As a software product or SaaS company, that is ready to approach a number of potential partner companies, you want to create a list of potential partners.
Whether you buy a list, or you generate your own list:
- how do you assess each of the companies on your list to prioritise according to best fit to be a partner
- What was your Target Partner Profile definition that you will use to generate the list?
- Within your partner profile, what criteria defines how you evaluate and prioritise your partner list?
On a 3-pass research approach, what is your Pass 1 criteria?
- The information to be gathered by the researchers from publicly available sources? The companies’ websites, LinkedIn and general web search.
Pass 1: Your list meeting basic criteria
Research, or buy, a list companies to meet the base criteria of solutions, services, business type, region and size.
Pass 1 research can be carried out by a researcher, or sourced from a database, based on a clear target partner profile and criteria.
Pass 2: Qualify according to the first three Partner Fit Evaluation criteria:
1. Customers & Decision Makers Fit:
• To determine to what extent your proposition fits in PartnerCO current customers focus.
• To determine to how fast PartnerCO can validate your proposition within their network and start generating business together
How much of their business focus is on the right customers and decision makers to suit your business?
You can eliminate companies at this stage, if they fail to meet Customers & Decision Makers Fit.
2. Current Product & Services Fit:
• To determine PartnerCO’s current capabilities and immediate value potential in working with your solution?
Is PartnerCo selling complimentary solutions and services that your solution would fit in with?
Does PartnerCo they have the relevant technical capabilities to deliver for and support your customers?
3. Marketing & Sales Fit:
• To determine PartnerCO customer acquisition approach, and whether your proposition, approach and materials would fit with this mix.
How does PartnerCo expand business with their existing customers, and how would your proposition fit?
How does PartnerCo typically win new customers, with what type marketing and sales activities, and how would your proposition work within this?
Pass 3: Gather contact details
And the final pass is to gather the contact details for top ranking prospective partner companies.
Now you have your shortlist of target partner companies.
The next step is to contact them, as long as you have prepared your partner proposition and pitch.
This topic, Partner Pre-Qualification, was highlighted as a priority from our recent survey. Join the survey. Free materials for respondants, Submit Your Priorities Here.
To learn more about Partner Fit Evaluation read more here: The Biggest Mistake when Starting a Partner Relationship: Poor Partner Fit Evaluation – Mistake #10 – Tenego Partnering