Let’s face it, cold calling is hard but throw in a global pandemic, and it’s even harder. If you want to gain access into key accounts, focusing on your partners is time well spent. However, getting your partners to the point of sending you qualified leads takes a lot of work. If you feel like you aren’t getting enough partner leads or those partner leads aren’t the Glengarry leads you’re looking for, it’s time to develop a strong partner mindset.
Your Partners are Your Best Prospects
Cassandra Gholston, our CEO at PartnerTap, always tells salespeople that it’s best to, “think of your partners as your best prospects.” Your partners are the gateway into multiple accounts. They can provide highly sought-after qualified leads with high-ticket sales. Focusing on gaining access to key accounts through partner introductions is like fishing with a net as opposed to fishing with a spear.
You want to cast a wide net to get as many valuable leads as possible. Now, think about how you would treat your best prospect. That is exactly how you should treat your partners. It’s important that you develop your partner relationships and aim to turn new partners into your coveted top partners. Top partners send you partner leads on a regular basis. These relationships take a while to nurture and mature into a source of qualified leads. Focus on constantly building trust and staying focused on the long game.
Partnerships are long-term investments, if you keep nurturing the relationship, it will pay dividends in the end. Some partners take longer to cultivate and that’s ok because the business outcome of qualified leads is worth it in the end.
Generate More Glengarry Leads for Your Partner
If you are looking for partners that generate more Glengarry leads, you yourself need to generate qualified leads for your partner. Developing a partner mindset starts with reciprocity. Try to focus on ways to generate qualified pipeline, get wins, and drive revenue for your partner. Spend time learning about their business. Also, listen carefully during your own sales calls for queues where your partner’s products and services would add value to your customers and prospects. Then you can send those leads to your partner.
As you bring your partner more leads and they start closing deals, your relationship will grow stronger. A good partner will help you in return by introducing you to their customers and key accounts. If you start feeling like your relationship is one-sided (e.g. you’re doing all the lead sharing, and you aren’t receiving any leads in return), it’s okay to let your partner know. Recount examples of leads you’ve sent them and let them know you expect the same in return. If they still aren’t providing any leads, it may be time to focus on a different partner in the same industry.
Always Focus on Building Your Partner Funnel (It’s Like a Sales Funnel)
You always have to be finding and cultivating new partners and moving them through a partner funnel. The funnel is really important. The number one rule of a partner funnel is to always fill it with new potential partners. The likelihood that your partner stays in the same role for years is quite low. On the contrary, people are always changing companies or being promoted. That’s why you should take the time to meet with new potential partners so you replenish your stock of partners.
Consistently meet with your partners, build relationships, and move them along the funnel to top partner status. Some partners won’t make it to top partner status. That’s okay, you can move on and focus your attention elsewhere.
An efficient partner funnel is made up of three stages. Stage One, or the top of the funnel, is all of your potential partners that you have scheduled an introduction with. Once you start to meet with these prospective partners, you can move them down to the second stage of the funnel.
The middle of the funnel is Stage Two: Partner Meetings. This stage is for all the partners that you communicate with regularly. During these exchanges, you want to get a feel for your partner. Find out about their business. Find out if they have prospect and customer overlap with you. Is this person a potential top partner?
The final stage is Top Partners, this is the stage where you are consistently receiving qualified Glengarry leads from these partners. Remember that not everyone makes it to top partner status. It is better to walk away from a time-wasting relationship and focus your energy elsewhere.
Build a Lasting Relationship
If both you and your partner are referring more Glengarry leads to each other, then this is a top partner relationship. These are the partners who reside at the bottom of your funnel because they help generate pipeline. The goal is to build a lasting relationship with these people. They can continue to help you throughout your career. You might work for several different companies, but your partner relationships oftentimes are still valuable.
If you remain in the same industry, the contacts that you’ve built will continue to give you more partner leads. Remember, you’re thinking about the long game when you are working with partners. As salespeople, we have the ability to read people extremely well. When you feel like someone is out for themselves in a partnership, leave them in the dust. So, be authentic, build trust, and turn that relationship into a valuable friendship.
Once you’ve built a network of top partners you should maintain contact and keep referring deals to them. More deals will come your way if you approach your partners with a strong partner mindset.
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