Christian Fea - Collaboration Marketing Strategist

Your business has achieved great success, with significant growth since its first inception.  With a loyal client base and great PR outreach, you enjoy both repeat and new business.

Why are your revenues no longer growing?  For all business owners, the earnings plateau of the original business model is inevitable.  Every business experiences a growth phase, which plateaus and enters into the “cash cow” scenario, where you obtain a steady stream of revenues.

Overcoming the revenues plateau and current market dynamics

However, the key to taking your business to the next level is to think beyond your current marketing plan.  Yes, it certainly has been successful and effective at achieving your goals, but if you want to grow your business to the next stage, you must think outside of the box – or original business plan.

With the significant shifts in business, no longer are businesses enjoying a one-to-one relationship with customers.  With the barrage of competition and information available at the click of a button, customers do not have enough attention to focus on your business.  They also know that they hold the power – so they demand more, expect more, and if you do not give them their expectations, they instantly move onto the next business.

You know this.  That is why you have been quite successful at the three “I’s” needed for marketing success: Intercept, Isolate, and Inhibit.

Now, according to marketing guru John Hagel, your marketing must shift into the three “A’s”: Assist, Attract, and Affiliate.   This essentially changes your “one on one” focus to a “many on one” marketing strategy – a collaboration strategy.

The fundamentals of the collaboration strategy

At its core, a collaboration strategy increases the overall economic pie, allowing each player to get a better piece.  This is a tremendous shift away from the traditional business model, where each business fights the others to gain a bigger piece of a small piece.   To understand how collaboration strategy works, let us evaluate each piece of the puzzle:

•    Assist:  When you help, empower, and engage individuals, you instantly develop an attractive rapport with them.  Therefore, you must not only understand your product deeply, but also remain open to your customers’ inputs to create “co-op” products.
•    Attract:  You must understand underlying consumer psychology, and then utilize motivational incentives to draw individuals towards your business.
•    Affiliate:  Whereas you are a single voice, developing networks give you an exponential reach to potential customers.  Affiliates are any third-party partner that can develop synergies with your business.

Collaboration strategy capitalizes upon power in numbers – the more people and businesses that you can bring value to, the greater value your own business will achieve.  In a sense, the more “generous” you are with sharing to your customers and partners, the more you will receive in return.

Whether you run a successful business or are engaging in a start-up, collaboration marketing is an effective tool in helping you achieve your goals.  Remember, the power is in numbers – the more people you can engage in your marketing process, the broader your reach, and the greater your revenues.

One is the loneliest number in the world – and the statement holds true especially when it comes to business. Considering the vast nooks and crannies where your target audience hides, it is difficult for one company, one marketing strategy, one budget, and one outreach effort to capitalize upon the full spectrum of your potential clients.

Bottom-line benefits with strategic alliances

With the power of strong strategic alliances, your business can significantly increase its revenues, while simultaneously declining your costs. Strategic alliances’ effectiveness stems from the value of collective resources; for example, two companies share the cost of a research study – both obtain the same benefit, but at half the original cost.

The greatest advantage to a strategic alliance, however, is the exponentially increased number of clients you can reach – take your business to the second power, and now imagine how much revenue your business can generate with the third power, fourth power, and beyond.

With a properly created strategic alliance, you can expect to gain:

• Instant exposure to a greater target audience and client base
• Double your sales force for your products virtually overnight
• Reduce your marketing expense, with an increase in client reach
• Increase your virtual inventory and product offerings
• Boost the levels of your sales volume, revenues, and profit
• Augment the levels of knowledge and expertise with information exchange

Successfully managing a strategic alliance

The benefits to developing a strategic alliance run deep, but like any aspect of business, it requires planning and management. An improperly executed strategic partnership will be doomed to fail from the beginning. Like any relationship, a strategic partnerships needs management, communication, and trust.

There are several aspects to keep in mind when you are forging a strategic alliance partnership with another organization:

• Your strategic alliance should be formed with a complimentary company – not a competitor, but a business with positive synergies. For example, if you sell pet products, a great strategic alliance would be with a provider of pet health insurance.

• The alliance must be managed effectively from the beginning, meaning expectations, boundaries, and definitions are outlined clearly. If there are any gray areas in the strategic alliance, both parties will walk away unhappy. In a strategic alliance, it is impossible to be too clear about expectations.

• Communication lines must be constantly open and clear. A strategic alliance is more than an additional marketing force – instead, it is a conglomeration of resources and knowledge; when used effectively, a strategic alliance raises the bar for both businesses. In addition, open communication ensures that the strategic alliance is operating in its healthiest capacity.

• A strong level of trust must be fostered with both formal and informal contracts. A strategic alliance is like any other relationship – to succeed, trust must be developed. The easiest way to build trust in a nascent business relationship is to create definitive contracts and terms.

Strategic alliances can be an important tool in your company’s marketing toolbox. Without having to exert additional marketing budgets, you can essentially double your company’s exposure, resulting in higher revenues and profits. With proper management, a strategic alliance can often become a company’s catalyst for reaching the next level of business success.