Love triangle.

This is a concept that you wouldn’t associate with strategic alliances.

Because often, we think of alliances as two-way relationships. 

It’s you and them. 

And by them, I mean the combination of your business partners and their clients.

But I realised one thing:

This mindset prevents business owners from benefitting from strategic alliances.

Why?

It’s because a strategic alliance is really a 3-way relationship.

It’s a love triangle.

At the top of the triangle is your business.

Then, on one side are the partnerships you’ve formed with other businesses…

While on the other side are the clients.

So, how you approach this relationship shouldn’t be based on the concept of “you and them.”

There are three parties involved after all.

And by thinking about the relationship this way…

It allows you to set the right foundation for a strategic alliance.

It’ll help you focus on building a mutually-beneficial relationship.

So, when you approach a potential partner to form a strategic alliance and say…

“You should do business with me and you should refer me to your clients.”

Then, they ask you…

“What’s in it for me?”

You’ll know what to offer them.

And it won’t just be a commission-based structure that, in all honesty, isn’t working anymore.

What you can offer them is an arrangement that’ll benefit both parties, especially when it comes to generating clients.

Now, to make this love triangle succeed, you need to establish trust.

You and your partner should trust in each other…

Then, that trust should be passed on and be present between you and the client…

And between the client and your partner.

This is how the love triangle in strategic alliances should work.

And with this approach…

Both you and your partner benefit by getting more clients…

And your clients will benefit from the top-quality service that you’ll deliver.

Everybody wins.