Do Strategic Business Partners Help Sales?

Many firms hope to partner their way to more revenue. Sign-up business partners, roll them into your operating model and they will become an extension of your sales team, reducing your sales costs and creating an inbound flood of qualified leads.

But, this goal is seldom a reality.

Strategic partnerships are not the catch-all for firms of any size. They take work, require a measured ROI evaluation, and a mutual commitment for the partner and your team to succeed.

As more and more purchase relationships are being consolidated, it becomes even more important for firms to align themselves with strategic partners who can help you penetrate key accounts.

Yes, at times non-revenue producing strategic partnerships can create prospect credibility. But, like any investment your firm makes, strategic partnerships at some point, must produce revenue.

If it doesn’t, you are wasting time and funding.

10 Questions to Decide If Your Strategic Business Partners
Help Your Sales Team

Here is a quick 10-question survey to judge your firm’s success with your strategic partners:

1. Have any of your strategic partners introduced you to one of their partners?
   Yes • No
2. Do you have a manager who is dedicated (full-time) to strategic partners?
   Yes • No
3. Does the manager(s) in your firm who is responsible for strategic partner relationships get paid on partner revenue?
   Yes • No
4. Does your firm have less than six strategic partners per channel manager?
   Yes • No
5. Does your firm receive 5 qualified senior management leads per quarter, per salesperson from every strategic partner?
   Yes • No
6. Does your firm measure ROI on strategic partner relationships?
   Yes • No
7. Does your firm’s strategic partner manager(s) have a sales quota they are responsible for?
   Yes • No
8. Does your strategic partner contact your firm once a week to discuss opportunities?
   Yes • No
9. During the last year, has your firm sold five deals from strategic partner leads?
   Yes • No
10. Does your strategic partner train your salespeople regularly on how to sell their service or product?
    Yes • No

Key Code: Give yourself 10% for each YES answer. If you score less than 60%, maybe should reconsider your relationship with your partner.

Remember, strategic partnerships are not revenue; Revenue is revenue!