The general idea of collaborative partnerships is that two heads are better than one when it comes to solving challenges. They are a great way to introduce your business to a new market, expand your business and referral networks and offer new products and services to your customers. Leveraging the strengths and abilities of others can also help fill your skill and capacity gaps so you can focus on what you do best.

While collaborative partnerships are an excellent way to grow your business, often the hardest part is developing them! Here’s my short guide on how to get started and make your collaborations effective so they work for you.

2 questions to ask yourself before starting a collaboration:

1. What is the purpose of the collaboration?

Think about what you’re trying to achieve with the relationship. What problem do you want to solve? Do you need a partner to take on some of your work overflow? Are you looking for a new product or service to increase sales?  Or you do want to reach a new market and need a partner who can open those doors for you?

Some partnerships are short-term while others are needed on an ongoing basis. For example, some simple wins include teaming up on events or promoting each other through your social media, blog or eNewsletters.

Longer-term collaborations include becoming referral partners, cost-sharing on things like office space, combining efforts to create new products and services or teaming up to market each other. For example, you may be a web developer and want to partner with a copy writer who will refer you when a website is required, and vice versa. Or you may be a mortgage broker and want to make it easy for your clients to access conveyancing services by partnering with a lawyer.

Being clear on what you are trying to accomplish makes it easier to find the right partner.

2. Who do you want to partner with?

Ultimately, a successful partnership adds value to your business and/or your customers and lowers costs. For this to happen, you need a partner that is interested in a mutual win-win relationship. Too often partnerships break down because of give and take; one partner is doing all the giving and the other, all the taking.

Find someone that shares your vision and values and is working toward a common shared goal. Another thing to think about is whether your products or services serve a similar audience. When your products or services are complimentary and both of you service a similar target market – that’s where the magic is.

Making the Connection

The next step is to connect with the right person. Start with your current network before you go looking elsewhere. You never know who you might find hiding in there. If you can’t find the right person, have a look in the Venus Business Directory and book in a rave with a member! Other sources included LinkedIn, Facebook and Google searches.

The best collaborations come from building good relationships first so some important things to think about:

1. Communication

Having open, honest communication is the backbone of all successful collaborations. It is important for everyone to be on the same page at all times. This may mean you have to schedule regular meetings, call each other on a regular basis, or use some form of interactive app such as Trello.

2. Plan Your Journey

Try to plan your journey as best as you can to iron out any potential problems you can envisage. It’s also a good idea to expect some hiccups along the way – we’ve found that things never quite go to plan.

3. What Success Looks Like

Stay clear on what a successful collaboration looks like to both parties. Sometimes, even with the best intent, partnerships don’t work out the way you had hoped. It’s okay to walk away.

An example of a great collaboration

Recently we’ve had a great collaboration! We hosted several Getting Started with Video workshops, developed and presented by Carrie Harman of Red Feet Video. Carrie is also a Venus member who we met on a virtual meeting during lockdown.

When we decided to collaborate on this project, we figured that:

• Video marketing is an incredibly powerful marketing tool.
• Our mutual ideal clients are business owners that are struggling to do their marketing and video creation.
• We both coach small business owners on how to overcome these struggles.

Once the synergies between our businesses became obvious, we then looked for the opportunity to work together. This happened this year, culminating in three workshops, hosted by us at our office in Christchurch. The attendees gave rave reviews and learned so much!

Teaming up with a business related to your industry is an excellent way for you to introduce your business to a whole new audience. Collaborations can help you solve challenges and fill gaps in your knowledge to help your customers, and vice versa. It’s a win-win situation for both parties, and your customers!

Find out more about how Lee Retimana and her team help their clients at: https://www.muritai.com

There is no magic formula for business growth.

Sure, certain guidelines make smart business sense universally, but every enterprise is unique and requires tailor-made strategies and skills.

However, there is one magic ingredient that transcends every niche and industry. Whether you are at day one of building your business or day 1000 of trying to maintain business growth, you need to be consistent.

But what exactly does consistency look like in business, and how can you make it easier to achieve? Read on to find out.

