Identifying Your Strategic Targets

The Partnership Opportunity Map

Before you send a single email, you need to understand the ecosystem around your product and identify who controls the levers that could accelerate your growth.

Map your opportunity landscape:

1. Distribution Partners

Who: Companies that reach your ideal customers

Examples:

• Complementary products that could integrate with yours
• Platforms where your customers already spend time
• Companies with email lists or audiences you want to reach

Partnership opportunities:

• Integration partnerships
• Cross-promotional campaigns
• Affiliate programs
• Co-marketing initiatives

Real Examples:

• Notion + Zapier: Zapier integrates with Notion, driving new users to both platforms through workflow automation
• Spotify + Uber: Spotify integration in Uber rides, letting passengers play their music during trips
• Canva + Mailchimp: Canva's design tools integrated into Mailchimp's email platform for seamless design-to-send workflow

2. Content Partners

Who: Creators, influencers, and media outlets who produce content for your audience

Examples:

• YouTubers in your space
• Newsletter writers
• Podcast hosts
• Industry bloggers
• Social media influencers

Partnership opportunities:

• Sponsored content
• Product reviews
• Guest appearances
• Content collaborations
• Product giveaways/sweepstakes

Real Examples:

• Athletic Greens + Tim Ferriss: Long-term sponsorship of Tim Ferriss's podcast, with custom discount codes and authentic endorsements
• Morning Brew + Typeform: Sponsored newsletter sections featuring Typeform's surveys and forms for business use cases
• Headspace + Casey Neistat: YouTube collaboration where Casey documented his meditation journey using Headspace

3. Strategic Advisors

Who: Experienced founders, executives, or experts in your space

Examples:

• Founders who've built similar companies
• Executives at companies you admire
• Industry experts and thought leaders
• Potential investors or board members

Partnership opportunities:

• Advisory roles
• Mentorship relationships
• Fundraising
• Access to talent

Real Examples:

• Airbnb + Reid Hoffman: LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman advised Airbnb during critical growth phase, providing network and strategic guidance
• Stripe + Peter Thiel: Early advisor and investor who helped shape Stripe's market strategy and provided credibility
• Discord + Stan Chudnovsky: Former head of Messenger at Facebook advised Discord on scaling messaging platforms

4. Platform Partners

Who: Companies or platforms that could amplify your reach

Examples:

• App stores and marketplaces
• Industry associations
• Event organizers
• Community platforms

Partnership opportunities:

• Featured placements
• Speaking opportunities
• Community partnerships
• Event sponsorships

Real Examples:

• Calm + Apple: Featured prominently in Apple's wellness initiatives and App Store promotions during mental health awareness campaigns
• Figma + Y Combinator: Official design tool partner for YC companies, gets exposure to every new batch of startups
• Loom + Product Hunt: Strategic partnership where Loom sponsors Product Hunt events and gets featured placement for relevant launches

The Research Framework

For each potential partner, you need to understand:

Their Audience:

• Who do they reach?
• How much overlap with your target market?
• What's their engagement like?

Their Goals:

• What are they trying to achieve?
• Where are they struggling?
• What would success look like for them?

Their Partnership History:

• Who have they worked with before?
• What kinds of deals do they do?
• What's their typical partnership structure?

Your Value Proposition:

• What can you offer them?
• How does this help them achieve their goals?
• Why is this a win-win?

Step-by-Step Research Walkthrough

Let's walk through researching Ali Abdaal from his YouTube channel as a potential content partner:

Step 1: Content Analysis (15 minutes)

1. Go to his YouTube channel (6.4M+ subscribers)
2. Watch his last 5 videos - what topics does he cover?
3. Note: He creates content about productivity, studying, building habits, entrepreneurship
4. Identify: Recent videos include “Mastering financial freedom”, Life Advice, YouTube Advice, Time Freedom, Productivity.

Step 2: Social Media Research (10 minutes)

1. Check his Twitter (@AliAbdaal)
2. Recent tweets: Sharing productivity tips, discussing his favorite apps and tools
3. Note his engagement: ~2000+ likes per tweet, very engaged audience
4. Identify trigger moment: He tweeted last week asking followers "What's your #1 productivity struggle?"

Step 3: Partnership History Research (10 minutes)

1. Review his recent videos for sponsored content
2. Find: He regularly features productivity tools like Notion, Skillshare, Brilliant
3. Note the style: Always genuine reviews, explains how he actually uses the tools
4. Pattern: Only promotes tools he genuinely uses and believes help with productivity/learning

Step 4: Contact Information (5 minutes)

1. Check his YouTube about page - has business email
2. Website (aliabdaal.com) has contact form for business inquiries
3. Also responsive on Twitter for initial outreach

Step 5: Value Proposition Development (10 minutes)Based on research, your value prop could be:

• Data insights about what productivity habits actually stick
• Case studies of how his audience demographic uses productivity tools
• Early access to test new features with his engaged community

Total Research Time: 50 minutes for one high-value target

Template for Research Notes:

Name: Ali Abdaal
Platform: YouTube + Newsletter
Type: Content Partner  
Audience: 6.4M+ subscribers, young professionals/students interested in productivity
Recent Content: "Morning Routine for Productivity" (March 15), "Apps That Actually Work" (March 8)
Partnership History: Sponsored content with Notion, Skillshare, Brilliant - always authentic usage
Trigger Moment: Asked followers about "productivity struggles" on Twitter (March 20)
Value Prop Angle: Productivity habit data + young professional use cases
Contact: business@aliabdaal.com
Priority: High

Building Your Target List

Start with 20-30 high-value targets across categories:

• 5-8 distribution partners
• 8-12 content partners
• 3-5 strategic advisors
• 4-6 platform partners

Quality over quantity: It's better to deeply research 25 perfect targets than to have a list of 100 random contacts.

Use this simple tracker: