1. The Problem
Growth stalled at $2M ARR. You need distribution. Partnerships feel like a black box—mysterious, slow, and full of dead ends.
You've hit the ceiling. Your current channels maxed out. Sales team can't scale fast enough. Marketing budget doesn't stretch far enough. Everyone says 'you need partnerships' but nobody tells you how. So you send cold emails to potential partners. Maybe you get a call. Maybe you pitch your idea. Then... silence. Weeks go by. You follow up. They're 'still thinking about it.' Months later you realize: they were never going to say yes. You just didn't know how to create a deal they couldn't refuse.
6+ months per deal
Partnership cycle time
From first contact to signed agreement. Most deals die in month 3 when enthusiasm fades and nobody knows how to structure the win-win. You're stuck in endless 'exploring opportunities' purgatory.
80% fail rate
Partnerships that fizzle
You shake hands. You're excited. Then nothing happens. No integration. No co-marketing. No revenue. Because nobody defined success metrics, responsibilities, or timelines upfront. Just vague promises.
$500K+ lost
Opportunity cost annually
Every quarter without strategic partnerships is a quarter you're leaving money on the table. Your competitor just signed a deal with the platform you were 'talking to.' They'll do $2M through that channel this year. You'll do zero.
"We spent 8 months 'exploring' a partnership with a major platform. Had 12 calls. Built a demo integration. Then they ghosted us. Turned out they were never serious—we were just free R&D for their internal team's roadmap."
— VP Business Development, SaaS company, 7 years in partnerships
2. The 9 Building-Block Prompts
Example: 01-03: Identify & Research
I'm looking for strategic partnership opportunities for [YOUR COMPANY/PRODUCT]. Help me identify and research potential partners. Our company: [Brief description - what you do, who you serve, your unique value] Our goal: [What you want from partnerships - distribution, technology, market access, etc.] Our ideal customer: [Who buys from you] Generate: 1. PARTNER PROFILE: List 5 types of companies that would be ideal strategic partners (complementary products, shared audience, non-competing). For each type, explain why they're a fit and what value exchange makes sense. 2. TARGET LIST: Name 10 specific companies in those categories. Include company name, why they're a strong fit, estimated audience size/reach, and one unique insight about their business that shows you've done research. 3. RESEARCH BRIEF: For the top 3 targets, create a 1-page research brief covering: recent news, current partnerships, strategic initiatives, pain points we could solve, and decision-maker names (CEO, VP Partnerships, Head of BD). Format as structured markdown with clear sections. Be specific—no generic advice.
✅ Generated Output:
✅ Intro Paragraph:
PARTNER PROFILE: 1. **Project Management SaaS Platforms** - Why: Your analytics tool integrates seamlessly with PM software. Their users need better reporting. - Value Exchange: You get distribution to 50K+ teams. They get a premium feature that increases retention. - Examples: Asana, Monday.com, ClickUp 2. **Marketing Agencies (Mid-Market)** - Why: They need white-label analytics for client reporting. You need agencies selling your tool. - Value Exchange: You provide white-label version at 40% discount. They resell at markup and get recurring revenue. - Examples: Agencies serving 20-100 clients, $2M-$10M revenue 3. **Industry Associations / Communities** - Why: They have your exact target audience. You have a tool their members need. - Value Exchange: You sponsor their events/content. They promote you to 10K+ members as 'official partner.' - Examples: SaaS associations, industry-specific groups TARGET LIST: 1. **Asana** - 100K+ paying customers, just launched app marketplace, actively recruiting integration partners. Recent blog post about 'ecosystem expansion.' Contact: Head of Platform Partnerships. 2. **ClickUp** - Fast-growing PM tool, 2M+ users, aggressive about adding features. They don't have robust analytics. Opportunity: Fill a gap in their product. [...continues with 8 more specific targets with real insights...] RESEARCH BRIEF - ASANA: **Recent News:** Just raised $50M Series D. Announced 'Asana for Enterprise' tier targeting Fortune 500. **Current Partnerships:** Slack, Zoom, Salesforce integrations. Marketplace has 200+ apps but weak analytics category. **Strategic Initiative:** Expanding enterprise sales. Need tools that make Asana stickier for large teams. **Pain Point We Solve:** Enterprise customers want custom reporting across projects. Asana's native analytics are basic. We fill that gap. **Decision Makers:** - Sarah Chen, VP Platform & Partnerships (LinkedIn: 500+ connections, posts about ecosystem growth) - Mark Rodriguez, Head of Enterprise Sales (Would champion us internally if we help close deals) **Unique Insight:** Their Q3 earnings call mentioned 'expanding platform capabilities' 4 times. They're actively looking for partners. Timing is perfect.
✅ Meta Description:
Why this works: You can't pitch partnerships blind. This prompt does your homework—identifies WHO to target, WHY they'd care, and WHAT makes you valuable to them. It's the difference between 'Hey, wanna partner?' and 'I noticed you're expanding enterprise sales. Our analytics tool solves the #1 complaint your Fortune 500 prospects have about Asana's reporting. Here's how we'd integrate.' // Try it now: Fill in your company details. Run this prompt. Pick your top 3 targets. You now have a researched hit list instead of guessing. This is prompt 1 of 9—it sets up everything else.
3. Your 10-Minute Quick Win
Test the Partnership Playbook right now
Pick one potential partner. Run the first 3 prompts. You'll have a researched target and a pitch ready to send.
Don't wait to 'think about partnerships later.' Start now. Here's your 10-minute workflow to test if this playbook works for you.
Pick Your Target
Think of one company that could be a strategic partner. Complementary product? Shared audience? Non-competing but adjacent? Write down their name.
Run Prompt 1
Copy prompt 1 (Identify & Research) from the tab above. Fill in your company details and your target. Paste into ChatGPT or Claude. You'll get a research brief with insights about why they'd partner with you.
Run Prompt 2
Copy prompt 2 (Value Prop & Pitch). Use the insights from prompt 1 to fill in the context. Run it. You'll get a value proposition, 3 partnership models, and a ready-to-send outreach email.
Old Way
Guess at partnerships → 6+ months
- No research, generic pitches
- Unclear value proposition
- Deals die in 'exploring' phase
- 80% fail rate
Partnership Playbook
9 prompts → million-dollar deals
- Research-backed target list
- Win-win partnership structures
- Clear negotiation framework
- Specific outreach ready to send
By The Numbers
10 min
First Pitch Ready
9 prompts
Complete Playbook
$1M+
Partnership Revenue Potential
Want This Running Automatically?
Imagine a system that researches partners, generates pitches, and tracks every deal—all running 24/7 while you focus on closing.