Stop Sleeping on Partnerships, This is Why

I don't know if there is anything more satisfying than getting a message that says

Author

Clinton Senkow
February 19, 2024

Stop Sleeping on Partnerships, This is Why

I don’t know if there is anything more satisfying than getting a message from a client that you worked with getting back to you with more results.

Results that they achieved through the work you did with them.

I got this message the other day just as I was going into the long weekend, that yet another client I’m working with was in negotiation with another business on a partnership.

I was so proud of them when I saw this. Like a father is for the first time seeing their son take their first steps.

I remember seeing my twin boys take their first steps and its something that’s just engrained in your head.

Soon, my youngest son will be joining them and I can’t wait to see him take his first steps and judging how the last few weeks have been, I could see it happening anytime now.

If there is one thing you can take from this issue it’s this:

Once you get that first successful partnership under your belt as an entrepreneur or business owner, it gives you a little rush to keep going to get more.

Because with partnerships there really is no end. They end when you decide to stop talking or collaborating with others and the reality is that if you aren’t collaborating with others, your business probably isn’t doing too good.

What’s Happening in Partnerships Today

When developing an enterprise GenAI strategy, it’s much more achievable with the right partnerships in place.

Two of the biggest carmakers in the world that are often seen as competitors are in negotiations to partner together in order to take on China.

Partnership marketing is a top trend that is gaining traction in the marketing world and it gets centre stage at Brandweek 2024.

Yes, you read that right. True Religion is getting into kids clothing and what better way to do that than partnering with other brands to get access to the market they are after.

Partnership Nugget of the Day

For today’s “Nugget of the Day”…..I want to dive into something I find super interesting when it comes to partnerships.

Most business owners and CEO’s feel that their company should only partner with companies that are not your direct competitors.

Makes sense right.

Heck, this is what I teach my students in my coaching program,

DO NOT PARTNER WITH COMPETITORS.

But why is it that Apple and Microsoft partner together and help drive billions of dollars to each other?

Or if you saw in the section above this one, GM & Ford are in talks to partner together in order to take on China. If you missed the link, here it is again.

Doesn’t that sound crazy? Two companies that sell products to the same people, at the same price points, in the same locations around the world, are open to collaborate and partner?

Wouldn’t they just want each other to fail?

What’s ironic is that partnerships are a key strategy for growth for companies of this size and market cap.

They know that in order to take control of a market or to penetrate one that they have less influence over, they must partner with another business that is established in that area.

This just goes to show that basically every business out there today, regardless of if you are directly competing with them could be a partnership option for your business.

No, I don’t recommend partnering with a competitor right away, but it is fascinating and worth mentioning that if Apple and Microsoft or Ford and GM can partner together than why can’t you with one of your competitors?

I’ll leave you with that thought.

New Tools & Resources

Here’s a few tools & resources for you to check out:

Notion - I’m a huge fan of notion and use it religiously for my businesses and clients. It’s a project management tool + so much more. Think of Google Docs but with more customizability and templates.

AIMagicX - create pictures, content, and images all through AI.

Optemization - a Notion consultancy that helps design and adopt Notion for work.

Summary

In Partnerships 101 I dig deeper into the partnership marketing world, sharing the latest developments in the space in an easily digestible format and get the latest news and insights delivered to you and your inboxes.

I want you to think of this newsletter like “probiotics for your marketing brain” vs a “high sugar candy bar”.

If you feel you have a resource, video, tool, or tip that would be valuable to share with the community just reply to this email.

I love hearing from readers and you guessed it, I love partnerships!

Thanks for reading!

Clinton

PS. Let’s stay connected.