How I Partner with the RIGHT People to Crush My Sales Goals

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0:33I can't wait to see you there. Define the objective with your collaboration. If you don't know the target, you're going to miss it. Knowing your goal is going to help both the type of collaboration and the right partners to pursue. Welcome back to the Jasmine Star Show, a place where we discuss business mindset. And today, how to leverage collaborations for a bigger, better, and more profitable launch. I'm going to share a little bit of a backstory about how I created a collaboration that I just absolutely love. It was with a company called ConvertKit. They're now known as Kit. Now, in order for this collaboration to work, I had to break my version of reality.

1:09I had to ask myself first, how might this work? And so I had this idea that I was going to reach out to a company and I didn't know the CEO. His name is Nathan Berry and I had on my goal list, I'm going to meet this guy. Because if I could establish a relationship with him, if he understood the type of founder I was and the things that I wanted and how we could create ways to find a win-win? Could we create brand alignment? Could we help a lot of people along the way? And so a little bit of the backstory is I really know the power of email communication, of consistency as you're talking to people throughout a promotion or a launch.

1:49And I wanted to make it so easy for people to have effective email funnels as part of their promotions, but I don't have a CRM. I don't have a company that sends emails. And so I thought to myself, okay, well, I want to build these funnels and I know that this type of formulation actually works. It's very effective. I know that people get results if they follow this, but setting it up can be difficult. So first I had to ask myself, what would make it not so difficult? Number one, then I said, well, if they had a template that they could literally just copy and paste everything and everything was set up for them to go.

2:24So I had to think about that first. Then I had to ask what companies might be in alignment to where our users, where our customers are going to be. And that's how we came across Kit. We went to them and we said, listen, we don't want to get into the business of creating a CRM or having emails for people, but could you possibly create a funnel that is exactly my funnel, exactly what it is that I want to do and have people put their own words in it? Could you make that possible? And then they responded, yes. And this is why I truly believe in collaborations because they could be such a game changer when it comes to expanding your reach, building credibility, and gaining attention for your launch.

3:03In this episode, you're going to learn how to identify ideal partners, the different types of collaborations, and how to make it a win win for you and for them. But first, you know the drill. I want to read some kind words from a friend who listens to the show. Lola30 gave the show five stars and said, Jasmine deserves a five star for every single episode. This is my all-time favorite business podcast and I listen avidly. It feels so good to hear transparency and honestly, and I'm here for the ride wherever you take me, Jasmine. So Lola, thank you for listening and thank you for taking time for your business.

3:36And more than anything, thank you for taking the time to leave a review. Okay, now let's get back to collaborating for a launch, starting with the types of collaborations. There are many ways to collaborate with partners during a promotional period, but I want to talk about five in particular. So bring out those notebooks. We are going to get to work today. Now, before you decide how you want to collaborate with a partner, you need to know what you want out of the collaboration. So if you're taking notes, go ahead and write down these words. Increased visibility, enhanced credibility, and closed sales.

4:11Great. We're going to go over each one. And I want you to mark one through three for what feels like you need the most support with. Right? I'm going to give you a framework for how you can start identifying what collaborator is going to make the most difference in your launch. Okay. So we're going to start with increasing visibility. Increasing visibility is important for attracting new audiences and creating hype around your launch. This might be something that you need to do if maybe you've launched something in a similar way before. For example, if you're hosting the same masterclass, which if it worked, you should, or having a seasonal sale or a limited time promotion, consider how you can leverage collaborations to amplify your reach and bring new eyes in front of your content.

4:53Here are two ideas for you. Number one, be a guest speaker on an industry peers community, in it, on it, whatever outlets they have. I know a few months ago, I hosted my in-person seven-figure mastermind event, and one of the natural progressions was that members found ways to connect their communities with each other. For example, Valerie has a community of nutritionists and dieticians, and she also has a SaaS application to help them create meal plans for their clients. And Jill is a business coach for fitness professionals. So Jill and Valerie found a way to naturally collaborate since their audiences could overlap.

5:29Here's another example from my mastermind. Paige is a lawyer who sells contract templates for business owners, and Michelle has an Instagram educational membership for business owners. Paige offered to create a training for Michelle's membership to ensure that businesses were set up from a legal perspective. Okay, so this approach provides direct access to their community members, allowing them to showcase their knowledge and establish connections with potential clients. As a bonus, this also increases their credibility since their members, they already trust that industry peer that they're going to be collaborating with.

