Sales and partnerships can be a powerful combination to explore new business opportunities. When these two collaborate with each other, you can create a successful business model that is both efficient and profitable. Unfortunately, many businesses don’t take advantage of this synergy and miss out on the potential benefits.

For sales and partnerships to work better together, businesses need to start by breaking down the roles and responsibilities between these two departments. Too often, sales and partnerships are seen as competing interests, with each side trying to outdo the other. However, if both departments are able to see the bigger picture and work together towards common goals, they can complement each other perfectly.

In this blog post, we’ll explore how sales and partnerships can better work closely together and share tips on making your sales and partnership efforts more successful. Ready to learn all about it? Let’s dive in!

What to expect:

1. Working with your Partners
2. Working with your Sales Team
3. Sales Networking and Getting Referrals
4. Building a Successful Sales Process
5. Accelerate your Career with Partnerships

Working with your Partners

Most sales reps misunderstand the value of partnerships. It’s not about “easier” sales, an after-thought strategy, or throwing your calendar link at an introduction. It’s about moving through a joint message of value for the end client.

In working with your partner team, you will:

• Get more referrals
• Hit and exceed your numbers
• Lean into the true nature of relationship building
• Increase the chance of client success (fewer claw-backs)

A sales partner could be your next automated warm lead source (and these leads are almost always better than leads from your marketing efforts). They can help you generate leads through word-of-mouth and referrals, which are both extremely effective means of marketing.

And since they’re already familiar with your product or service, they’ll be able to provide valuable insights that you can use to improve your offering. So rather than chasing after the latest shiny object, shift your focus on building strong relationships with sales partners and be your own outlier! It’s a strategy that’s sure to pay off in the long run.

Working with your Sales Team

The key to achieving (and exceeding) revenue targets is when two teams work together to build successful partnerships. And when it comes to co-selling with partners, that cross-departmental mentality is essential. After all, you’re not just representing your own company — you’re also representing your partner’s company. So it’s important for teams to work together seamlessly, sharing information and leads to benefit both parties.

Trying to increase sales can feel like a never-ending battle. You want more leads but don’t want to waste time on unqualified prospects. And even when you do find qualified leads, converting them into customers can be challenging.

The key to career growth and generating new sales is to continuously improve your sales skills. However, with the vast array of sales strategies and techniques out there, it can be difficult to know where to start. If only there was a simple, step-by-step guide that salespeople could follow to close more deals. Oh wait — there is!

Here’s an extremely simple strategy to get more leads in 6 steps:

1. Find a complementary brand in your space (not a competitor)

A complementary brand doesn’t directly compete with your own but shares a similar customer base, product, or service. For example, if you sell office supplies, a complementary brand might be a company that sells office furniture. You can reach a wider audience and generate more leads by working with a complementary brand.

Plus, it’s always good to have friends in the business world. So next time your sales team struggles, think about reaching out to a complementary brand with a shared vision. It could be just the boost your business needs.

2. Build relationships with your partner’s Account Executives

Account Executives are the ones who are responsible for maintaining relationships with clients, so they’re a valuable resource for information about what clients need and want. They’re also usually the ones with the most experience dealing with objections and closing deals.

So, if you can build a good relationship with your partner’s Account Executives, you’ll be in a great position to learn from them and get an understanding of what it takes to succeed in sales. Pair that with building a good relationship with your own Account Executives, and you’ll be able to connect the dots of customer or prospect conversations you’re having on your side with the ones your partner has.

3. Learn about your partner’s solution and pains solved

It is important that you learn about the solutions they offer and the pains they solve. This way, you can be sure that you are offering the right solution to your customers. You will be able to better understand the challenges your sales team faces and how to best support them.

By learning about their approach to solving pains, you will be able to build a strong relationship with them and ensure that you are providing the best possible services and solutions to your customers.

When working with a partner, speaking about your own process will help align with your partner’s processes. When it comes time to co-sell with your partner, there will thus be less friction in understanding the needs of both sides, making the co-selling process run smoothly.

4. Ask 5 current clients about these pains

What would make their customer experience better? How can your partner fill in the gaps or add additional value to them? Asking questions is a great way to show that you care about your existing customers and their experience with your product or service. It also gives you valuable customer insights that you can use to improve your business.

In the partnership, this will give you a good understanding of how relevant the partner’s solution is to your existing clients. This is also a good practice, in general, to better understand your client base.

5. Refer this client to your new best friend

Sales opportunities don’t just pop up out of thin air – they’re the result of efficient communication and collaboration. And while it’s important to have a solid sales enablement plan in place, it’s just as important to ask your current clients about their pain points.

When you uncover new pain points of your existing clients, you then have an opportunity to be their hero. By referring them to your new partner, you not only help your client get a win, but your partner gets a win too. This is the best way to start a new relationship and enhance an existing one.

