Bowling for Partners

Pin Action For the bowlers out there, how many pins does the bowling ball actually make contact with when you get a strike? Out of ten pins, I would suggest three or four at most. Maybe five. So, how do the other pins fall down? Pin action! On LinkedIn, a colleague asked a few pointed questions, and I agreed to respond via my blog as I believe others may need this insight as well. Here are queries:

What is the best way to collaborate with a strategic partner so that neither entity gives up or dilutes their brand?

First, this is a non issue. Under no circumstance should one business "take a back seat" to another. Consider Goodyear Eagle tires for that brand new Chevy Corvette. Would GM allow all promotion for the Vette be done by Goodyear? Of course not. Does Goodyear rely on GM to promote it's tires? No way. If Goodyear makes makes tires for the Ford Mustang, does that diminish the value to the Vette owner? Not at all. In the motorcycle industry, I know of cases where tire manufacturers worked with custom builders to introduce some of the wider tires (like the 330mm and the 360mm sizes). A win-win situation for both. So, how can you leverage "a better solution" by the synergy created from your two entities? That is the real question

Can we each have our own business cards?

You better! Does Goodyear rely on the sale of Vettes alone for business? No.

How do we handle phone calls (we say our company name and they say theirs)?

This question no longer seems relevant, does it?

We work in the same geographic area, should we attend networking events as our own company?

Definitely! Think of the Venn diagram. You will attract clients that for whatever reason, don't want to buy from your "new, best friend." Do you turn them away? Not me! Does this help? if not, let's talk. Jeff 'SKI' Kinsey, Jonah (330) 432-3533 www.throughput.us ©2010 Jeff 'SKI' Kinsey. All rights reserved. All known trademarks or service marks within this post are the property of their respective owners and have been properly capitalized.