Accelerate Your 2015

Marketing Success With

Strategic Partnerships

Presented by

Bryce RootOwner, The Root Group

www.RootGroupMarketing.com(831) 824-4135

@RootGroupMktg

The Root Group

Convention & Visitors Bureau

Chambers of Commerce

Industry Publications

Local Media

Stakeholders

Industry Peers

Neighboring Businesses

Non-Profits

Local & Regional Events

Competition

Daily Small Business Marketing Tips

www.RootGroupMarketing.com | BryceRoot@RootGroupMarketing.com | (831) 824-4135

The Root Group@RootGroupMktg

We provide strategic marketing services so small businesses can focus on their craft. We are with you every step of the way, plus each of our clients receive lifetime local marketing support.

Quick answers are always an email or phone call away.

Daily Small Business Marketing Tips:

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What Is A

Strategic

Partnership?

The concept of developing a strategic partnership isn’t revolutionary, but seems to be rarely used by small businesses.

As one of the most fruitful and least expensive marketing strategies, the strategic partnership is based on developing and nurturing long-lasting business relationships. And with time, they will produce mutually beneficial results that would have been vastly more difficult to achieve alone.

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Who Should

Be Using

Strategic

Partnerships?

There is an opportunity for all businesses to develop strategic partnerships.

Whether you’re a solopreneur or running a long standing brick & mortar with 10+ employees.

Chances are, you’re already well on your way. The key is to elevate the level of strategy that is integrated into these relationships.

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Why Should

You Develop

A Strategic

Partnership?

Expand your overall marketing reach

Increase foot traffic & sales

Increase PR & media opportunities

Attract highly-specific clientele

Increase social & digital following

Be invited to participate in unique opportunities

Create another touch point within your target market’s day to day lifestyle

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Step #1Choose Your Primary 2015 Goal,

Objective or Milestone

5 Steps To Creating Your Own

Strategic Partnership

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Step #2Determine

The Most

Direct Route

Towards

Achieving

Your Goal

Is there a particular person or organization that can get me there?

Utilize Linked In to search for those targeted people and organizations and see which of your connections has ties to these potential partners.

Review your list of current partners, vendors, distributors & service providers.

Determine if there are governing bodies or umbrella organizations that would serve as one point of contact for communicating with their membership.

Remind yourself where your primary customer base is spending their time and money. Are there aspects of their lifestyle where you can pinpoint where they shop, travel and spend time?

Are there partnerships already formed between two entities that by partnering with one, you might have an opportunity to become involved with the other?

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Step #3Research Each

Potential

Partner Before

Contacting Or

Asking For An

Introduction

Know their history, current programs & future plans

What is the scale/following of their social/digital media presence, i.e. likes, who follows them, quality content?

Do they have similar seasonality and possess a notable amount of stature or coverage during that time period?

Do they actively promote their partners, sponsors and advertisers on social media as well as in person during events and PR opportunities?

Do they have the staffing and manpower to realistically support you in a partner program?

Over time, have they been able to produce consistently successful programs and events?

Speak with others that may have already done business with them and know the reputation of the key players or department that you would likely be interacting with.

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Step #4Take Inventory

Of What Your

Business Can

Offer Your

Potential

Partner

Are there marketing opportunities that you possess that you’d be able to share with them?

Do you have an eblast, social media page or website that is suitable to host the promotion of their initiatives?

Are there events or programs that you’re involved in that they might be able to be associated with and possibly be given an introduction to, which would benefit their cause or goals?

Do you and possibly your current partners have the resources, including unique content, manpower, and imagery that can benefit this partner?

Step #5Meet With Your

Potential

Partner And

Determine The

Partnership’s

Potential

Once you’re introduced, be sure to always keep your “connector” up to date.

Your initial partner meeting should be a casual, getting to know each other type of meeting where you lay out a good amount of the homework you’ve done on how you can mutually help each other.

Leave the meeting with a follow up meeting scheduled, giving you a chance to think through all the possibilities now that you’ve acquired a great deal more insight into each other’s needs and goals.

Develop a plan that specifically addresses their goals and needs and how your partnership can help them. Likewise, in developing this plan, address the suggested ways they would be able to assist your business.

Tip: Think big, but start small, make sure it’s a good fit.

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Digital &

Social

Partnership

Best

Practices

Digital Media

Document your projects and overall partnership via photos & video. This content can be repurposed in a variety of ways including your eblasts, website, and social media.

Produce a video of your next visit to your partner’s headquarters, providing a “behind the scenes” overview of how you work together and the great results produced.

Invite your partner to be a guest content provider, making sure that both of you properly promote this cross-marketing.

Profile your partner on a devoted “Business Partner” page of your website, showcasing your work together with links to their online presence.

Create an official partner badge/logo that your partners can proudly display on their website/social media, in similar fashion to how Chamber members display their membership plaque.

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Digital &

Social

Partnership

Best

Practices

Social Media

Overall: In similar fashion to face to face relationships, be sure to integrate those same characteristics into your social/digital relationships. Share and mutually agree on a plan to help each other and nurture this online relationship.

Twitter: (1) Retweet useful content from your partners your followers will find useful; (2) reply to your partners’ tweets thanking them for their knowledge & partnership; (3) create & publicize a list that showcases your partners and their specialties.

Facebook: (1) As your business page, focus on commenting & liking partner posts that align with your business; (2) As an administrator, tag your partners with “Partner Feed” so you can easily monitor them through the clutter.

Linked In: (1) Like, share & comment on partner’s content; (2) mutually create content that showcases your partner, making sure content is appropriate for the LI business user.

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10 Things To

Remember

Throughout

Your

Partnership

1. Make sure the details of the program, project and overall relationship are noted in writing. In some cases, a contract may be in order, but an email will work in most cases.

2. Communicate regularly, be sure not to assume anything. Even if it seems like you’re checking up on them, they will know that you’re professional and on top of things, which goes a long way when it comes to big opportunities down the line where they go down their list of reliable partners.

3. Document the project through photographs, emails, final product recaps and more in order to build upon the success for next year. This will make your time more efficient and you won’t be recreating the wheel each time and in some cases, program models can be used with other partners.

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10 Things To

Remember

Throughout

Your

Partnership

4. When appropriate, this is also an opportunity to promote the success of the partnership. In many cases, a successful partnership with a non-profit can also be worthy of promotion given that the focus spotlights the benefits the non-profit received. Your hard work will be noticed by simply recognizing them.

5. Continually be thinking about ways that you might be able to work with an established partner that’s proven successful in the past. It’s important to nurture and continually demonstrate that you’re committed to the relationship.

6. Don’t be afraid to ask for elements of a project that would benefit you too, partnerships always need to be mutually beneficial.

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10 Things To

Remember

Throughout

Your

Partnership

7. Strategic partnerships may begin with a mutually beneficial project, but many times, it’s a matter of taking turns with giving and being flexible with their requests and inquiries.

8. In some cases, it may seem as though they’re overstepping the boundaries of the relationship. Not to worry, there’s always an opportunity to come up with a creative solution that will make everyone happy.

9. Great things can come from these strategic partnerships, but keep in mind that they typically occur naturally with time, but it’s your active role and reputation with them, which will bring the big opportunity your way.

10. These relationships should be considered long-term investments. In similar fashion to personal relationships, communication is vital to their success.

www.RootGroupMarketing.com | BryceRoot@RootGroupMarketing.com | (831) 824-4135

The Root Group@RootGroupMktg Daily Small Business Marketing Tips:

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