Partner Marketing and Reselling for Consulting Startups

Partnership marketing can be a boon to your consulting and services business, but what if opportunities seem scarce? Pitch a unique angle as a potential partner, or consider becoming a reseller.

In partner marketing, also called channel marketing, you partner with a technology or product provider — whether that be for an industrial plumbing component, security software, or an HR platform — and offer value-added services that the provider does not offer directly, such as strategy, implementation, and training.

For technologies and products that have already developed a fairly saturated partner ecosystem, identify a unique market segment to serve, and thereby increase your appeal as a potential partner for the technology provider.

As an option distinct from partnership, reselling represents a simpler relationship (and sometimes a more limited opportunity) with the provider, entailing fewer explicit or implied obligations.