Whether it is worth it.
WHAT TO MEASURE
Revenue generated Margin after any share paid Customers acquired Cost of managing the relationship Time consumed
WHY TIME SPECIFICALLY
It is the largest unmeasured cost of partnerships.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH
What was expected, before starting.
WHY
Without it, any result appears acceptable.
WHAT TO COMPARE
Actual against expected This partnership against others Partnership revenue against direct revenue
WHY AGAINST DIRECT
The same effort applied directly may produce more.
WHAT TO ASSESS BEYOND REVENUE
Credibility gained Capability learned Market access established Customers who would not otherwise be reachable
WHY
Some partnerships are worth more than their direct revenue.
WHAT TO EXAMINE
Whether customers acquired through partners behave differently.
WHAT TO LOOK AT
Their retention Their margin Their support cost
WHY
Partner-acquired customers frequently differ from direct ones.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH
Whether the arrangement is producing at an acceptable rate.
WHAT TO DO ABOUT PARTNERSHIPS PRODUCING LITTLE
Establish why, address it, and set a point for decision.
WHAT TO AVOID
Continuing indefinitely out of relationship rather than result.
WHY
It consumes attention that better arrangements would repay.
WHAT TO REVIEW
The whole set of partnerships, periodically.
WHAT TO ASK
Which would you enter again today.