6:02It is like a win-win-win across the board. Now, let's get into the second component. Create shared content. By partnering with other industry peers to produce high-quality, valuable content, you can leverage each other's audiences, strengths, and resources. Now, this can be joint lives or collaboration reels or posts, even if you're pitching yourself as a podcast guest with topics that pertain to your launch. Okay, so I'm gonna share a little bit of an example here. Now, when I started my mastermind, I asked myself, how might I create content that is irresistible to not share? How could I create content to give people a way to talk about what they were doing as part of my business?

6:46So I had this idea. I work with a collaborator. Her name is Aisha. She's a part of our team. And I pitched to her this idea that we can make personalized reels for each member of the mastermind group during our happy hour. So let me break this down. So I had this idea. If we give people in our mastermind content to share, could it not be irresistible? Why? I wanted to give them a reason and a way to share about their experience. So I went to Aisha and I said, here's a list of all of the women in the mastermind. Can you please get these types of shots for them? And then on the same night, because she's a baller, gangster, the queen with the most, created reels for every single person in my mastermind so that that night I texted everyone in the mastermind and I said, here is a reel.

7:30They had the ability to create and share that content. This is how we're gonna be expanding by way of creating and leveraging peer-to-peer content and giving them content to share. Okay, so let's move on to enhancing credibility. Enhancing your credibility can make a big impact on how potential customers perceive you and your brand. This is particularly important if you're in a space where you need to build authority or you're gonna be entering a new market. So here's how you can do it through collaborations. Number one, you can establish an affiliate or referral program. Receiving endorsements from influential people, which like, well, when it makes sense, you know, like we don't want somebody just talking about you for the sake of talking about you.

8:09We want them to know, trust, and like you so that they can introduce you to their audience. Okay, so when it makes sense, when people do that, it acts as social proof. It reassures your audience about the value of your offer. Now, the second way that we wanna focus on is you could ask your collaborator to make private connections with leads. You can encourage your collaborator to make personal introductions for you with potential leads, and then you can give them a commission or do the same for them when the time comes. Just make sure that the expectations are clear. When an industry peer vouches for you, it carries significant weight.

8:43I can't tell you how many times that somebody has said, we're looking for a speaker, and they will ask a speaker who formally spoke at that event. And when that speaker uses my name, it comes as a clear win for that audience because I've been vouched by somebody else. I want you to pause and ask yourself, is there somebody that I can give a good or kind word about? I've realized that when I want people talking about me, it didn't come until I started talking about other people. So ask yourself right now, who might I be able to make an introduction for? Who can I vouch for? Who can I say something nice about?

9:16And I promise you, good begets good and words beget words. If you want introductions, start giving introductions. In fact, according to a study by the Keller Faye Group, 92 % of consumers trust referrals from people they know, while 70 % trust online reviews from strangers. So if you want to hear an incredible founder's story of how he bought a company for$2 and turned it into an eight-figure business off affiliate referrals and private connections, Please listen to my podcast with Eric Su. I'm going to make sure and link it in the show notes. This is about good beginning good and referrals beginning referrals and affiliates beginning fits.

9:54You guys, it's going to blow your mind. Okay, so and finally, we're going to get into the third option of a strategic collaboration. And that's to close sales. Remember when I went back and I told you to write those three main things? It is going to be very important that you itemize which of the three things as you build a collaboration is going to be most important to you because that's how you're going to pick your collaborator. Now, the third part that we're going to be focusing on is closing sales. Closing sales is the ultimate goal of any collaboration because it directly impacts your revenue.

10:21However, it may not always be the primary goal that you have. Like, for example, if you have a low ticket item and you have a really great close rate, you probably just need more eyes on the offer to increase sales. In that case, visibility would be your number one priority. But if you have a high ticket offer and you need something more to sweeten the deal, here are two effective strategies. Number one, create bonuses or limited time bundles by partnering with somebody else. This not only adds extra value for your audience, but it also encourages faster decision-making and you're leveraging scarcity by limiting it with unique offers.

10:58For example, when we launched your biggest launch ever, I collaborated with Amy Porterfield to create a bonus training about list building. Now, this bonus helped refute objections. It sweetened the deal, and it was a powerful tool to ensure that the launch would be flawless. I leveraged that collaboration to create a bonus. Now, let's get into the second way that we might be able to collaborate and really focus on closing those sales. You can host a giveaway or a contest with a collaborator. You can generate excitement. You can attract new leads. You can encourage existing customers to take action.

