Past
Marketers sent partners a deck and a logo pack and hoped for referrals.
ACADEMY · DRONICS · MAKE THE MARKET AND YOUR PARTNERS SELL YOU
Learn DRONICS-R: Referrals and resellers
Give partners a pitch they can repeat and a reason worth the effort.
Motion: Referrals and resellers (partner marketing: partners who bring and close deals) · Owner: your CMO and channel head
Four steps: read the letter, read the lenses, take the self-assessment, then pick one or two gaps. All learning paths.
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Treat the partner's sales team as a customer: learn what they need in their first three calls a…
Make marketing make selling easier: simple, repeatable assets, with the value clear before aski…
Statements are from this letter's self-assessment. Nothing is pre-filled and nothing is stored.
PAST AND FUTURE
DRONICS-R: the story in two lines
Marketers will work differently with agents. This is what changes for this letter, and what stays with a person.
Present to future
Partners are one of the strongest routes to trust. The job becomes a pitch a partner can repeat, a reason worth their effort, and a joint value proposition both sides can state.
What the agent does
Maps partners by fit, drafts a joint value proposition and a repeatable pitch marked draft, and records which partner activity led to a conversation, using what partners and buyers say.
What the marketer or CMO decides
Which partners to back and which to say no to, the terms, and the relationship.
Shifts used here: S6 From attribution software alone to self-reported answers and simple signals; S8 From one-way outbound to community and partner-led. Read the full framework and sources.
1. What the agent does
Agents check, draft, map and record. A person approves anything that leaves the company.
- Build or refresh the partner map for referrals, resellers and distributors.
- Watch for signals (hires, bids, certifications) and flag timing windows.
- Draft the pitch and the joint brief, using only verified proof.
- Package a brief for the strategist: who to approach, with what, and when.
- After human action, record the deals and meetings that came back and update the maturity position.
Where a person approves
- The strategist decides, negotiates and owns every partner relationship; agents never contact partners without approval.
- Approval of every pitch before it leaves, and of any claim about the client.
- Margin, referral reward and market-development funds are set by people, never by an agent.
- Named companies are examples of a type only; never imply a relationship with them.
Maturity scale (DRONICS): Unaware, Reactive, Targeted, Orchestrated, Demand engine. Full letter page
2. The leader lens
How other well-regarded B2B marketing leaders would approach this letter, each named with a source. These are their opinions, not evidence about any company, and none of them has a relationship with Foundronics.
How to apply
- L5 (Kramer): Define the one to three perceptions we want partners to echo to their own customers, and test in conversation whether they repeat them in their own words.
- L2 (Dunford): Keep the repeatable pitch to a few value themes tied to the partner's customers' real alternatives, often the status quo, not a feature list.
A person decides: the strategist approves which leader-lens suggestions are used; agents draft and check only.
Sources for this lens
3. The CMO lens
What a good B2B CMO would do for this letter. The lens follows the public writing of Dave Gerhardt. It is our reading, not his endorsement of Foundronics.
What a great CMO would do
- Treat the partner's sales team as a customer: learn what they need in their first three calls and give it to them.
- Make marketing make selling easier: simple, repeatable assets, with the value clear before asking for anything.
- Do what does not scale: a phone call with the partner team is worth more than a portal upload.
A weekly rhythm
- Mon: refresh partner and asset status.
- Tue: draft a partner-ready one-pager and call script (`draft`).
- Wed: list the partner questions heard.
- Thu: strategist runs the partner conversation.
- Fri: record what came back.
An example
Hypothetical (a security-software vendor, illustration only): the agent drafts a one-page guide for a reseller: which customer to call, what to say, which proof to show. The strategist presents it live.
What to avoid
- Do not send a whole catalogue of material.
- Do not ask before giving value.
- Do not name partners as signed when they are not.
A person decides: Which resellers and distributors to prioritise and what the company will commit. Agents draft and check; the strategist decides.
Sources for this lens
- P3. Do things that do not scale. Talk to customers directly, one by one. Source
- P4. Marketing should make selling easier. Case studies, comparisons and research help both sales and buyers. Source
- P7. Keep to the fundamentals: know your customer, use simple direct language, give value before asking, be transparent, measure what matters, and earn word of mouth. Source
4. The partner marketing lens
What good partner marketing looks like for the partners this letter works with. It draws on public Partnership Leaders articles. Foundronics has no relationship with them.
What to do
- Agree one narrow joint message the partner can carry to its customers; avoid generic catalogues (PM3).
- Tier partners by fit and put effort behind the few that matter (PM5).
- Ask what the partner's sales and marketing teams need, give simple assets, and agree a clear way to measure use (PM6).
A weekly rhythm
- Mon: review which partners are active and which assets were used.
- Tue: draft a joint-message one-pager and a short brief with named owners.
- Wed: list partner questions heard.
- Thu: strategist reviews the brief with the partner contact.
- Fri: record pipeline or meetings that came back (PM7).
An example
Hypothetical (a software vendor with a regional reseller, illustration only): the agent drafts a one-page joint brief: one buyer question, who owns each asset, what each side promotes and on which dates, and which two numbers will be reviewed in 30 days. The strategist decides whether to send it.
What to avoid
- Do not promise social support or reach nobody controls.
- Do not spread effort equally over all partners; put it where it counts.
- Do not imply the partner has agreed.
A person decides: Which partner gets joint marketing effort and what the company funds. Agents draft and check; the strategist decides.
Sources for this lens
- PM1. Partner marketing is two or more companies using each other’s strengths and audiences for a shared goal, mainly demand for both around a joint value proposition. Source (from a third party’s summary; check before quoting)
- PM5. Tier partners, put more effort behind the high-potential ones, and say no when needed. Source (from a third party’s summary; check before quoting)
- PM6. Be clear on goals, roles and expectations. Use a partner scorecard, tailor incentives, and map partners across the customer journey. Source is an excerpt. Source (from a third party’s summary; check before quoting)
- PM7. Track leading indicators such as joint campaigns, joint events, pipeline and deals, and review quarterly. Source (from a third party’s summary; check before quoting)
5. Check yourself
A free self-assessment for DRONICS-R. It takes a few minutes and needs no sign-in.
Take the DRONICS-R self-assessment
The examples on this page are hypothetical illustrations. A named company is an example of a type, never a customer or partner of Foundronics.
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