Partner Co-Marketing Pitch
Pitch sent with mutual value framing. Brief signed by both sides on accepted activities. Post-activity results report shared with partner.
Before you start
- Approved partner pipeline with prioritization
- Co-marketing playbook with formats
- Mutual value framework
- Target partner with audience overlap analysis
- Proposed co-marketing format (webinar, content swap, joint study)
- Mutual value pitch
The steps
- Validate audience overlap — Analyze: their customer base, our customer base, how much overlap, how much addressable expansion. Co-marketing only works if both audiences benefit. If overlap is too tight, the activity reaches the same people; too loose, neither audience cares.
- Pick the right format — Match format to relationship stage: new partners → small (content swap, social cross-promo). Established partners → bigger (joint webinar, co-authored research). Don't propose a 12-week joint launch on first contact.
- Build a clear mutual value pitch — Frame: 'You get [X], we get [Y], audience gets [Z]'. Make their value explicit and front-loaded. Co-marketing fails when the pitch only describes our benefit.
- Identify the right contact — Co-marketing pitches go to marketing or partnerships, not to founders or sales. Find the right person via LinkedIn, mutual connections, or warm intro. Cold-emailing founders for co-marketing is rude and ineffective.
- Send the initial pitch — 100-150 words: 1-line on why us, 1-line on the format proposed, 2-3 lines on mutual value, 1-line CTA (15-min call to explore). Attach a 1-pager with details if helpful.
- Coordinate the activity if accepted — Define: timeline, deliverables, who owns what, distribution split, branding. Document in a shared brief. Both sides should sign off on scope before kickoff.
- Execute and report results — Run the activity per spec. Post-activity: share results with the partner — leads generated, audience reached, conversions. Specific results build trust for future partnerships.
If it goes wrong
Pitch ignored because mutual value isn't clear
Lead with their benefit, not ours. Re-read pitch from their perspective — would you respond? If no, rewrite.
Activity launches but distribution falls flat on partner side
Activate partner's promotion explicitly in the brief. 'Will you commit to 2 LinkedIn posts and 1 email blast?' Clarity prevents post-launch disappointment.
Joint activity produces results but one side does all the work
Workload balance is part of the brief. If they consistently underdeliver, evaluate whether to continue partnership.
All OpenLabor playbooks