11:33Now, of course, you can do this alone. I mean, I've done it plenty of times alone. But when you partner with somebody else and you offer a valuable prize or experience in exchange for participation or a purchase, you can increase your brand's visibility and close more sales. For example, if you're launching a new productivity course, you could collaborate with a complimentary brand to host a contest where the winner gets access to both your course and their productivity planner. The combined value adds an incentive for participants while exposing both brands to new and relevant audiences. Okay, so now that you have a better idea of what kind of collaboration would be best for your business, let's get into how you can identify your ideal partners.

12:17Remember, those three things that we said, what is going to be the most important thing for your collaboration? Now we're going to get into identifying your partners. Step one, define the objective with your collaboration. If you don't know the target, you're going to miss it. I want you to start by clarifying what you want to achieve. If you want increased visibility, well, by how much? And how are you going to measure success? Through more social media followers, email subscribers, or masterclass signups, be sure to identify your goals so you know how effective that collaboration was. If your goal is to build credibility, think about specific areas where you want to strengthen your authority and how you're going to partner and how that partner is going to help you do that.

12:58So if your main focus is to close more sales, we'll determine what success looks like in terms of revenue or conversions. Knowing your goal is going to help both the type of collaboration and the right partners to pursue. Step number two is to list any potential objections you might have. Okay, so think about the concerns or hesitations your audience might have before purchasing or engaging with your offer. Okay, so let's come up with an example. Let's say you're a health coach and you know you're going to get the objection, well, I just can't hit my protein goals because I'm a vegan. Well, you can proactively address this in your collaboration strategy.

13:38Maybe you could partner with a plant-based nutrition expert and they'll give you a valuable resource like a PDF guide that's going to give them shopping lists and recipes and everything else they need to know to meet the protein requirements on a vegan diet. Now, I collaborated with Zaley Barkley on a resource to help overcome an objection. So when we launched YBLE, your biggest launch ever, a big objection that business owners have is showing their face on camera. Now I know, I get it. You started a business and you had no idea you also needed to show up and make posts like a content creator.

14:15You might even right now think like you hear this and you're like Jasmine, but that just feels unfair. Maybe you just flat out hate it. I hate creating content. Okay, fine, I get it. And while I can't change your mind, I'm going to share a stat. People engage with content 64 % more when there is a human in the content itself. That's just facts. Humans want to connect with other humans. So if you're willing to show up, but you feel totally and completely overwhelmed by the idea, I need to provide a resource to help you. And while it helps you, it will also help me close sales by ensuring that you have the tools to succeed.

14:56So what did I do? Zaley created a powerful resource for on-camera confidence and laid out exactly how you overcome your dread. Having this, you can handle the objection like I handled the objection by saying, I completely understand your concern, which is why I have partnered with X expert to create Y resource. It gives you a step-by-step plan to get Z, their desired result. Okay. So this is me creating a collaboration with somebody else to overcome an objection and get those sales. Okay. So step number one is to define your objectives with the collaboration. Step number two is to list any potential objections you might have.

15:36And step number three is to identify your potential partners. There are two things to keep in mind when you're choosing collaboration partners. First, your ideal client must hang out in their audience. I want you to identify business owners, influencers, experts whose values and target audience align with yours. You're going to want to choose somebody whose audience would naturally be interested in your offer. For example, if you're a wellness coach, collaborating with a yoga studio, a nutrition brand, or even a mindfulness app, well, that would make sense. Secondly, it must be mutually beneficial to both partners.

16:11I want to make sure that there's a win-win element for you and your partner. In terms of exposure, in terms of resources or value, you're going to need to know what it is before you pitch them. For example, you might give your collaborator access to your community so they can gain email subscribers and exposure after they give you a free resource to share with people who purchased during your launch. Okay, moving on to step number four, and that's to reach out. Once you've identified potential partners and ensured that a collaboration is mutually beneficial, now it's time to reach out and you are going to pitch them.

16:47Your approach is going to be different based on how well you know that person or that business. So here are three strategies to help you tailor your pitch. If it's a cold pitch, meaning you don't have any prior contact with them, I want you to start by introducing yourself and your business. And I don't want you like rushing in and asking for the collaboration right away. I want you to take some time and build some rapport. Now, you could mention a project of theirs that you loved, or you could share how your values align with theirs. Now, the goal here is to only open the door for conversation.

