# Platform Partnership > Designs platform partnership programs with integration benefits, co-marketing, and revenue sharing. Use when building strategic partnerships for marketplace or SaaS platforms. - Skill: `reaperinvest/platform-partnership` (Agent Skill) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add reaperinvest/platform-partnership` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/reaperinvest/platform-partnership/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Marketing & Growth - Author: reaperinvest (https://skillmd.com/u/reaperinvest) - Updated: 2026-09-22 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/reaperinvest/platform-partnership --- # Platform Partnership ## When to Use This Skill Use this skill when you need to: - Design a partner program for a marketplace or platform - Create integration partnerships with complementary tools - Structure co-marketing agreements and revenue sharing models - Build a partner onboarding and enablement program **DO NOT** use this skill for affiliate programs, sponsorship deals, or vendor negotiations. This is for strategic platform partnerships with mutual business value. --- ## Core Principle A GREAT PARTNERSHIP MAKES BOTH PLATFORMS MORE VALUABLE TO THEIR USERS — IF THE PARTNERSHIP ONLY BENEFITS ONE SIDE, IT IS A VENDOR RELATIONSHIP, NOT A PARTNERSHIP. --- ## Phase 1: Brief ### Required Inputs | Input | What to Ask | Default | |-------|------------|---------| | **Your platform** | "What is your platform and who are your users?" | No default — must be provided | | **Partnership goal** | "What do you want from partnerships? Distribution, features, credibility?" | Distribution and feature expansion | | **Ideal partners** | "What type of company would be a great partner? Complementary tools, adjacent audiences?" | Complementary SaaS tools | | **Partnership model** | "Integration, co-marketing, referral, or full strategic?" | Integration + co-marketing | | **Resources available** | "What can you invest? Engineering time, marketing budget, dedicated person?" | Limited — solo founder | **GATE: Confirm the brief before designing the program.** --- ## Phase 2: Design the Program ### Partnership Tiers | Tier | Requirements | Benefits | Revenue Share | |------|-------------|----------|---------------| | **Technology Partner** | Build and maintain an integration | Listed in partner directory, co-marketing, API support | Per-referral or flat fee | | **Referral Partner** | Send qualified leads | Commission per conversion, partner badge | 10-20% of first-year revenue | | **Strategic Partner** | Deep integration + co-marketing commitment | Joint webinars, case studies, featured placement | Custom | ### Partner Identification Criteria Score potential partners on: 1. **Audience overlap** — Do their users match yours? (1-10) 2. **Complementary value** — Does their product make yours better? (1-10) 3. **Size compatibility** — Can you partner as equals? (1-10) 4. **Cultural fit** — Similar values, responsive, collaborative? (1-10) 5. **Strategic alignment** — Does this partnership serve your 12-month goals? (1-10) **Target partners scoring 35+ out of 50.** ### Partnership Value Map For each partnership, document the mutual value: ``` ## Partnership: [Your Platform] × [Partner Platform] **Value to our users:** [What they gain from this integration] **Value to their users:** [What they gain from this integration] **Value to us:** [Distribution, revenue, feature, credibility] **Value to them:** [Distribution, revenue, feature, credibility] ``` **GATE: Confirm tiers and target partners before writing outreach.** --- ## Phase 3: Execute ### Partner Outreach Template ``` Subject: Partnership idea: [Your Platform] × [Their Platform] Hey [Name], I run [Your Platform] — [one sentence description]. We share a lot of users with [Their Platform], and I think there is a natural integration opportunity. **The idea:** [Describe the integration or partnership in 2-3 sentences] **Why it works:** - Your users get [benefit] - Our users get [benefit] - Both platforms grow through [mechanism] I would love a 20-minute call to explore this. Would [day/time] work? [Your name] [Your platform] ``` ### Partnership Agreement Framework Document these terms for every partnership: - **Scope:** What each party will do - **Timeline:** Key milestones and deadlines - **Resources:** What each party contributes (engineering, marketing, content) - **Revenue:** How revenue or leads are shared - **Metrics:** How success is measured - **Duration:** Initial term and renewal terms - **Exit:** How either party can end the partnership ### Co-Marketing Playbook Joint marketing activities ranked by effort: | Activity | Effort | Impact | |----------|--------|--------| | Cross-link in partner directories | Low | Medium | | Guest blog post exchange | Low | Medium | | Joint social media promotion | Low | Low-Medium | | Co-authored content or guide | Medium | High | | Joint webinar or event | Medium | High | | Bundled offer or promotion | Medium | High | | Joint case study | Low-Medium | High | --- ## Phase 4: Polish ### 1. Partner Onboarding Kit Prepare for each new partner: - Welcome email with key contacts and resources - Integration documentation or API access - Brand assets and co-marketing guidelines - Partner dashboard for tracking referrals and metrics - Quarterly review schedule ### 2. Partner Success Metrics ``` ## Partnership Metrics - **Referral volume:** Leads or users sent by each partner - **Conversion rate:** % of partner referrals that become customers - **Revenue attributed:** Revenue generated through the partnership - **Integration adoption:** % of shared users who activate the integration - **Co-marketing ROI:** Leads and conversions from joint campaigns - **Partner satisfaction:** Quarterly check-in survey (NPS) ``` ### 3. Quality Checklist ``` ## Partnership Program Checklist - [ ] Partnership tiers defined with clear benefits at each level - [ ] Partner identification criteria documented with scoring model - [ ] Value map created for each target partnership (mutual value) - [ ] Outreach template personalized for each target partner - [ ] Partnership agreement covers scope, timeline, revenue, and exit - [ ] Co-marketing playbook lists activities by effort and impact - [ ] Partner onboarding kit prepared - [ ] Success metrics defined and tracking is set up - [ ] Quarterly review cadence scheduled for active partnerships - [ ] Partner directory or page exists on your website ``` --- ## Example **Partnership:** Project management SaaS × Invoicing SaaS **Value map:** - Their users get: Automatic invoice generation from completed projects - Our users get: Project cost tracking and budget visibility - We get: Distribution to their 10,000 users, feature without building it - They get: Distribution to our 5,000 users, sticky integration **Outreach excerpt:** "Our users constantly ask for invoicing features, and your users ask for project management. Instead of both of us building what the other already has, what if we connected them? A user finishes a project in our app and generates an invoice in yours with one click." --- ## Anti-Patterns - **One-sided value** — if only one platform benefits, the other will eventually disengage. Always map mutual value. - **No success metrics** — "Let's partner and see what happens" leads to partnerships that fizzle. Define what success looks like upfront. - **Too many partners too fast** — each partnership requires maintenance. Start with 2-3 high-value partnerships, not 20 shallow ones. - **Ignoring the partnership after launch** — partnerships need quarterly reviews, updated co-marketing, and relationship maintenance. - **Verbal agreements** — always document scope, terms, and exit clauses. Even a simple email confirmation is better than a handshake. --- ## Recovery - **Partner is unresponsive:** Set a 2-week follow-up cadence. After 3 attempts, move to the next target. Do not chase. - **Integration is not being used:** Promote it to your user base with a dedicated announcement. Provide setup guides and in-app prompts. - **Partnership is not producing results:** Review the metrics at the quarterly check-in. If mutual value is not materializing, scale back or sunset amicably. - **Partner becomes a competitor:** This happens. Ensure your agreement has an exit clause. Transition gracefully and prioritize user experience during the wind-down.