How do I find partners to promote my website?

I run an application called CWVIQ.com that sends free email alerts for slow-loading websites.

I am still working on the right marketing strategy for this product, and among various things is cold outreach to potential subscribers ("do things that don't scale"!)

But I figure that it would scale faster if others talked about my product rather than me writing about it myself.

So, I am currently working on a plan to work with influential people in the industry (those with a sizeable email list, or social media following) where I will help them build links to their website in return for them promoting my site.

But there has not been a good response to my outreach. Is there someone who has done something like this? How did you go about finding the right partners for such a collaboration?