Helping the Right Partners to Find You

One of the most frequent questions I get asked is: "How do I find the right partners for my business?"

Well, that is indeed a loaded question. Those of you who have read previous articles in this series will know that in order to answer this question, an organisation must first have asked itself (and answered):

1. What are my business objectives?
2. How will I achieve them – with or without partners?
3. If I do need partners, what do I want them to do for me?
4. What benefits shall I bring to the partners?
   
   and at a more detailed level:
   
   
5. In specific market segments or territories, how will I work with partners to achieve my business objectives?
6. What level of commitment am I expecting partners to make?
7. What has to be done, and by when?

Well, assuming that you have the answers to these questions, you are now in a position to go seeking the "right partners" for your business, and there are various search agencies and databases you can consult, trade associations and government-sponsored organisations that can help you, industry shows and exhibitions you can visit etc.

But I want to turn this question around, because one of the fundamental attributes of a company that would be a "right partner" for you is that it is a company that is itself ready and willing to partner. So we can expect all those "right partner" candidates out there to be actively seeking out partners for themselves. And my question is: "What are you doing to help them find you?"

[Quite often I get a blank look at this point ...]

The fact is that many businesses are so busy out looking for partners that they forget to advertise or define exactly what it is they are looking for.

Let's concentrate on the obvious place: your website.

Like it or not, the company's website has become your window on the world. It is the way that the vast majority of your business contacts (and potential contacts) get their first impressions of you. Ask yourself this question: If I were working for another company – perhaps based overseas, where English is not the first language – and I was looking at my company's website, how easy would it be for me to find out:

• What it is that my company actually does (and by this I mean, what benefits you deliver to your customers, what problems you solve for them)
• Where we currently operate, and in which markets
• Where we are looking for partners
• What we expect from our partners
• What are our timescales

Hmm! Pretty grim conclusion I suspect. The sad fact is that most companies' websites have loads of information about what they do – what products and services they provide, how wonderful these are, what they have done in the past (press releases, success stories, a few customer testimonials). Very few companies actually go to the trouble of telling the world on their websites what they are setting out to achieve i.e. what they are wanting to do in the future, what customer problems and issues they intend to address. And even when they do, it usually has to be deciphered from entries such as mission statements, "our vision", whitepapers or chairman's reports etc.

Ah ah!, you may say. But we have a 'Partners' section on our website. Well, this can vary from being an exclusive, password-protected area for existing partners, to an array of other companies' logos showing who you have worked with on projects in the past, to a generic statement along the lines of: "Here at XYZ we are always on the lookout for new partners. If you would like to be considered as a partner, please fill in the following form and press the SUBMIT button."

Very rarely do I come across a succinct, carefully thought out web-page explaining exactly what type of partner company is being looked for, what stage of product development the company is expected to be at, what level of commitment is required, likely timescales for implementation, an outline of the types of product being sought ....and so on.

You may feel you have little influence over what goes on your website, so your first step is to talk to people within your organisation who do have such influence. Work out from experience or by talking to industry colleagues how much time, effort and money it takes to proactively go out and find a potential business partner. Draw up a business plan that shows a two-sided approach: active seeking and "passive" advertising. Include in the latter a small project to add a page or two to your website, directing potential partners to a clearly-worded, unambiguous statement of your partnering requirements, with precise instructions as to how a prospective partner should proceed – who to contact initially, what information they should have to hand or send in – along with anticipated timescales for dealing with enquiries. If you attract only one "right partner" in this way (i.e. "passively" rather than "actively"), you will save enough costs to easily pay for the development of those one or two web-pages.

So, before you go charging off to exhibitions, contacting trade organisations, scanning databases and hiring search agencies, have a quiet word with your webmaster ... and help the right partners find you!

Partnering Points on Helping the Right Partners to Find You:

• When you construct the partnering pages for your website, get the metadata right – the headers and key words – so that search engines like Google can find you using the type of search requests you might expect a potential partner to use.
• Don't assume that your potential partner will automatically know what you are talking about – they may work in a different country, vertical market or industry. Provide plenty of cross-reference or "drill down" hyperlinks to other parts of your website.
• Remember to paint a picture of what you and your partners will achieve together, and express it in terms of customer benefits. If possible, include a diagram to help with the explanation.
• If you do set up a contact point, make sure it is manned, or connected to a helpful automated attendant system, on a 24x7 basis, especially if you are looking for overseas partners.
• When you do get enquiries, ensure they are dealt with promptly – otherwise word will get around the industry that it is a waste of time approaching you.

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