We all know that business is competitive,but we should also know that there are waysto maximize your business assets by creatingstrategic alliances with other businesses byteaming up.
It’s important to understand thatcompetition has a new look in the 21stcentury. Today, customers and potentialcustomers, both individuals and agencies,have a world of choice. Customers poseever–changing demands; they expectquality, service, lower cost, and speed—andbusinesses must respond in equally dynamicways.
Teaming up is one solution. Teamingup is about creating mutually beneficialrelationships; it’s about shifting fromcompetition and self reliance to cooperationand interdependence. Some think thatteaming up is a desperate response toshrinking revenue or a smaller client base, butit’s really about working smarter and stronger.
Teaming can be accomplished at variouslevels, ranging from simple, informalrelationships to complex, formal ones. Pauland Sarah Edwards, in Teaming Up (1997),identify a broad spectrum of mutuallybeneficialbusiness relationships. Networkingrequires the least involvement and retainsthe greatest autonomy; mutual referrals are aslightly more involved team relationship; andcross promoting represents perhaps the bestknownteaming strategy. Further along thespectrum we find interdependent alliances,joint ventures, satellite subcontracting,consortiums, collaborations, partnerships,and corporations. Each of these has pros andcons, so it’s crucial to develop a game planwith agreement at all levels and at all stepsalong the way.
When businesses recognize the valueof working in tandem, they leverage theirpotential in key ways. For example:
- Recently, two radically different ventures—soft drink Dr. Pepper and rock band Guns ’n’ Roses—cross promoted one another. You could go to Dr. Pepper’s web site and listen to Guns ’n’ Roses to receive a free soft drink. It’s a marketing gimmick that still has Madison Avenue (and more important Main Street) buzzing.
- The other day my salon sent me a mailer with information about another business that focuses on makeup and jewelry. Cross promotion can give you quick access to natural and receptive markets.
- In October the City of San Antonio approved the 2008–2009 towing services contract, a major transaction. One firm, Carolyn Montoya’s Associated Towing Team, joined forces with seven companies to be awarded a contract for one of the city’s largest zones. The group decided that by working together, they would be strategically positioned to seal the deal.
Teaming up doesn’t eliminate competition,but it does position businesses for anexpanded range contracts, clients, and othergrowth opportunities. For advice on teaming,e–mail cpena@stwbc.com or call us at210.207.0117.
