"We're excited to announce our strategic partnership with [BigTech Company]!"
The press release goes out. Both companies tweet it. Executives congratulate themselves on the partnership.
Six months later, the partnership has generated: 2 co-marketing webinars that got 30 attendees, 1 joint case study nobody reads, and zero co-sell pipeline.
This is partner theater. It looks like real partnership, but it's just logos on each other's websites.
Real partner marketing—the kind that drives co-sell pipeline, expands market reach, and creates mutual revenue—requires completely different thinking.
After managing partnerships at three B2B companies (one that generated $5M in partner-sourced ARR, two that generated nothing), here's what actually works.
The Three Types of Partnerships (And Which One Drives Revenue)
Type 1: Technology Integrations
What it is: Your product integrates with theirs.
Example: Your product integrates with Slack, HubSpot, Salesforce.
Marketing value: "Works with the tools you already use"
Revenue impact: Low to moderate (unless integration is table-stakes)
Why it often fails: Integration exists, but neither company actively promotes it or co-sells.
When it works: Integration solves real customer pain point and both companies market it.
Type 2: Referral Partnerships
What it is: Each company refers customers to the other.
Example: Design agency refers clients to your product, you refer customers needing design help to them.
Marketing value: Trusted recommendations from partners customers already work with
Revenue impact: Moderate (if partner has relevant customer base)
Why it often fails: Referrals are ad-hoc, no systematic process, no incentive alignment.
When it works: Clear referral process, incentives (revenue share or referral fees), mutual customer benefit.
Type 3: Co-Sell / Go-to-Market Partnerships
What it is: Both companies actively sell into each other's customer base or pursue joint deals.
Example: Consulting firm includes your product in client engagements, you resell their professional services.
Marketing value: Expanded market reach, joint value proposition
Revenue impact: High (if executed well)
Why it often fails: No aligned incentives, sales teams don't collaborate, marketing does joint webinars but sales doesn't follow through.
When it works: Clear co-sell motion, incentives for both sales teams, joint account mapping.
Most companies do Type 1 and call it partnership. Revenue comes from Type 3.
The Partner Selection Framework
Don't partner with everyone. Pick 3-5 strategic partners and go deep.
Question 1: Do they have access to your target customers?
Good partner: Sells to the same ICP (complementary product, not competitive)
Bad partner: Cool brand, but wrong customer base
Example:
- Good: If you sell to product marketers, partner with GTM tools, launch platforms, or PMM communities
- Bad: Partner with developer tools because "we're both SaaS"
Question 2: Is there a natural co-sell motion?
Good partner: Customers who buy from them need your product (or vice versa)
Bad partner: No logical reason for joint deals
Example:
- Good: CRM + email marketing tool (customers using CRM need email campaigns)
- Bad: CRM + graphic design tool (no natural connection)
Question 3: Will both sales teams actually co-sell?
Good partner: Incentives align, sales teams will actively work together
Bad partner: Partnership is marketing-only, sales teams ignore it
Test: Can you get 30 minutes with their Head of Sales to discuss co-sell motion? If not, partnership won't work.
Question 4: Is there executive sponsorship on both sides?
Good partner: VPs or C-level committed to making it work
Bad partner: Junior BD person managing partnership on their side
Reality check: Partnerships without exec sponsorship die within 6 months.
The Co-Marketing Playbook That Actually Drives Pipeline
Tactic 1: Joint Webinars (But Done Right)
Bad approach:
- Generic topic: "Best Practices for [Industry]"
- Each company presents their product for 20 minutes
- 40 attendees (mostly employees and existing customers)
- No follow-up, no pipeline
Good approach:
Topic: Solve a specific customer problem both products address together
Example: "How to Launch Products 50% Faster: Integrating [Your Tool] + [Partner Tool]"
Format:
- 10 min: Problem overview (neither company pitches yet)
- 25 min: Customer case study (customer presents, not you)
- 15 min: Live demo showing integrated workflow
- 10 min: Q&A
Promotion:
- Both companies promote to their lists (2-3 emails each)
- Targeted ads to joint ICP
- Goal: 200+ attendees (mostly prospects)
Follow-up:
- Segment attendees: existing customers vs. prospects
- Joint nurture sequence (5 emails over 3 weeks)
- Co-sell opportunity: each company's sales team reaches out to partner's prospects
- Track pipeline generated from webinar
Success metric: $200K+ in pipeline generated per webinar (sourced or influenced)
Tactic 2: Joint Case Studies
Bad approach:
- Generic customer uses both products
- Each company talks about their features
- No clear outcome or workflow shown
Good approach:
Customer: Uses both products in integrated workflow to achieve specific outcome
Story structure:
- Before: Customer's problem (requires both solutions to solve)
- Solution: How they implemented both tools together
- After: Quantified results (time saved, revenue increased)
- Integration: Specific workflows showing how products work together
Example: "How Acme Corp Reduced Launch Time by 60% Using Segment8 + [Partner Product]"
Distribution:
- Both companies publish on their sites
- Sales teams use in joint deals
- Email to both customer bases
- Paid promotion to target accounts
Success metric: Case study used in 20+ sales conversations in first 90 days
Tactic 3: Co-Branded Content (Gated Assets)
What to create:
- Ultimate guide to [topic both products address]
- Benchmark report (combine both companies' data)
- ROI calculator
- Implementation playbook
Example: "The Complete Guide to Product Launch Planning: Tools, Templates, and Best Practices"
Why it works:
- Higher perceived value than single-company content
- Both companies drive leads to it
- Captures leads for both companies
- Sales uses it in conversations
Distribution:
- Gated on both companies' websites
- Promoted to both email lists
- LinkedIn/social promotion
- Paid ads to joint ICP
Lead routing:
- Leads go to both companies
- Each company nurtures their portion
- Joint leads (interested in both) get co-sell treatment
Success metric: 500+ leads captured, 50+ sales conversations
Tactic 4: Integration Marketplace Listing
If you have a product integration:
Bad listing:
- "Segment8 integrates with [Partner]"
- Generic description
- No use cases or customer proof
Good listing:
- Specific workflow: "Send launch assets from Segment8 to [Partner] in one click"
- Customer testimonial: "[Company] saves 5 hours per launch using this integration"
- Setup guide: "Get started in 10 minutes"
- Co-marketing badge: "Featured partner"
Promotion:
- Partner includes you in their integration email campaigns
- You feature the integration in product onboarding
- Joint blog posts announcing new integration capabilities
Success metric: 20% of new customers activate integration within 30 days
The Co-Sell Motion That Actually Works
Co-marketing generates demand. Co-selling converts it to revenue.
