Breaking down data systems and silos, walking in the shoes of your audience and committing to continuous improvement are providing the foundational marketing blocks for how Booking.com manages relationships with its complex network of global partners.

A long-term commitment to environmental and social principles has led Vege Chips to forge a three-year partnership with the Currumbin Wildlife Hospital in its home location on Australia’s Gold Coast.

The reasons for striking a partnership with another brand are wide and diverse. From extending audience reach and brand attributes to product and services expansion, cultural and social alignment, improving commercial dividends and solving a customer pain point, the list feels seemingly endless and full of opportunity. But just what kind of external partnership are worth pursuing? And how do you shore up the best chances of success when you do partner with an external player?

External partnerships are a crucial part of brand building and growth. But fail to look beyond audience and brand synergies when inspecting a partner’s potential and you risk unexpected consumer and market backlash, NT Tourism executive GM of marketing, Tony Quarmby, says.

​You are much more likely to deliver on your brand purpose by doing and saying something in partnership with another than doing something in isolation, says RB Health marketing director, Henry Turgoose.

The COVID-19 pandemic has altered sports sponsorship, accelerating trends already in play such as the growth of hybrid events, rising importance of player advocacy and popularity of esports, according to the Nielsen Sports 2021 Global Sports Marketing Trends report.

The more diverse and open-minded your partnership portfolio approach is, the more opportunity you give yourself to learn, says Binge chief marketing officer, Louise Crompton.

A willingness to move away from doing business the way you’re used to, along with passionate commitment across leadership, are vital for brands looking to striking successful external partnerships, Uber’s head of marketing says.

Want to find partnerships that can build your brand strategically and commercially? Then try making a movie of your customer’s day-day-life to identify patterns of behaviour and touchpoints and you might just find some hefty clues.

One of the clear trends to emerge during 2020 was brands striking external partnerships. And if Deloitte’s recent Marketing Trends 2021 report is to go by, such partnership aspirations remain firmly in the spotlight this year as a way to drive growth, meet changing customer needs, lift cultural credentials and drive innovation.

​One of the interesting things to come out of this year’s unprecedented market conditions was a rethink around external partnerships and collaborations by local and global brands. Here, we highlight a few of the more unusual, unlikely pairings we saw during 2020 and why they were explored by the brands engaging in them.

​Sofitel Melbourne On Collins is definitely painting outside the box with its latest experiential campaign.

​David Jones’ drive for its Elizabeth Street store to be a global premier retail destination has been boosted by a new partnership with Disney, and exclusive partnerships with iconic, luxury global brands, Louis Vuitton, Chanel and Gucci.

The brand and startup partnership by Mondelēz International to drive mobile marketing innovation is already seeing encouraging results, according to Pollenizer CEO, Phil Morle.

Kodak might be thriving today if the camera business had made an early purchase of Instagram, according to Evol8tion CEO, Joseph Jaffe.