6. Ask your new best friend if they know anyone who may have X pain you solve for

See, you instantly double your sales opportunities when you have a partner. And with twice the sales come twice the leads and twice the conversions. But that’s not all a partner brings to the table. They also bring their own entire sales force – meaning they help you close more deals by providing valuable insights, resources, and support.

Because you have given to your partner first, this will show good faith and build immense trust. When you ask your partner after giving, they’re more likely to give back. So ask your partner for a potential introduction.

Sales Networking and Getting Referrals

A lot of people think networking is hard. They go to big events, shake a lot of hands, and collect a bunch of business cards – only to find that they don’t have any real connections when they need them. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

In sales, your network is your net worth. Here’s how you can create a better network and get referrals in sales:

1. Set aside 30 minutes on Friday afternoons

Set a time each week to reach out to your network. Fridays are when people are typically winding down from the week and are more likely to have time for a conversation. This can be done via email, social media, or even in person if you have the time. 

2. Search for “[your industry] software brands”

By searching for software brands within your industry, you can find potential referral sources to which you may not have otherwise had access. These brands usually provide solutions to the same type of customer you’re trying to reach.

3. Find 3-5 people from these companies

For example, search for “marketing” and “sales” on LinkedIn if you sell marketing and sales software. Then, start following the companies and connecting with their employees. By taking a targeted approach to networking, you can make the most of your time and increase your chances of making valuable connections.

4. Reach out to each with a unique direct message

Introducing yourself to potential partners and explaining why you would be a good fit for their company is a great start, but you need to make a way to ensure that your message stands out. A persuasive message will grab their attention and make them more likely to reach out to you. So, before you start networking, take some time to craft the MVP (not perfect!) message. You’ll be glad you did when you start getting referrals!

5. Tell them, “I want to introduce you to my clients”

Tell them flat-out that you want to send them leads. It sounds simple, but this approach has two major benefits: first, you’re upfront about your motives, which builds trust, and second, you’re offering something of value — leads — which makes it more likely that they’ll be receptive to your message. 

6. Ask for time to talk live

This will show that you’re interested in building a partner relationship, not just collecting business cards. Plus, it’s a great way to get to know someone beyond small talk. When you’re ready to ask for a referral, be specific about who you’re looking for and why you think they would be a good fit. 

If you’re deliberate about it, you can make meeting one new person a part of your weekly routine. Voila! You have a new lead source. And if you do that for four months, you’ll have 16 new lead sources. That’s more than enough to keep your pipeline full. 

Plus, if you share this framework with them, they’ll be able to do the same thing. And if everyone on your team does it, you’ll have x9000 the number of lead sources. So don’t be afraid to reach out and meet new people! It’s the best way to grow your network.

Building a successful sales process for referrals

One of the best places to start is by learning about your top clients’ businesses. What are their biggest challenges? What solutions have they implemented that have been successful? By understanding their business pains and needs, you’ll be in a much better position to offer them products and services that can help them succeed.

In addition, reaching out to your top clients is also a great way to build or strengthen relationships. It’s an opportunity to show them that you’re interested in their business and that you’re willing to go the extra mile to help them succeed. And who knows, they may even be open to discussing upsells or renewals!

So if you’re looking to boost your business, start by reaching out to your top clients and learning about their businesses. You may be surprised at what you can accomplish.

Accelerate your Career with Partnerships

Are you an SDR, BDR, or XDR looking to accelerate your career? Be a change-maker! The key is in partnerships.

Dedicate 10% of your outreach to speaking with potential partners. You’re the tip of the spear for the company; you know your ICP (Ideal Customer Profile) and client problems best. Here’s a list of potential partners you could reach out to:

• Agencies
• Consultants
• Blogs in your niche
• Brands in your niche
• Communities in your niche
• A technology company you already integrate with

Put on that curiosity cap and learn about their business goals. How does it align with the problems you solve? What introductions do you think you could make? You’re not selling to these people — you could introduce them to your partner sales team, marketing team, or your AE (think Friday afternoon discussions).

BD Paths’ Takeaway:

We’ve all been there: scrambling to make our daily, weekly, and monthly numbers. It’s the nature of sales. But what if there was a way to work smarter, not harder? To increase your “call-to-demo” ratio and close more deals with less work? Sounds like a pipe dream, but it isn’t. The answer is simple: referrals.

When you receive a referral from a mutual connection, you are instantly more credible in the eyes of your potential client. They are more likely to pick up the phone when you call and say yes to a demo. And the best part? It isn’t that hard to get referrals. You simply need to be meeting new people and network regularly.

If you meet 3-5 new people a week and send them one referral, chances are they will do the same for you. Suddenly, you have 10-20 warm introductions per month — that’s an increase of 400%! And with those numbers, you’re sure to close more deals and easily reach your quotas.

So next time you’re feeling stressed about making your numbers, remember that 1+1=3 in this equation. Partnerships can make your life (and your AEs’ lives) much easier. Warm leads are out there; you just need to start the relationship — and you’re the expert on that.