From single deals to a partnership programme
One shop on a street is a stall. Ten shops that fit together, with a map, a calendar and fair rules, is a market. A partnership programme is the market: many partners, one plan.
- Before this course: Sponsorship Partnerships: proposals, contracts and renewals (course 2.10.3). Before that: Sponsorships & Brand Deals for Creators and Athletes (course 2.10) and Sponsorship Basics (course 2.10.1). We assume you can write a tailored proposal, price packages, negotiate, read an agreement, run disclosure, report honestly and plan a renewal. This course is about the whole set of partners, not one deal.
- A partnership programme is a planned group of partners that supports your goals. It has: goals, partner types, packages, a calendar, rules, owners and a review rhythm.
- Start with your goals, not with brands. Write two or three goals for the next 12 months, such as covering event costs, keeping prices low for members, getting equipment, or building a community. Every partner should serve at least one goal.
- Partner types (a teaching model, not a rule):
| Type | What it brings | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Anchor | The largest part of the money or support | A presenting partner for the season |
| Supporting | Smaller, steady money or product | Gear, printing, venue discounts |
| In-kind | Product or services instead of cash | Food, prizes, equipment |
| Community | Goodwill and local trust | A local shop that backs your youth day |
| Pilot | A small, paid first deal to test fit | One post and one booth |
- Concentration risk: if one partner gives most of your support and leaves, you have a hole. Many organisers choose their own ceiling (for example "no single partner above a set share of the budget") and write it down. Choose a share you can survive losing.
- Capacity: every partner needs time for approvals, posts, reports and calls. Count your hours. A programme you cannot deliver damages trust with every partner at once.
- Fit before size: a small partner that fits your audience and values can be worth more over time than a large one that does not.
- Keep the portfolio table from course 2.10.3 (partners, start and end dates, amount, exclusive category, renewal date, status) and add three columns: goal served, share of total support, hours needed per month.
- Do not promise any partner a result you cannot control. Do not plan your budget on deals that are not signed.
- This is education only. For large programmes, ask a lawyer and an accountant.
- Write two or three goals for the next 12 months, with a number and a date where you can.
- Open your portfolio table from course 2.10.3, or start one with the columns in Key facts.
- For each partner, write which goal it serves and what share of your support it gives.
- Mark each partner as anchor, supporting, in-kind, community or pilot.
- Choose a ceiling for one partner's share and mark any partner above it.
- Estimate the hours per month each partner needs and add them up. Compare to the hours you really have.
- Write one gap (a goal with no partner) and one risk (a partner that is too big or too tired).
- Check: every partner serves a goal, you have a ceiling, and your hours add up.
Videos by other creators on YouTube, for reference. They are not made by or affiliated with The Future Market.
Read the video script
[Host] "One deal is a deal. Many deals with no plan is a pile."
[Text on screen: Goals, Partners, Calendar, Rules] "A programme starts with your goals, then the partners that serve them."
[Screen: a table of partners with a share column] "If one partner is most of your support, you have a risk. Pick a ceiling and write it down."
[Host] "And count your hours. If you cannot deliver for every partner, say yes to fewer."
Build your partner portfolio table with goal, share, type and hours. Mark the biggest risk and one gap.
ClaudeStuck? Copy a ready-made prompt for Claude
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For a grown-up: Claude is for adults (18+). Copy this, paste it into Claude, and use the answer to explain the lesson to your child.
I'm learning "Partnership Strategy: portfolios of partners and brand fit" on The Future Market. Lesson 1: "From single deals to a partnership programme". What the lesson teaches: - Before this course: Sponsorship Partnerships: proposals, contracts and renewals (course 2.10.3). Before that: Sponsorships & Brand Deals for Creators and Athletes (course 2.10) and Sponsorship Basics (course 2.10.1). We assume you can write a tailored proposal, price packages, negotiate, read an agreement, run disclosure, report honestly and plan a renewal. This course is about the whole set of partners, not one deal. - A partnership programme is a planned group of partners that supports your goals. It has: goals, partner types, packages, a calendar, rules, owners and a review rhythm. - Start with your goals, not with brands. Write two or three goals for the next 12 months, such as covering event costs, keeping prices low for members, getting equipment, or building a community. Every partner should serve at least one goal. - Partner types (a teaching model, not a rule): - Type - What it brings - Example - Anchor - The largest part of the money or support - A presenting partner for the season - Supporting - Smaller, steady money or product - Gear, printing, venue discounts The exercise I'm working on: Build your partner portfolio table with goal, share, type and hours. Mark the biggest risk and one gap. I'm stuck. Please: 1. Explain the main idea in plain, simple words with one everyday example. 2. Walk me through the exercise one small step at a time. Ask me what I've done so far before giving the next step. 3. Don't just give me the final answer. Help me do it myself, and check my work when I share it.
I'm a parent helping my child (about 8 years old) with a lesson called "From single deals to a partnership programme" from the course "Partnership Strategy: portfolios of partners and brand fit". Here's what the lesson says: One shop on a street is a stall. Ten shops that fit together, with a map, a calendar and fair rules, is a market. A partnership programme is the market: many partners, one plan. The activity: Build your partner portfolio table with goal, share, type and hours. Mark the biggest risk and one gap. Please explain this so an 8-year-old understands: short sentences, a fun everyday example, and no hard words. Then give me 3 simple questions I can ask my child to check they understood, and a way to do the activity together, one tiny step at a time.
Sources
- No new outside facts in this lesson. It builds on courses 2.10, 2.10.1 and 2.10.3.
Brand fit and due diligence
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Valuing your assets
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Running many partners at once
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Ethical, disclosed partnerships at scale
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Measuring the portfolio and protecting audience data
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Risk, reputation and ending partnerships well
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Your partnership playbook, and teaching others
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Final project
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Quiz
Where should a partnership programme start?
With your own goals, then the partners that serve them.
What is concentration risk?
Depending too much on one partner, so that losing it leaves a big hole.
Name three questions on a brand fit scorecard.
Any three of: audience overlap, values, reputation, product honesty, category conflict, terms, effort.
Why set a minimum score before you see an offer?
It is easier to keep your standards before money is on the table.
What does CPM mean, and what does it not tell you?
Cost per thousand impressions (cost ÷ impressions × 1,000); it does not tell you whether the audience is the right one.
Name two of the four views of value.
Any two of: cost, market, audience, outcome.
What does an exclusivity map prevent?
Selling the same category to two partners.
What are the two checks in a disclosure system?
A check of the draft before posting and a check of the live post afterwards.
Does a disclosure make a false claim acceptable?
No. Disclose the relationship and also say only what is true.
When may you give a sponsor a list of names or emails?
Only if the people agreed to it and know who receives it and why; otherwise give anonymous summaries.
Why compare partners with the same definitions and dates?
So the comparison is fair; do not mix impressions, reach and attendance.
What are the three steps of teaching in this course?
Show, try, review.
Final exam
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Certificate
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