5 Steps (and 3 Pitfalls) for Building Strategic Corporate Partnerships

[Editor's note: This is part 2 of a four-part series on the session "Building Strategic Corporate Partnerships" held at Fund Raising Day in New York June 8. Click here for part 1.]

Once you understand the keys to a strong nonprofit-corporate partnership, you can seek out the proper corporate partners to target.

In their session, "Building Strategic Corporate Partnerships," at Fund Raising Day in New York with co-presenters Lina Klebanov, deputy director of corporate social responsibility at Marsh & McLennan Cos., and Erica Hamilton, chief program officer of iMentor, Venessa Mendenhall, vice president of strategic partnerships of New York Needs You (NYNY), and Melissa Kinckle, consulting delivery senior manager and director of corporate social responsibility at Bluewolf, laid out five steps for building strategic corporate partnerships.

5 Steps
1. Analyze your gaps. This goes back to forming a reciprocal relationship. You need to analyze the gaps both you and your corporate partner are looking to fill. Mendenhall provided a checklist to run through to identify your partner's needs and see where you can come in, and vice versa (see image at right).

2. Do your research. Nothing frustrates a potential corporate partner more than an organization going in with no idea of what the company has to offer, what it has done and what it's looking for.

For instance, Mendenhall shared the example of Bank of America, which has a detailed section on its website about its grant programs. She said it's wise to study that information and understand the specific value proposition for each partner, and notice little things like the language, terminology and focus areas your potential corporate partner uses.

3. Draft your value proposition. Here is where you have to answer the question on behalf of your corporate partner: "What's in it for me?" For a truly strategic, reciprocal, flexible and holistic partnership that can sustain the long haul, you must define exactly what the benefits are for your corporate partner.

4. Create your menu of options. Having a menu of options for your partners, as well as your programs, allows you to quickly engage them on many levels, Mendenhall said. It lets them know that there is more than one way to support your organization.

Creating a menu of options also helps you prepare for first contact with a new corporate partner. You can think beyond what you need from a partner and get their perspective about you can offer them. The key is to listen to the company's needs and identify which things on your menu can best address them, Mendenhall said. (For an example of a menu of options, see image 2 to the right.)

5. Sustain your relationships. "It's easier to create new partnerships than to sustain them," Mendenhall said. So you must take steps to sustain your relationships and keep that corporate support coming.

Mendenhall and Kinckle provided a list of ways to do that:

• write joint press releases
• share progress reports
• invite partners to board meetings
• think outside the box
• create VIP experiences
• provide updates on new opportunities
• request advice
• introduce partners to people who benefit from your programs
• involve leadership
• send handwritten cards
• send articles

"Over-deliver whenever you can," Mendenhall said. "Exceed commitments to corporate partners. It's always a good idea to under-promise and over-deliver."

"Invite partners to your special events, and show up at their events too," Kinckle added. "Make them feel like they're a part of the organization. At the end of the day, we do want to feel like a part of the organization."

Pitfalls
To wrap up their portion of the session, Mendenhall and Kinckle shared three pitfalls to avoid:

1. Ensure all levels of the organizations know who your corporate partners are and what those relationships entail. "Nothing is more embarrassing than someone contacting a corporate partner without knowing that they've worked with you before," Kinckle said.
2. Beware of under-delivering on commitments. "That's why it's always better to under-promise and overdeliver," Mendenhall said.
3. Don't get too comfortable. Recurring corporate support is not a given in this day and age. If you get too comfortable and forget to nurture those relationships, they can dry up quickly.

Check back for part 3 on building strategic corporate partnerships.