The DOs and DON'Ts of Brand Partnerships

Are you seeking credibility, exposure and increased promotional marketing? Do you want customer growth, but realize you and your staff can't take everything on by yourselves? If so, a brand partnership might be a sound strategic move for your business.

Brand partnerships can offer many benefits, but when they go wrong, business owners often find themselves in tricky, or even devastating situations. These negative experiences are avoidable, as long as you follow best practices for entering into a partnership of any kind. Here are a few DOs and DON’Ts to keep in mind if you’re thinking about launching a brand partnership.

DO
Prioritize your business goals.
A brand partnership is designed to help you earn more qualified leads and create the best experience possible for your customers. Think about the bigger picture when contemplating who might be a great brand partner fit. If you offer a compelling service, but don’t offer a product pairing, find a credible business that does and offer both to your customers. 

The end goal to creating a strategic business partnership is to give the customer something they need or want, that they wouldn’t otherwise have if they only did business with you. Find a company or individual whose skillsets complement your best product or service offering, not match it. Unless you’re considering a merge, offering the same thing under different brands not only creates an uncomfortable competitive environment, but also is potentially confusing for the consumer. 

DO
Consider your potential partner’s perspective.
This is a two-way street. While it might be a great opportunity for you to join forces, what’s in it for the other side? When proposing a brand partnership, strategically consider what you will bring to the table for them, and make sure that’s clearly communicated in initial conversations.

DON’T
Blindly trust.
In order for a brand partnership to work, you must implicitly trust your partner. When deciding whether or not it’s a good idea to work together, here are some tips to ensure your experience is positive and rewarding. 

Clearly define roles and responsibilities
Be transparent from the get-go and develop a statement of work both parties agree to. Outline what each partner is expected to contribute and put a plan in place to manage conflict as it arises.

Ask the right questions
It’s important to see the full picture when entering into a brand partnership agreement. Be direct and straightforward about your expectations, and listen to theirs. Never assume they are automatically on the same page as you, instead use strategic questions in initial and ongoing conversations to be absolutely certain.

• What is your business philosophy?
• In the event of a surge in business, is support help available to my company? 
• How closely can my current team be involved in the customer support process?
• What does brand protection look like to each party, and how can we preserve that brand integrity while working together?
• What are your short-term goals? Long-term?
• Do you have upselling opportunities? What are they?
• Run a scenario or case study by them and ask for a detailed description of how they would handle the situation. 

DON’T
Avoid partnering with a bigger business than yours.
Even if they’re seen as competition, as a small business, partnering with a bigger company creates visibility and exposure you couldn’t necessarily afford on your own. One of the best ways to quickly expand reach and increase market share is to have a power player vouch for your business.

DO
Leverage your brand partnership relationship into a referral program.
If you find the right complementary fit, your partner’s customers will likely be the same target demographic as yours. Take advantage of this trusted relationship by implementing a referral program for your business, and theirs. The following tactics will help you promote your partner, and your partner promote you, incentivizing customers to do business with both.

• Create and post signage: highlight deals, discounts, events, offers and more to grab the customer’s attention in store/office.
• E-newsletter promotion: create special promotions (e.g. “Buy now and get X% off at X brand.”) and advertise to customers via email. Create separate campaigns to promote your business and your partner’s business, and launch in a timely manner, in line with your editorial calendar.
• Word of mouth: after earning someone’s business, you may have their ear to recommend that they work with another person or company to achieve more of their goals and objectives. When someone seeks you out, upsell by promoting your partner, and ask that they do the same. 

Do you have a successful brand partnership? Do you have any horror stories to share from good intentions gone horribly, horribly wrong? We want to know, share in the comments.