17:17and once you've made the connection, you can present your collaboration idea. Just be sure that you're clear about the partnership and how the partnership is gonna benefit both parties. Now that you've had some interaction, maybe you've had interaction with somebody that you wanna partner. Okay, maybe you DM a conversation or you comment here and there. You can be more direct based on that relationship. You can reference your previous conversations and you can remind them of how your audiences overlap and you can explain like how you think this collaboration is going to be mutually beneficial.

17:50Remember, you can clearly explain how it's a win for them. Spell it out in black and white and help them make a clear decision up front. You're going to want to keep things casual but professional and include a suggestion for next steps. So I'm going to give an example of how I recently reached out for a collaboration for 2025. But before you do that, I'm going to walk through if you have an established relationship. Because we went through, if it's a cold relationship that we went through, because you've had some like DMs, some previous relationship. Now, if you have an established relationship with them, well, then you can feel free to be a little bit more personal and direct.

18:32Since you already have that relationship, you can also remind them of previous successes you might have had together, and that will strengthen your pitch. Now, I want to talk about how you can create a seamless collaboration experience for both you and your partner. I've done a lot of collaborations and I've learned a lot. So I'm going to use a lot of this to say, don't repeat some of the mistakes I've made. It all starts with establishing clear communications and expectations up front. Here are three things you must do to ensure that everything runs smoothly. Number one, set clear expectations.

19:05Before things kick off, define each person's roles, responsibilities, and the overall goals of the collaboration. Now, this avoids any confusion or misunderstanding down the line. I mean, it could be as simple as whether who's like responsible for delivering content or setting the promotional deadlines or making everything clear from the beginning. This absolutely ensures that everybody stays on track. So we're gonna pause here. When we started 2025, I knew things were going to change for the podcast. I started reaching out to partners in December of 2024. Now, when I reached out to partners, I broke them into different categories, companies and businesses that I had relationships with.

19:49That was my hottest leads. My warm leads, people that I was somewhat communicative with and people who had no idea who I was. And so for the people I was the most warm with, like my hottest leads, I recorded a personal video and I said how much I appreciated working with their businesses up through all the years, including 2024, and how I wanted to go deeper in their business with 2025. And I made videos for every single person so that I could do the very first thing first, establish clear communication, what was going to be expected from them and how it was a clear win if we decided to work together through 2025.

20:26Now let's get into the second component, which is to over-communicate. I also did this in these videos. I sent a four, five-minute video. And then in addition to that, I send a bullet point list of things that I wanted to go through. And then I also send a PDF with a bunch of stats and information. So when it comes to over communicating, you're going to want to regularly check in with your collaborator to stay aligned on messaging, timelines, and any other promotional efforts. Now this ensures that both of you are presenting a united front to your audiences and you're sticking to the plan. When I've worked with affiliates in the past, we created a 50 page resource answering every question and created every scenario that could help so that they could self-serve and they can find their own marketing copy and swipe files and graphics to customize.

21:12Now, the more we communicated, the better they were to be empowered and succeed. Now, lastly, we want to track results together. Once the collaboration is live, we're going to use data and key performance indicators, KPIs, to measure the success. We want to track metrics like engagement and conversions, new leads, and be prepared to adjust this approach if it was necessary. Now, we use affiliate marketing software to make this easy, but if you're just starting, you can absolutely keep it simple. In fact, I always suggest starting simple and then only incorporating tech when you reach like a breaking point, like we have to do this now.

21:47By having these systems in place, you'll not only create a smoother collaboration process, but you're also gonna maximize the results for both parties. Okay, so let's do a quick review of what we went through so far. But I'm gonna take a pause and I'm going to close the loop around what I'm looking for in partners in that experience. Remember how I said I made a video, I sent a detailed email, I sent a PDF as I over communicated. And then I said, these are the KPIs, the key performance indicators that we are going to be tracking. And this is how we ensure that we're fulfilling on a promise that is a win-win for you and for me.

22:21And finally, we talked about collaboration best practices, and those are set clear expectations from the start, to over-communicate throughout the collaboration, to track results and adjust as needed. Y 'all, we went through a lot when it comes to collaborations, but they have made the biggest impact and change in my business. I want to say thank you for listening to the Jasmine Star Show. It is an honor to record these episodes for you. If you got just one thing from this episode, I would love if you left a review for the show. Please rate it because it would mean the world to me. The team and I read them and I hope and I look forward to reading your review on this show in the future.

23:01Thanks again.