The Partner Lead Flow
Step 1: Identify Joint Opportunities
Monthly or quarterly, both sales teams share:
- Open opportunities where partner product would add value
- Customers asking about integration or adjacent capabilities
- Target accounts both companies are pursuing
Format: Shared Airtable or CRM report
Step 2: Warm Introduction
Not: Cold email from partner sales rep
But: Your AE introduces partner AE to customer with context
Example: "Sarah mentioned you're looking for [capability partner provides]. I'd like to introduce you to our partner [Name] at [Company] who can help. They work with [similar customers] and I think they'd be a good fit. Would a 20-minute intro call make sense?"
Step 3: Joint Discovery or Demo
For qualified opportunities: Both AEs join discovery or demo call
Benefits:
- Customer sees integrated solution
- Both companies qualify opportunity
- Stronger value proposition than either alone
Step 4: Co-Close
If deal involves both products:
- Coordinated proposals
- Joint pricing (if bundled)
- Shared timeline and implementation
Revenue split: Defined upfront (who gets what % or how referral fees work)
Step 5: Track and Compensate
Critical: Both sales teams get credit for co-sell deals
Without proper incentives, co-selling dies.
Compensation models:
- Referral fee: Flat fee or % for successful referral
- Co-sell credit: Both AEs get quota credit for joint deal
- Revenue share: Split recurring revenue from joint customers
Measuring Partner Marketing Success
Don't measure press releases and webinars. Measure revenue.
Tier 1: Activity Metrics (Necessary But Not Sufficient)
- Webinars hosted: Target 2-4 per year per key partner
- Content assets created: 2-3 co-branded pieces per year
- Integration usage: % of customers using partner integration
Tier 2: Demand Gen Metrics
- Leads generated from partner campaigns
- MQLs from partner sources
- Webinar attendance (qualified prospects, not total)
Tier 3: Pipeline & Revenue Metrics (What Matters)
Partner-sourced revenue:
- Deals originated by partner referral
- Target: 10-15% of new ARR from partners
Partner-influenced revenue:
- Deals where partner involvement accelerated or expanded deal
- Target: 20-30% of deals have partner influence
Co-sell pipeline:
- Open opportunities being jointly pursued
- Target: $1M+ in co-sell pipeline per key partner
Integration attach rate:
- % of customers using partner integrations
- Target: 30%+ for key integrations
Customer retention:
- Customers using integrations have higher retention (measure lift)
Example targets for mature partner program:
- $5M in partner-sourced ARR annually
- $15M in partner-influenced pipeline
- 25% of new customers activate key integrations
- Customers using integrations have 20% higher retention
Common Partner Marketing Mistakes
Mistake 1: Too many partners
You announce 20 partnerships. None get real investment. All generate zero revenue.
Fix: Pick 3-5 strategic partners. Go deep. Measure results.
Mistake 2: Marketing-only partnership
Marketing does webinars and press releases. Sales teams don't co-sell.
Fix: Sales leader involvement from Day 1. Co-sell motion defined before co-marketing launches.
Mistake 3: No incentive alignment
Sales teams aren't compensated for co-sell. Partnership dies after initial launch.
Fix: Clear incentives (referral fees, quota credit, or revenue share).
Mistake 4: Announcement theater
Big press release, then nothing. No ongoing co-marketing or co-selling.
Fix: Treat partnership as ongoing program, not one-time event. Quarterly co-marketing plan.
Mistake 5: No measurement
You don't track partner-sourced revenue or pipeline. Can't prove ROI.
Fix: Tag partner-source deals in CRM. Report monthly on partner metrics.
The Uncomfortable Truth
Most partnerships exist because BD teams need to show activity. Executives like seeing logos on partnership pages. It looks strategic.
But if partnerships don't drive measurable revenue, they're a waste of time.
Signs your partnership is theater, not business:
- No sales team involvement
- No compensation for co-selling
- No co-sell pipeline being tracked
- Only activity is quarterly webinar that 40 people attend
Signs your partnership is real:
- Both sales teams actively co-sell
- Clear revenue attribution
- Customers using integrated workflows
- $1M+ in partner-sourced pipeline
The test: Can you point to 10 closed deals in the last 12 months that came from the partnership? If no, it's not a real partnership.
Focus on 3-5 partners. Measure revenue. Kill partnerships that don't generate results.
The best partner programs aren't the ones with 50 logos on the partner page. They're the ones with 5 partners that drive 20% of new revenue.
That's the difference between partner theater and partner-driven growth.