What is one top criterion for selecting the right strategic partners to help grow your business?

When you are looking for the right strategic partners to help grow your business, you all need to be in alignment with the goal of the partnership. Everyone must be clear about what is about to happen, why it is about to happen, and their role in the process of making it happen. Because when the clarity is missing, the confusion comes, which is usually the beginning of the end. So when the goals are clear and everyone is in alignment with the plans, then the execution of the purpose can be effective.

One of the most frequent things we hear when our clients are working with an advisor, is that they are simply overwhelmed with options and have little to no context on how it affects them individually. Advisors and strategic partners can have a great playbook, with all of the best tools in the war chest, but without an understanding of YOUR vision how can we expect them to offer anything more than generic options and choices? You are unique, embrace that and share your VISION often with those you trust. If they are truly out to help you grow, then let them celebrate that success with you by sharing their perspective and what they see in your business, in your industry and with other clients. Better than anything is a story with meaning, ask them for examples of how they have served others and why they are giving you the direction or choice at hand. A picture paints a thousand words, but a story has character, and each character can bring their own perspective to the journey.

A business partner who isn’t committed to your business isn’t a partner at all. It’s important, when selecting a partner, to identify someone who is interested in putting in the work and focusing on the business’ objectives over the long haul. While many potential partners can have a great deal of business acumen or technical knowledge, none of that matters if they aren’t willing to prioritize your business to the level that’s needed.

Strategic business partners should provide special access to unique opportunities. A growing business will not have the same professional connections that a more established potential partner would. Business operators should look for overlap with organizations that are connected to their industry and work to establish a relationship. Strategic partners can offer a growing business the type of access to services, suppliers and customer bases that will boost operations and productivity

Seek out business partners you admire that push you to grow and improve. The ideal business partners bring out the best in us by either challenging or encouraging us to give our best performances in our careers. For that reason, it’s worth reaching out to potential partners you admire to partner with you. Aim high–even if someone is unable to partner with you, it’s worth the shot, and it might open the door to a future partnership down the line.

One of the best ways to see whether or not a strategic partner is the right for you and your business is to measure them against your mission statement. When developing your identity as a business you should have crafted a clear and concise statement that includes your company's identity, values, and goals for the future. When you consider each business partner, try and see how they would fit within your goals and if they share the same values as your organization. If not, they might not be the best choice going forward.

A group of rookies looking to grow a business may seem like an exciting prospect, but if you’re looking for a partner to grow your fledgling business, you will likely need someone who has spent time in the trenches previously. Find out what that person did to grow their previous business or businesses. How successful has that person been and what was their role? Back up every claim the prospective partner makes by doing your own research. Verify everything. Proceed after everything checks out.

Structuring cooperation plans around synergies fosters cooperation as it is a win-win game for both partners. The search for those often relates to seeking horizontal or vertical integration opportunities. If there are businesses that often have complementary products or services which can't be developed internally, it's worth exploring a partnership. Similarly, if supply chain integration is possible, it can also unlock a synergy.

When forming a strategic partnership, be aware that the public opinion about your partner will also transfer to your brand. When choosing a partner, consider their brand image and values. For example, if your brand prides itself on sustainability, you wouldn't like to form a partnership with a brand that has received negative publicity around eco-friendliness. You want your partner's image to be appealing to your target market.

Select those who share your same vision for your business and are willing to invest in it. This also means that you should choose partners that can offer or show mutual respect. You should also look for someone with whom you have good chemistry, as this will help to foster collaboration and synergy.

The best strategic partners are those with whom you are not only business but also cultural match. Company culture and the values promoted play an essential role for any business as they shape and set the tone for all the company’s actions, along with goals and strategies chosen to achieve them. A right strategic partner can open a whole new world for a growing company. "Two heads are better than one", as the saying goes. More people means more knowledge and opportunities for growth. I firmly believe that the stronger alignment there is between your company and the target company’s values, the greater the chances to succeed.

Which business endeavors has this person been involved with in the past, and were they successful? If they were successful, what specific role did this person play in that success, and are those skills relevant to what I’m trying to accomplish? This is always the first litmus test for me when selecting business partners.

Before deciding on a collaboration sit down with the potential partner and discuss your desired outcomes. This should be an in depth conversation where you each gain an understanding of the other’s long term goals and decide if they are in line with one another. A skilled partner is not enough. Your future plans need to be in alignment with one another.

It is important to choose partners that have complementary goals and complementary skillsets. Another criterion is trustworthiness. It is important to choose partners that you can trust to follow through on their commitments and that you can rely on to act in your best interests.

When looking for the right strategic partner to help grow your business, reputation should be one of your top criteria. A reputable strategic partner will have a proven track record of success and will be able to provide referrals from satisfied clients. They will also be upfront and honest about their fees and costs, so you can be confident that there won’t be any hidden surprises down the line. Furthermore, a reputable partner will be transparent in their communication and expectations, so you know exactly what they’re expecting from the relationship.

If you want to partner up with another business or brand, choose one that is already established. I know podcast creators who have hooked up with big outlets after they got their projects off the ground. I know people who relied on social media to sell their unique products and then transitioned to a large retailer. In our case, we knew from the start that we wanted to partner up with Tony Robbins. He published a book on maximizing health at midlife and we named our company after the title of that book. We sell the tools that Tony outlines in his book. It has been a tremendous partnership. It was a wise move for us to turn to someone who has an established brand known around the world.

One must do correct and careful market valuation before looking for a strategic partner. A strategic partner might seek a certain percentage of your company’s stake to provide its services or assistance. So, if you haven’t done the right market value of the organization, you might end up giving off too less or too many shares. It’s very crucial for start-ups as giving up a high company stake can harm heavily in the long run. It also leads to loss of ownership in the long run. Get the facts straight at this front and look for a strategic partner that agrees to it. Use the partner to increase the company valuation.

While growing your business is incredibly exciting and thrilling, choosing the right strategic partners could be a bit daunting. It's incredibly important to make sure that you and your partners are all on the same page. Make sure everyone understands the goals and the methods of action to achieve those goals. There is a strong difference between bringing new ideas to the table and completely disagreeing on the direction of the business. Ensure that everyone understands what the end goal is and how you are going to get there to better alleviate any disagreements that might happen down the line.

Make sure not only that your business partners have certain skills to offer, but that you genuinely get along with them. Growing a business takes a lot of work, so you will be spending a lot of time with these people. How well you get along with your business partners can make a big difference in the morale of everyone involved. When everyone feels excited to work with one another, this will enhance productivity.

The perfect business partners provide skills which complement your own and add alternate perspectives. A business benefits from partners with a wide array of skills and knowledge-bases that can be paired to form an effective team. If you’re a skilled salesperson with an aggressive approach, it can be helpful to pair yourself with someone who is more cautious and thrives while performing a leadership role behind-the-scenes. That said, stacking existing skills isn’t always a bad idea, either. When multiple partners share the same skills and abilities they often find ways to improve the other.