Cross-marketing is a promotional method that implies collaborating with another company or several businesses to increase the target audience or sales of all parties involved.
In this article, we’ll shed light on the benefits of cross-marketing, explain how to choose partners for collaboration, and share some examples of world-known brands that work together.
Benefits of Cross-Marketing
Cross-marketing is a relatively new promotional technique. It allows brands to join forces and reach common goals. This is possible only when their target audiences are similar in terms of age, social status, income, and needs. If companies develop a well-thought-out cross-marketing plan, they will manage to reap the following benefits:
- Increased brand awareness and recognition. This can be a goal for both big corporations desperately looking for brand-new approaches and enthusiastic startups.
- Sales growth. Brands with clear buyer personas and enough data about their clients seek other companies with similar customers. Knowing people’s needs and wants is the key to selling more.
- Improved credibility and loyalty. If your brand is a leader, source of expertise, and authority in the industry, clients will trust your recommendations. In this case, people will believe that you won’t put your reputation at risk for advertising purposes.
- Advertising costs reduction. If you collaborate with other brands for common goals, it means that you share both the responsibility and advertising costs. Hence, you can try some advanced and more expensive promotional techniques.
- Expanding the range of goods. Brands often cooperate to release a joint product, which is common for sportswear and apparel brands. As a result, companies manage to create buzz around their businesses and increase their income.
- Building long-lasting relationships. Brands that initially plan to conduct an advertising campaign together often remain partners for a long time. Such cooperation brings a lot of new customers, joint projects, and support.
Now that you know the benefits you can get while implementing cross-marketing, it’s time to learn how to find partners.
How to Find Partners for Cross-Marketing
Choosing the right partner is the key to successful cooperation. If you only aim to generate more money, your clients will definitely feel that, and your reputation may suffer. Do your best to find a company that shares your values, mission, and philosophy. For example, if you own a cruelty-free brand and collaborate with a company that tests its products on animals, you can completely destroy your reputation. To avoid such fatal mistakes, follow the tips below.
- Set your goal. It’s vital to be clear and precise about your primary purpose. Avoid setting three or even more goals since you won’t be able to focus all your efforts on reaching the main aim. For example, if you want to increase your target audience or the number of followers, ask your partner to recommend your company via their email campaigns or publications on social media. Ensure that people realize the value of this recommendation and can easily follow you or subscribe to your newsletter. If you aim to sell more items, consider creating profitable bundles with your partner’s products. Offer a reduced price to provide customers with an additional incentive.
- Conduct a thorough analysis of your target audience. Are your customers male or female? Youth or adults? What is their income level? Are they vegetarians, vegans, or animal rights activists? The more information you have, the bigger your chances of understanding the actual value of your product. Consider dividing it into smaller segments for better targeting. This way, you’ll succeed in satisfying the needs of different audience segments.
- Look for potential partners. Remember that the point of cross-marketing is not to compete but to cooperate. Your target audiences need to be similar but not identical, and your products should complement each other. Ask your loyal clients about their favorite brands and companies they would like you to collaborate with. Customers can be interested in this cooperation more than you do if they realize their profits. Make sure that you have a valuable offer for these companies to work with you.
- Conclude an advertising contract. Sign an agreement to protect both parties and ensure that all conditions are met. It should include all the responsibilities of both companies as well as your expectations and budget.
Now let’s check out the brands that work together successfully.
Examples of Cross-Marketing Campaigns
The most successful corporations include brands from the same segment since their clients can be confused otherwise. Take a look at the examples of brands that implement cross-marketing.
Louis Vuitton and BMW
The car manufacturer launched the BMW i8 in 2014 and collaborated with Louis Vuitton to promote it. The fashion brand produced the four-piece set of suitcases and bags designed specifically for this new car. As a result, both brands increased their recognition and audiences.
Burger King and McDonald’s
These two competing brands collaborated for a good cause. Burger King, known for its provocative marketing campaigns, encouraged its clients to buy Big Mac from McDonald’s instead of Whopper to raise money for charity.
Now you know why brands use cross-marketing and have some inspiring examples and helpful tips at hand. We hope that they helped you make the right choice!
Last Updated: 22.03.2023
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