How can strategic partnerships help a business grow?
A strategic partnership, once the right fit is found, should benefit both businesses in a complementary manner and offer customers something of greater value. Plus, a well-executed business collaboration should help both partners to experience opportunities that are not possible without the partnership.
When you learn how to build strategic partnerships for business growth, your business will flourish. So will the one you have created a collaborative partnership with. However, you can’t pick the right partner by throwing a dart at a dartboard. There is a system that is simple and effective. It only has six steps, and it looks like this:
Identify → Assess → Approach → Structure → Test → Review
Six Steps for Building Strategic Partnerships
Let’s take a closer look at each of these steps, which should lead you to creating a successful business partnership.
Identify
Before you start building your business partnership, you have to know why you are doing it. What is it you want your business to become? There are many different targets you can set for establishing a business partnership. It could be to reach a different customer base; it could be to offer something new in your service line; or to find something that complements what your business already offers but, through a collaborative partnership, provides your customers with greater value. This means seeking a business that is different but may have some of the same components as yours. In other words, something compatible with what your business is already doing.
Assess
Both businesses must have a reason to establish the partnership. It doesn’t make sense to do it just because it looks or feels right. It must bring something of value to both partners and enhance what it is already providing in the marketplace.
Approach
There must be a concise purpose for the collaboration. An opportunity must be identified and used as the foundation of everything from casual discussions with potential partners to the framework of the partnership. When you can simply state why a certain partner would be a good fit for your business, and yours would be a good fit for them, then you have the concise approach you need.
Structure
Just like you would have done with your original business plan, map out what the strategic business partnership is going to look like. Establish a framework that outlines who does what, how costs and revenues are split, and how success is measured so it can be tracked as it progresses.
Test
As with any kind of relationship, it is important to test the waters to see if it can work. In a strategic business partnership, testing can be in one of many different forms. You can set up and execute a pilot project such as a specific sales campaign or special event. The main goal is to see if the partnership works before a long-term commitment is made.
Review
The last step is to examine the tools used to measure the activity and review them to learn more about how things went. The results should have either reached the target set for the test or at least shown movement towards the target. The data collected will help you make an informed decision to either continue the partnership or to dissolve it and move on to find a different potential business partnership.
What If It Doesn’t Work Out?
It should be easy to recognise warning signs early in the relationship that something isn’t working. Red flags to pay attention to include anything that does not match across the board. For example, both partners must put in the same amount of effort, have the same expectations, standards, and level of communication if the partnership is to work. Falling short on any of these elements will impact collaboration.
Are You Considering a Strategic Business Partnership?
Sometimes a good partnership moves your business to a place it has never been before. If you see this as the next natural step to help your business succeed, contact Action Coaching Business Coaching today. We can discuss how to create the right business collaboration where both partners succeed, and your customers also receive something better than they are used to. Action Coach Business Coaching can help your business succeed.
Conclusion
Small businesses sometimes need a little extra to succeed. For many, this opportunity comes from a strategic business partnership. The key to reaching new goals with a strategic business collaboration is the selection of the perfect partner. There is a process that helps identify the best fit where a partnership benefits both businesses and offers customers something of greater value. Doing this becomes a win/win situation for all involved.