From giving you access to new markets and helping you acquire new customers to growing your revenue, the right strategic partnerships can do a lot for a growing business. But, not every potential business partnership will be right for your business.

What you get out of a strategic partnership is directly impacted by the company you choose to partner with.

Before you start looking for the right partnership, you need to figure out what you want to get out of it. Are you looking for an exchange of data or information? Do you want to work with a partner you can share complementary resources with? Would you like to gain access to new markets?

It’s important to have a firm goal in mind when you’re looking for the right partner. But partnerships are give-and-take, so it’s also important to know what you bring to the table.

Once you’ve identified your goals and what you have to offer, you can start looking for the right partnership. Here are a few things to keep in mind while you’re looking.

5 things to look for in strategic business partnerships

#1. Shared values

Having strong core values is important for any business. It helps to guide the decision-making process and ensures that your team is unified and working toward the same goals.

It’s critical that you form a partnership with a business that shares your core values and is committed to the same standards. In a partnership, your reputation will reflect your partner’s reputation and vice versa.

Plus, by choosing a partner who believes in what you believe in, there’s less of a chance that your partnership will be lopsided, with one partner pulling all of the weight. Choosing a partner that shares your values will mean a more equitable business relationship.

#2. Complementary strengths

No business gets into a strategic partnership just for the fun of it. You do it because of the mutual benefits a strategic partnership can provide for both you and your partner. In order to do that, you need to find a partner that has strengths that complement your own.

There’s no point in working with a partner that offers the same services or products as you do, or that has the same skills. Get the most out of your business partnership by looking for resources and skills that fill in the gaps of what you’re already offering.

#3. A solid reputation

As I said, when you partner with another business, their reputation is no longer just their reputation. It becomes a reflection of your business. Any business you choose to partner with will have a direct impact on your business’s reputation.

At the end of the day, the goal of most strategic partnerships is to increase revenue. But, it’s important to look well beyond the numbers and what a business partner can bring to the table. You also want to do your research and look for a partner with a strong reputation.

#4. A shared audience

A big reason to partner with another business is so that you can expand your customer base. In order to do that, you need to make sure that you choose a business partner with a similar customer base.

For example, if you offer products that are targeted to seniors, it probably won’t help you much to partner with a business that sells children’s toys.

Don’t get me wrong, expanding your customer base is always a good thing, and the best partnerships do just that. But it’s important to make sure that your partner’s audience can benefit from what you’re offering.

#5. Added value for customers

The best, most impactful strategic business partnerships benefit everyone — you, your partner and your customers. In fact, the more value your partnership brings to your customers, the more value it will ultimately bring to your business.

A great strategic business partnership will help you meet more of your customers’ needs, which will help to build more customer loyalty. Customer loyalty is worth its weight in gold. Loyal customers spend more and tell their friends and family about your business.

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Originally published on 3/12/21