Consistency In Purpose

Your purpose is the backbone of everything you do in business. It shapes the way you work, your values and mission, your branding and voice. If your purpose is shaky or changes from day to day, your entire business will be built on wobbly foundations.

So, what is your why?

What is the reason you keep going? The reason you get up in the morning and embrace another day in business. Your purpose is such a personal thing and is different for every business owner. It could be your family, your kids, your passion, your love of helping people… anything that lights a fire in you.

Once you identify that purpose, it is easier to drive your business forward. A consistent purpose allows you to create a transparent business. It’s your true north that keeps you on track and focused on where you want to be.

Consistency In Branding And Messaging

Consistency is also vital when it comes to branding. In this overwhelming digital world, it is so easy for your business to be forgotten. Which is why we work so hard to be seen and remembered by our audience. Maintaining your visual branding is the key to this recognition.

But branding is so much more than just your logo. It’s the voice, tone, messaging, and feeling associated with your business.

Being consistent with how you talk to your audience, what kind of content you produce, and how you deliver on your promises shows that you are reliable and trustworthy.

Consistent Products And Services

Why do people go to McDonald’s? Whether you are a fast-food fan or not, you know that McDonald’s is going to provide you with quick, easy, familiar food that tastes the same whether you’re eating it in Otago or Okinawa.

You should be offering the same in your business.

No, I don’t mean upselling fries with every purchase! But, I do mean providing consistent customer service and high standards with every transaction. Your audience wants familiarity and consistency from what you offer – make sure you deliver.

Consistent Commitment

Every business owner thinks about throwing in the towel at some point or another. But those that succeed never stop showing up, even when they really want to stay in bed with the covers over their head!

It is so easy to make excuses. Easy to find a reason why you can’t do something that might be a little bit difficult or uncomfortable.

It is much harder to show up and do the mahi every day.

BUT, showing up and doing the mahi is what will deliver the results you want.

Ensuring consistency in your business is just as much about developing this same quality within yourself. Keep doing the work, keep showing up, and keep slogging on – even when it’s hard.

Just think, if you don’t start now you will be in the exact same place in a year’s time. So, don’t do it for today’s you, do it for next year’s you. She will thank you for it!

How To Maintain Consistency For Business Growth

Like any habit – good or bad – consistency takes practice. In business, it’s a reflection of your routines, how well you plan, and your determination to find success.

The plan comes first. Decide what your big goals are, then break them down into baby steps. The smaller and more achievable your plan feels, the less likely it is to become overwhelming. Make it easy for yourself to be consistent!

Keep your actions achievable. There’s no point running yourself into the ground to try and write two blog posts a week if it’s not sustainable in the long run.

Once you have your master plan broken down into weekly and daily to-do lists, find ways to support it. The goal isn’t to make your life hard – it’s to make those consistent actions a piece of cake! Think about what processes or systems you could implement to take care of key tasks – whether by using an app, delegating, or outsourcing some of the work.

Be accountable. This is often easier said than done. It’s far too easy to wriggle out of promises we make to ourselves, but much scarier to disappoint others! Find yourself a coach, a mentor, or some accountability buddies to help you hone that consistency habit.

Get some help. There are a million jobs to do in a small business. And if you want to grow, you can’t keep doing them all yourself. So, call in some help. You might choose to engage a VA, bookkeeper, or even a content writer to help you remain consistent with your vital business tasks.

The Beauty Of Consistency

Consistency is what keeps you showing up even when times are tough. It’s what gets your brand in front of the right people, and ultimately, your consistency will dictate your success. Start noticing where you are able to be consistent in your business and where you need to put in some work, then get to it! You will find the benefits flow through to other areas of your life.

A great place to start being consistent is with the marketing content you publish for your business. Grab my free resource which helps you generate consistent leads and sales across all of your marketing channels by using one key piece of content.

This piece was written by Gemma Knight from Gemma Knight Writes. Gemma is a content writer specialising in crafting blog, social media and newsletter content that is designed to promote and grow your business.