How to Plan a Brand Collaboration: 10 Easy Steps to Follow

Brand collaborations aren't something new in the corporate world. Businesses often partner with other players in their respective industries to amplify their reach and connect with new customers.

Collaborating with other brands helps businesses generate new leads for the sales funnel and explore new opportunities to generate revenue.

Sometimes, this is the only way to compete with industry giants. Through collaborations, businesses not only share relevant knowledge but also their resources to make the most of their efforts.

They join forces to achieve set goals and keep the needle moving through their combined efforts.

However, planning a brand collaboration may be daunting, especially for businesses that have just gotten started.

Here are a few easy steps to get you started:

1. Know What You Want

The first thing you should do when planning a brand collaboration is to define and set your goals clearly.

You should have a clear idea of what you want from a collaboration, as it helps you convince your potential partners.

Setting clear goals allows you to keep an eye on the ball at all times and steer your efforts in the right direction.

Plus, defining your objectives from the get-go minimizes the possibility of a conflict down the road among the key stakeholders.

2. Find the Right Partners

Once you know what you want, the next step is identifying the best-suited partners for the collaboration.

This may require extensive research. Plus, you may have to leverage your network or connections in the industry to find the right partners.

The goal here is to find brands whose values and goals coincide with yours. They may target the same or different niches. But they should bring something of value to the table, and the same goes for you.

This is the only way a potential collaboration may help you generate traction and make it possible for you to explore revenue-generating opportunities.

3. Reach Out

Once you've found potential partners, the next step is reaching out to them with your invitation for a collaboration.

There are many ways you can do that. However, it's best to send them an email or make a call to discuss the proposition first.

This saves time for you and them. Plus, it will help you shortlist potential partners based on what they have to offer and their level of interest.

4. Make It Official

Once you've found the right partner(s) for collaboration, the next step is drafting an agreement that is to be signed by concerned stakeholders.

The agreement should clearly state the terms and conditions of the collaboration and cover the expectations of the parties involved.

This will not only make things official but also minimize the likelihood of you facing any legal consequences if things go wrong.

5. Devise a Plan

Once you've signed an agreement with your potential partner(s), the next step is devising a well-thought-out plan for the collaboration to work.

Your goal here is to stand out from the competition in your respective industry and get more eyeballs. So, you should take calculated steps and minimize the possibility of errors as best you can.

This will not only help you achieve the set goals but also maintain a good relationship with your partner(s) in the long run.

6. Define Key Deliverables

Once you've come up with a well-thought-out plan, the next step is defining the key deliverables to fuel the collaboration.

This will help you know whether or not your efforts are paying off and if the collaboration meets the set expectations.

So, not only should you define collaboration goals and clearly state the purpose, but also specify the timeline and expected outcomes.

At the end of the collaboration tenure, this helps you know whether or not you made the right call by collaborating with a particular brand.

7. Create a To-Do List

After defining the key deliverables, you should create a to-do list, splitting objectives into tasks that are to be performed by concerned parties.

Whether you announce new products, plan marketing campaigns, create content together, promote your solutions, or host events, all tasks supporting the collaboration should be clearly listed.

This will not only maximize your efficiency but also ensure that you are moving in the right direction.

8. Define Responsibilities

After you have created a to-do list, the next step is defining responsibilities. This encompasses the things each party is required to do to ensure the success of the collaboration.

Furthermore, this step also covers the allocation of resources. When you collaborate with a brand, you get to leverage the resources of your partner, and vice versa.

It's essential that you clearly discuss these things beforehand and agree upon the resources to be shared or received by the concerned parties.

9. Track Your Progress

When you collaborate with a brand, it's important to keep tracking your progress. This helps you ensure that you're on the right track and makes it possible for you to achieve your goals.

When you track your progress, it becomes easier to identify roadblocks and come up with the best-suited countermeasures.

So, always keep an eye on how things are going when it comes to growing your business via brand collaborations.

10. Assess the Collaboration

When the defined term for a collaboration comes to an end, gather the data that resonates with your key performance indicators to assess the collaboration.

This helps you conclude whether the collaboration served as an excellent growth hack or failed to meet your expectations.

This paves the way for you to make your future collaborations work and helps you avoid things that led to poor outcomes in the past.

It's a Wrap

There you have it: ten easy steps to plan a brand collaboration. If you have been thinking about joining hands with other players in your respective industry and growing by leaps and bounds, following the steps in this article may get you started in no time.