Co-marketing
koh-MAR-keh-ting
A joint marketing effort between two companies to promote a shared initiative, integration, or event to both audiences.
Co-marketing is when two companies market together. Joint webinars, co-authored blog posts, shared case studies, and integration launch campaigns are all co-marketing. Each company brings their audience; both benefit from the combined reach.
Co-marketing works because it is not advertising. A webinar co-hosted by two technology partners your audience trusts carries more credibility than a solo promotion. The partner's endorsement implies your product is worth their reputation.
The key to good co-marketing is alignment. The best co-marketing campaigns serve both audiences equally. A webinar that is 80% a product pitch for one company and 20% filler from the partner will not perform. Both sides must deliver genuine value. It is a natural extension of partner-led growth.
Examples
Two companies co-host a webinar.
A CRM company and an email marketing tool host a webinar on 'building a modern sales stack.' Each company presents for 20 minutes on their area of expertise. Both promote to their email lists. The webinar gets 1,200 registrants, double what either company would get alone.
Partners create a joint case study.
A customer uses both products together. The partners co-author a case study showing the combined value. Both sales teams use it in their pitches. The case study is more persuasive because it shows a complete solution, not just one piece.
Partners launch an integration together.
Both companies align on a launch date. They publish coordinated blog posts. Both send launch emails to their lists. They run a joint LinkedIn campaign. The integration gets 500 activations in the first week, far more than a quiet release would achieve.
In practice
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Frequently asked questions
How do you split the work in co-marketing?
Typically each company handles promotion to their own audience and contributes equally to content creation. Define ownership upfront: who creates the landing page, who designs the assets, who writes the copy, and who handles follow-up leads.
How do you measure co-marketing success?
Track combined reach (total registrants, total impressions), leads generated for each company, integration activations, and downstream revenue from co-marketing sourced leads. Both companies should agree on metrics before the campaign starts.
Related terms
A sales collaboration where two companies work together to close a deal, leveraging each other's relationships and expertise.
A company whose product integrates with yours, creating mutual value through a shared technical connection.
A go-to-market strategy where partnerships with other companies drive customer acquisition and revenue through co-selling and integrations.
The process of promoting and sharing content across channels to reach your target audience after publication.
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