Why New Partner Programs Stall
After you’ve signed up your first partner you might experience a lull. And while that’s normal while people are getting to work - you should be aware of some common pitfalls to ensure that you stay top of mind.
A common scenario
The kickoff calls were great. Both teams were excited, saw the market opportunity and agreed to "stay close" as things progressed.
But as the weeks pass, there are no deals and no obvious momentum.
But what went wrong? Most likely, your program was under-resourced, operating on a wait-and-see approach that would delay investments in co-marketing resources until the time they were requested. This reactive behavior signals to your partner that your program lacks maturity. It also shows that you’re relying on them to do all the work without having made any meaningful investments in shared success.
This approach doesn’t work. It creates friction in relationships where people move on quickly to solutions that are easier to sell.
Partners aren't sitting around waiting for you to fulfill content requests.
They’re managing at least a dozen other vendor relationships, and the ones that get their attention are the ones that made selling easy from day one.
Good partners expect battle cards to be ready, product clips to be available in a shareable library, and the ICP to be specific. They need a simple process for deal registration and can't waste time guessing where to find key resources.
If your partner has to ask what to send a prospect, you've likely already lost their focus on that deal.
The 6 partner program essentials
Basic sales enablement resources so they can prospect on their own
Technical resources so they can demo confidently
Marketing assets so they can create their own demand
Legal clarity so deals don't get messy
A real onboarding process
Support infrastructure they can rely on
We mapped out each of these content categories (and what specifically goes in each one) in a foundational guide so you can build what partners actually need and keep them engaged. Making these investments early demonstrates that your team is committed to a partner program with lasting relationships.
Read the 6 Content Categories You Need Before Launching Your Partner Program.
