In reality, Marketing Technology (MarTech) partnerships have a low success rate. Although partnerships may begin with good intentions, they often end up being one-sided relationships. Partner Marketing is vital for achieving success in the technology industry, but how can one effectively handle these alliances? If you are a tech vendor, what do your channel partners require to establish a strong foundation? A mere referral fee is insufficient to incentivize agencies to direct business towards you.
What exactly is a strategic marketing partnership?
In simple terms, it refers to a collaboration established between two businesses with the objective of mutual goal attainment. Specifically in the context of strategic marketing partnerships, it serves as a straightforward and efficient approach for brands to broaden their target audience.
Why would you want a strategic marketing partnership for your business?
Why wouldn’t you want a relationship that can benefit both companies involved by providing access to twice as many customers, contacts, and potential partnership opportunities? By partnering with another company, you increase your exposure as you promote each other to your respective customers and contacts. Moreover, this mutually beneficial relationship also benefits your customers by giving them access to a wider range of referrals from a trusted source.
How do you choose a strategic marketing partner?
Create a roster of products or services that effectively enhance the offerings of your business. Identify the supplementary items or services that your customers seek alongside your products, ensuring that they do not directly compete with your business.
2. Discover 15-20 businesses offering the products or services mentioned in the first step. These businesses can be sourced from your own familiarity or by engaging with your customers.
When contacting these businesses, consider your dislike for unsolicited sales calls and opt for a different approach. Instead, compose a letter wherein you explain your intentions, highlight the value it holds for both parties involved, and emphasize the benefits it offers to your respective customers.
After receiving the responses, assess them and decide which business aligns best with your company and its marketing requirements.
Take a seat with them and collaborate to determine how you can cooperate and identify the actions required from each of you.
1. Align Your Business Plans With Your Partners
Enable your partners to establish a thriving business based on your solution. The effectiveness of channel marketing strategies increases when the plans of both partners and vendors are in sync. Essentially, a business plan serves as a framework that encourages action. The execution of plans is most successful when they genuinely benefit both parties involved. The alignment of business plans enables you to:
- Keep everyone’s focus on the same common goal: revenue
- Align your marketing and sales operations with your partners
- Go-To-Market together
- Keep yourself mutually-accountable
Create a concise plan consisting of goals that are achievable for all parties involved.
When creating business plans for your partners, it is crucial to establish realistic goals that enable fair and suitable evaluation of success. An excellent partner business plan is one that is precise and holds both the vendor and partner responsible. The targets should adhere to the S.M.A.R.T. criteria (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Timed) and should not only state the desired outcomes but also outline the necessary actions. Consider a well-constructed partner business plan as a roadmap that, if adhered to, can lead to great success.
2. Enable Your Partners With Marketing Campaigns
Joint marketing initiatives such as road shows, webinars, or joint whitepapers with successful end-clients can enhance outcomes for all parties involved. Collaborating on generated leads uncovers mutual opportunities and offers numerous benefits for the end-client. By distributing content through web syndication, partners can increase their reach and improve their lead generation capabilities. Creating a diverse range of content types can assist in building more robust and focused campaigns, allowing partners to refine their messaging. Utilizing white label marketing campaigns is an advantageous option for many tech companies that have yet to fully develop their internal marketing capabilities. An effective white label campaign provides partners with content and materials that they can utilize to shape their marketing strategies, promote content, and strengthen their business plans.
3. Dedicate Channel Marketing Managers
Partners require the presence of individuals who adore and genuinely focus on the well-being of your partner. It is crucial for partners to have a reliable individual they can rely on for assistance.
- Navigate the vendor enterprise
- Bring together the right people for campaigns
- Discover joint opportunities for overlapping clients
Assist partners in setting themselves apart within your ecosystem.
The Channel Marketing Manager should be encouraged to enhance results and strengthen relationships by facilitating communication between partners and vendors, leading to a higher Partner Satisfaction Score. Utilize the channel manager as a mediator to ensure partner needs and demands are satisfied. Additionally, it is recommended to include partner differentiation in aligning business plans and coordinating joint marketing campaigns. #ProTip
4. Offer Market Development Funds (MDF)
MDF, also known as market development funds, are financial resources provided by vendors to their partners as a motivation to improve and expand their business, marketing initiatives, and programs.
Assist your partners in accessing MDF.
To achieve a successful marketing and channel partnership, it is crucial to establish guidelines and strategies. These will assist your partners in creating action plans that fulfill the MDF qualification criteria. A well-functioning channel marketing partnership is built on partners meeting specific targets and having the assurance of accessing necessary resources to support their efforts. Discover how Macro can contribute to your and your partners’ accomplishments.
5. Leverage a Partner Marketing Platform
ZINFI, as the leading channel marketing management platform, offers numerous advantages for your partner marketing strategy. It allows you to effectively manage your channels and provides a wide range of features that strengthen your partner marketing strategy and abilities. Through ZINFI, you can not only carry out campaigns but also handle and create content for your partners.
What can you do for each other to make this strategic marketing partnership work?
- Share posts on social media.
- Provide content for a newsletter.
- Write a featured blog.
- Make mentions of your partner on social media.
- Create a freebie to give to your customers that features both business.
- Provide coupons/discounts as a way to introduce your partnership to your customers.
- Make a referral to your partner whenever possible and relevant.
- Host an event that features your partner. Make sure it is interesting for your customers.
Although it may require some initial effort, a strategic marketing partnership can prove advantageous for all parties involved in the long term.
