Forming a partnership in business can bring many advantages. Picture licensed under Creative Commons.

No matter the industry you work in, or the mission and values you have for your business, collaboration is something that can add a whole lot of value to what you do, and even push your operations to the next level. The connections you are able to form and the way you choose to leverage the insights they bring, are where your opportunity really lies. Of course, working collaboratively also requires compromise and a lot of effort – the thought of which can be enough to push an already stretched entrepreneur away. But the value you will derive from the right one will more than make it worth your while. Here are just a few reasons why it’s the best thing you can do for your business.

Do It For The Inspiration

Remember the feeling you had when you first started your business? When you felt full of fire and passion for what you were doing and couldn’t wait to tell and convince others? Despite the hard work and many stresses, there is definitely an addictive buzz to striking out on your own and starting up your company. Yet, somewhere along the line, that feeling can get diluted. Perhaps it’s the long hours spent trying to part investors with their cash. Maybe it’s all the admin and routine tasks that are just as much a part of everyday business as the high of winning a new client. Either way, you can wake up one day and find that the shine has gone off your venture. Collaborations are a great way ro put it back. Working closely with another company that inspires you and winning over a new audience can remind you why you fell in love with an idea in the first place. Our ideas can become a little fixed, and working with some new influences can challenge our thinking and inspire us to embrace new processes. A fresh perspective can be extremely valuable, and communicating with your business partners really opens you up.

Do It For The Contacts

Carrying out a collaboration can also be good for your contacts book as well. Growing your business means constantly making new contacts – suppliers, funders, clients – and by teaming up another business you instantly double your network and the audience you can reach. Becoming well known can be a pretty relentless process, so partnering with an organisation that has a complementary offer is an easy fix. You’ll get your name out there and gain some new contacts – and who knows where that could lead?

Seeing things from a different perspective can be incredibly rewarding. Image licensed under Creative Commons.

Do It For The Savings

You may already have known that collaborating on a project might re-energise your business, but have you considered the money it might save you? It may not just be people and knowledge that you share, but expenses too. In fact, collaboration may mean that you become able to explore possibilities which cost prohibited before. The price of developing a new product or service and then marketing that can be considerable. You may need to hire in specialists to launch your product, such as sector specific PR agencies or experts to optimize web copy, such as Calibre, SEO Agency London, and that can all add up.

Working together is a strong way to overcome that- make it part of your terms to share the development costs equally and you could be looking at double the budget available and half the costs. Making double the return through appealing to two sets of customers is another big plus, and you get two businesses equally invested in a positive outcome, if you use your negotiation skills right.

Do It To Solve Problems

Leveraging the power of numbers is also something you can bring to bear on the problem solving process. Collaborating instantly doubles the resources at your disposal – and this includes brain power. Each company will also bring different experiences to the table, which can really move the creative process along. Put partners can act as a sounding board, helping and encouraging us to work out any barriers to what you’re trying to achieve.

Do It For The Learning Opportunity

There’s always something new to learn when you begin working collaboratively with another company. Breaking outside of your usual circle to gain some knowledge can be incredibly rewarding, both personally and for your company- as well as ticking some boxes for Continued Professional Development.

So as you can see, there is a broad range of reasons why you should be seeking out other companies to partner- for your sake and their own. Think laterally, brush up your negotiation skills and scan the horizon for likely contacts – and all these business benefits could be yours.

+++ Collaborative Post +++