1 + 1 = 3X: Maximize Value For Your Clients
Selling the value of your company to prospective clients needs to focus on the key requirements, priorities, and initiatives. Most businesses align to their core competencies and key differentiators to rise above the competition. But not every solution addresses every client’s need. That is where strategic partnerships come in.
Companies looking to accelerate their go-to-market efforts will recognize the value these collaborative partnerships can deliver to customers. As part of this discovery process you need to fully articulate the mutually beneficial value derived from the partnership and translate this into tangible customer advantages.
Developing a Winning Partnership Strategy
To expand your portfolio and maximize client value, follow these strategic steps:
- Identify and prioritize incremental features, functionality, and technology innovations to consider based upon client requests.
- Research industry requirements (compliance, standards, and regulations) driving client RFPs and project proposals.
- Engage with third party vendors and service providers that align with these requirements to determine partnership opportunities.
- Develop a mutual value proposition statement and messaging hierarchy to highlight the collective benefits customers gain from your offerings
- Map out a go-to-market strategy that includes communications plans, demand generation programs, and digital marketing campaigns.
In addition, executive leadership and sponsorship is critical for these partnerships to be successful and endure. A top-down approach ensures alignment and fosters open communications on key successes. Key functional leaders that need to have a voice and active participation within these engagements include:
- CEO or Principal Business Owner – Aligning to your go-to-market efforts to agree on top customer targets to pursue and defining rules of engagement for any prioritized opportunities
- Sales Teams – Creating a cadence for co-selling activities and account mapping discussions to identify primary and secondary responsibilities within both sales teams.
- Marketing Teams – Developing an integrated marketing plan featuring lead generation programs, co-branding efforts, thought leadership activities, joint communications, and set measurable KPIs .
- Customer Service and Support – Providing a consistent user experience and establishing SLAs along with an escalation process that defines and prioritizes customer issues.
- Finance – Establishing best practices and guidelines for funding requests to support high-potential market opportunities that extend beyond traditional budgetary plans.
Working with third party subject matter experts (SME) not only benefits your customers but it can also elevate your story, brand equity, and credibility resulting in greater market acceptance for your offerings. In the words of Henry Ford: “Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success”.
· Is there a defined process for advancing tiers and partner recruitment goals?
These are some of the critical factors that your team should discuss and be prepared to address before engaging in any partnering activities. By aligning expectations, defining clear objectives, and investing in mutual success, you can create a winning environment for all stakeholders. A strong partnership is more than just an agreement—it’s a shared commitment to growth, innovation, and long-term success.