Two is better than one.
If there’s one sweeping change in entrepreneurship today, it is the synergy among business organizations to come up with collaborations and partnerships to cater their clientele better.
“The official term is co-branding partnerships. Co-branding is not exactly a new trend in business, as it has been around since people have been selling and trading goods. We see it more prevalent in society today because accessing target audiences is much easier due to the internet, social media and mobile apps,” Steve Bagley, a USA-based public relations and innovation strategy expert, shared.
Co-branding refers to a marketing arrangement between two different brands in efforts to join forces by creating a product or service indicative of both their identities. This approach opens up an opportunity for one brand to introduce their product or service to the devotees of another brand.
“Both partnering organizations share an intrinsic return of value, especially if they’d come up with a win-win situation in terms of their partnership. Having a good communication plan oftentimes include co-branding initiatives,” Bagley said.
Here are some of the benefits your enterprise can reap from co-branding:
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Winning new markets
“Co-branding is a strategic and effective collaboration between two brands in an effort to have the opportunity to boost customer awareness for both brands, break into new markets and reach a wider range of audience,“ Bagley said. “Co-branding doubles and sometimes even triples the target audience’s connectivity.”
Plains&Prints, one of the leading fashion brands in the Philippines, has recently made headlines with its collaborative collection with premiere fashion designer Mark Bumgarner.
Known for his reinterpretation of classic feminine looks, Mark Bumgarner’s show-stopping creations are worn by a rapidly growing celebrity clientele at the most glamorous and prestigious events across the globe. With his collaboration with Plains&Prints, Bumgarner has proven that his design prowess is not just limited to the red carpet.
He has brought his sensibilities over to ready-to-wear (RTW) clothing with the homegrown fashion brand. The Plains&Prints X Mark Bumgarner’s collection lends Mark’s signature aesthetic to pieces that are more casual and wearable. Their co-branding campaign has allowed both parties to reach new clientele.
With Mark’s chic designs for everyday wardrobe, the Mark Bumgarner Manila brand has had opportunity to be seen as not limited to couture aesthetic only.
On the other hand, Plains&Prints also attracts a new kind of market profile with the Mark Bumgarner brand’s following in high fashion. The co-branding collection has indeed opened a new demographic of clientele for both parties.
“Plains&Prints has a very wide range of clientele and they have more than 70 stores nationwide, it’s amazing, “ Bumgarner shared.
Roxanne Farillas, vice president of Plains&Prints, mentioned that the collaboration gives the brand and Mark the opportunity to dress up more Filipina women.
“Just like Plains&Prints, the works of Mark are all about timelessness and elegance. We both share the same passion of giving women the access to fashionable clothing and we are happy because this collaboration allowed us to meld our signature styles and come up with a collection that caters the everyday fashion needs of modern Filipinas, ” Farillas shared.
While your brand’s products and services may have resonated with only one audience in the past, co-branding efforts will expand your potential to reach uncharted territory. Working your way into your partner’s market will increase the likelihood of attracting new customers back to your brand, allowing you to establish new customer relationships.
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Combined skill sets
“Having co-branding endeavors allow for brainstorming and creativity to be more productive. More ideas are brought to the table and challenged, “Bagley said.
“Both parties can learn the strongest business strategies from each other, which they can adopt to robustly strengthen their organizations internally. There’s opportunity for combined skill sets, which give greater chance for success because where one company lacks, the other may be an expert.”
This is also true with the Plains&Prints X Mark Bumgarner collab. The couture designer has learned more about RTW production from his partnership with the retail giant. “Plains&Prints has guided me every step of the way. I’m really not used to doing ready-to-wear. They really guided me throughout the process,” he said.
Co-branding allows you to share information and technology, managing styles and strategic methodologies with each other as you go along with your creative sessions, consultations and processes.
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Opportunities for promotional activities
When two brands come together to release a special product or service, it is natural for people to be curious about the outcome. This type of buzz can be enhanced by each individual brand promoting the release on their social media outlets, encouraging people to get involved in conversations centered around the collaboration. Twice the hype helps to lay a foundation for a successful product release.
Co-branding of two companies can get a lot of press. “Even soda brands sometimes sponsor athletes and sporting events. Their campaigns are highly successful but everyone knows sodas are not healthy and therefore not ideal to partner with a sporting event. But still, these partnerships do work in terms of promotion, marketing and PR.”
According to Bagley, there is no one-size-fits-all for success in collaborations. However, open communication and understanding each other’s goals often lead to success.
“The key is to understand and agree in terms of common expectations of success for both companies,” Bagley concluded.