s important to understand the subtle but pivotal difference between partnership marketing and affiliate marketing. 

“Partnership marketing” is a broader category of marketing. In a partnership marketing campaign, two brands work together to develop a high-level, collaborative strategy that promotes both brands’ products or services. As a result, partnership marketing campaigns are generally more involved than an affiliate marketing program, which is a subset of partnership marketing.

Key Benefits of Partnership Marketing Strategies

A smart partnership marketing strategy offers numerous benefits for both brands involved. Take a look at some partnership marketing strategy benefits.

Enhanced Scalability

One of the key benefits — and outcomes — of an effective partner marketing strategy is the scalability that comes with it. Partnerships exponentially multiply everything brands put into them: monetary investments, team resources, marketing efforts and more. Partnership marketing gives each brand direct access to the other’s existing audience while also expanding the reach for both, as the product or service marketed together may tap into an entirely new demographic. 

What’s more, marketing partners can leverage their existing networks and the knowledge that comes from years of experience within a market, effectively casting a global net.

Improved Brand Awareness

Partnership marketing provides access to your brand partner’s existing audience. By engaging in a partnership marketing strategy, you’ll build greater brand awareness with your audience while maximizing efforts in your own market. The result? A boost in brand awareness with new audiences in different, valuable markets. 

Increase Brand Trust

Whether you’re a newer brand or an established name working to gain a foothold in another market, partnership marketing lends extra credibility to the products or services you’re marketing.

Boost Customer Engagement

New, co-branded content does more than keep social media and email channels active. It provides an opportunity for both audiences to engage with content. And now, with collaborative sharing options on platforms like Instagram, posts can populate both partners’ social media profiles, allowing each of them to enjoy comments and engagement from each audience. 

Plus, as the saying goes, nothing draws a crowd like a crowd. The likes, comments and shares will get content in front of even more users, while paid promotions expand reach even further. 

Diversify Your Marketing Channels

One of the most desirable elements of a partnership marketing strategy is that each brand contributes unique capabilities, complementing areas where the other brand may have less expertise. For instance, your brand may have a well-established affiliate marketing strategy, while the other brand may have invested more in search engine marketing. You can each make use of the other’s active marketing channels while gaining a foothold in digital environments you may not have attempted to enter yet.

Combine and Multiply Resources

Like the marketing channels mentioned above, partnership marketing campaigns should amplify each brand’s available resources. These can range from financial resources to skilled personnel to marketing or manufacturing networks established worldwide. Regardless of what the resources look like, a well-designed, effective marketing partnership strategy should ensure existing resources complement each other and combine to ensure growth.

See An Improved ROI

Generally speaking, brand partnerships can lead to higher returns on investment (ROI), since both brands know they won’t make a profit if the campaign doesn’t succeed. You’ll also be able to scale your campaign with less cost, since you’re sharing responsibility with a partner. 

What’s more, the payment model used can also improve ROI in general. For instance, a brand partnership typically means the partners only get paid following a conversion. That means you’ll be able to invest money in the marketing campaign instead of paying a promotional partner. 

Collaborate and Share Expertise 

Finally, a partner marketing strategy enables both brands to share knowledge and expertise as they collaborate on the co-branded campaign. What this looks like may vary depending on the partners and the campaign strategy. Still, it provides ample opportunity to learn from one another, refine processes and take advantage of outside eyes on various marketing and promotions tactics.

Steps to Build a Scalable Partnership Marketing Strategy

Ready to get started with your strategic marketing partnerships? Here are five high-level steps to get you going: 

• Choose your marketing partners. An effective partnership marketing strategy begins with the right partner. Whether you’re in the early stages of selecting a partner or have an open offer from a potential collaborator, take some time to weigh the pros and cons of a partnership before jumping in — and make sure the partner isn’t one of your competitors.

• Start the onboarding process quickly. Once you’ve decided on a partner, start onboarding quickly. Keep the momentum going with a quick onboarding process, and begin sharing information internally with relevant team members on each brand’s staff. These could include design, sales and marketing teams, among others. 

• Collaborate on marketing materials and promotion plans. Consistent, collaborative marketing and promotional materials are crucial to an effective campaign. Ensure branding, voice and story are consistent across the board, while also allowing your brand partner to make small modifications as needed to align with their style preferences. 

• Create a communication plan. Work together to determine the best way to communicate and collaborate with your partner. Whether it’s daily check-ins via online messaging, weekly video chats or ongoing email chains, keep communication open from the start of your campaign launch. 
• Monitor success. Finally, ensure you’re measuring the success of your marketing strategy. The method you use to do so can depend on the key performance indicators (KPIs) set, such as new visits to a site, sign-ups or purchases. But without monitoring, you won’t be able to report to internal and external stakeholders on the progress, performance and profitability.

If that sounds like a lot, don’t worry. Partnership marketing management agencies like Acceleration Partners can work with you to plan, launch and monitor a global marketing campaign.

Partnership Strategies for Business Growth

Like so many promotion tactics, your marketing partnership strategy can be completely customized to suit your needs and preferences. That may involve online promotion, print or even billboards to market your collaboration. But if you’re not sure how to start, here are a few creative strategies to consider:

• Co-branded social media strategies: Work together to develop content to share on social media platforms. Then, leverage each brand’s expertise and success to cross-promote across all relevant channels.

• Shared white papers or research documents: Collaborative white papers or research presentations can be an innovative way to share brand knowledge and expertise with highly targeted audiences. 

• Co-branded webinars, conferences or speaking engagements: If you’re promoting a service, a co-branded webinar or conference allows both brands to get face time with potential customers, connect with the audience and build trust. 

Common Challenges and How to Overcome Them

In many cases, the challenges you’ll face with your partnership marketing campaign are no different than those found with any marketing strategy, such as: 

• Misalignment internally or with your brand partner
• Lack of communication
• Inconsistent brand voice or imaging
• Contradictory messaging
• Poor performance management

Fortunately, many of these challenges can be eliminated or minimized with the right partner. If you’re ready to build a partnership marketing strategy that can reach maximum impact with a highly scalable model, contact Acceleration Partners today.