Partnerize CMO Jim Nichols has published a byline in MarTech Advisor that discusses the ways in which partnerships can be excellent tools for customer acquisition. The three keys to success are leveraging first-party data, judicious partner selection, and creativity. Here is an excerpt from Jim’s article:
Every brand has its own goals and needs. For some brands, multimillion-person customer bases have already been established. The challenge is to encourage them to make more purchases from you rather than the folks down the street. For many other brands, though, marketers are tasked with dramatically increasing their customer bases — to get “new to file” or “net new buyers” transact for the first time.
Most of these marketers understand that pay-for-performance partnerships are an extremely efficient and scalable way to drive transactions. What they sometimes don’t know is that well-crafted partnerships can also be outstanding tools for acquisition. The keys are in leveraging first-party data, judicious partner selection, and creativity.
Data as a Foundation for Acquisition-Focused Partnerships
Your first-party customer insights can empower marketing programs that target exactly the users you choose. Many of the largest and most sophisticated media, affiliate, and loyalty community partners are built on outstanding targeting tools based on rich insights about logged-in users. It’s important to recognize that privacy laws and regulations vary around the world. But in many regions, you can collaborate with a partner to ensure that they deliver messages and offers only to those users that have never purchased from you before. You can also work with your partners closely, so they understand the sorts of people who are most likely to respond to your brand and messages, so they further pinpoint their program efforts.
Some companies are reticent to share much data with partners, and it is important to research the business practices and reputations of potential partners before you open your kimono. Further, it’s also important to be fastidious about what you share and don’t share. But many leading brands have done their homework and are now reaping the benefits of this approach to driving up customer acquisition counts.
Choosing the Right Partners to Drive Acquisition
Other partners may not have those sorts of sophisticated data and targeting capabilities, but don’t automatically rule them out. Instead, look for partners that are likely to attract user cohorts that are not part of your typical ad and other targeting. For example, if your typical customer is 40, you may be able to drive massive trial from sites that cater to Gen Y.
Read the rest of the article in MarTech Advisor.
