6 Selling through partners By Caroline Egan, Inspiren In addition to focusing on direct sales, startups should explore how partner relationships can assist their growth. Partners have potential to support your organizational objectives in many ways, for example, access to market, finan- cial and market credibility, procurement, delivery capability/skills, and scale. Remember that there are wide range of partners, so you need to understand the ecosystem, even if you aren’t immediately focusing on partner sales. Follow these seven tips from channel expert Caroline Egan to understand and optimize your partner strategy. 38