When starting a business, you might think that other brands in the same industry are competitors trying to outdo your business. This thought isn't wrong, but it's not always relevant either.
In fact, you can invite competitors to collaborate to win the market. Nowadays, business collaboration is one of the right and profitable strategic options for small and medium enterprises. Here is an explanation of how important collaboration is in business.
What is Business Collaboration
Business collaboration is a process where several individuals or organizational groups work together to achieve a specific outcome in business.
Collaboration leverages both internal and external connections to create ideas, find solutions, and achieve common goals for the business. Thus, this approach benefits both collaborators and is built through open, honest, and productive communication.
Types of Business Collaboration
Generally, there are four types of collaboration in business, as follows:
Co-Marketing and Co-Branding
This type of collaboration is related to building reputation and brand strength that influences marketing.
The goal is to expand the market and pique consumer curiosity with new innovations.
Example: Indomie x Rabbit Habit
Co-Producing
This type of collaboration occurs only when both collaborators complement each other. One business has creative ideas and another business must have the production resources.
Thus, this collaboration will capture a wide market.
Example: Coca Cola x Nestle
Co-Distributing
Businesses with extensive distribution channels can collaborate or partner with small businesses from various regions to streamline and expand distribution channels.
Co-Funding
This type of collaboration serves as a merger of shares or provision of capital for businesses that are newly established or growing.
Example: Gojek x Tencent Holdings and Google
Read also 10 Business Strategies to Stay Profitable During a Crisis
Benefits of Business Collaboration
Building and developing a business is full of risks, and without collaboration, your business tends to bear the costs and risks alone.
Working alone also limits your ability to solve problems.
In addition, there are several other benefits you will gain from business collaboration, such as the following:
Help in developing the business
As explained earlier, the mindset of doing everything alone can be challenging because a business is not optimal if run by oneself.
For example, as your business grows, you will reach a point where you need help, and this help can be obtained from others running a similar business.
Expanding the network
A successful business is one that has many collaborations. Therefore, as a business owner, it is highly recommended to engage in as many strategic collaborations as possible and find new partners for your business growth.
Just imagine if you and your business partners have many acquaintances. Automatically, this will make it easier to find connections.
For instance, you have a coffee shop business. But you don't have acquaintances with the best coffee suppliers.
On the other hand, your business partner has acquaintances with coffee suppliers that offer the best quality and affordable prices.
Indirectly, this collaboration makes you complement each other.
Read also The Influence of Coffee Bean Quality on Branding and Customer Satisfaction
Getting inspiration and giving lessons
By collaborating, you will have the opportunity to gain a lot of inspiration and learn.
Because, from collaboration, you will communicate with people or colleagues who have different business experiences.
You can develop ideas from discussions with colleagues.
Solving problems together
Running a business certainly does not always go without obstacles. Well, problems will be easier to solve if faced together.
Engaging in collaboration will provide you with a partner who is ready to help, especially in the toughest times in business.
In the problem-solving process, you and your business colleagues can discuss the future of the business you will undertake, support each other among business people when there are problems, and so on.
Creating positive change
Because two parties are involved in a common interest, one of the benefits that can be obtained is the ability to create positive change in the business.
Because everyone certainly has different ideas and thoughts in viewing a business.
Through collaboration, you create positive change for the business.
It is also possible that you can create better products or services.
Increasing brand credibility
If you engage in collaboration with a larger brand, it will make your own brand more credible due to the exposure effect.
For example, you partner with someone for collaboration, and they post a link to your website on their platform.
Thus, the public will judge that your brand plays an important role in someone else's business.
Not only that, when Google sees that your website is getting "links" from other credible websites, the visibility or ranking of your site on Google search pages also increases.
Collaboration is fun
Of all the benefits of collaboration that you will get, it unconsciously feels very enjoyable.
Meeting new people, learning new things, having great conversations, discovering brilliant ideas, and so on are certainly very enjoyable and add enthusiasm to doing business.
If you haven't collaborated with other businesses yet, try to do it from now on.
There are so many opportunities, and you never know where they will lead you.
Those are some of the benefits you can get if you collaborate in business.
In conclusion, collaboration does not make you look inferior compared to your peers. On the contrary, collaboration allows you to create products or services that are useful and liked by customers.