??How to land a DREAM partnership

Back in the 70s, the average person saw between 500 to 1600 ads per day. In 2007, this crept up to 5,000 ads per day. By 2021, the average person encountered between 6,000 to 10,000 ads every single day.

So when I started ideating about bringing the ad model into Generalist World, I fervently avoided it.

But with bills to pay, staff to pay, and self-funding the entire business, I knew that sponsorship was something I shouldn't avoid.

Instead, I chose to approach it how I do every part of the business: with a critical eye, and a bias for throwing out the rule book.

The result? The DREAMIEST partnership that's turns out to be a win-win for everyone involved.

Yep, it's a little unconventional. A wee bit different. But it's one that feels right.

And as a committed build-in-public-er, I wanted to share how we structured this. Hopefully, this can inspire less transactional relationships and more positive-sum partnerships.

Here's a step-by-step breakdown of how I landed my dream sponsor:

Step one. Show up consistently.

1. For 18 months I've been showing up on LinkedIn on the good, the bad, the stressful, and the days where I was frankly pretty lost. I've committed to sharing the building process as transparently and honestly as I can.
2. Build brand equity. When people see you showing up again and again, they come to trust you. Once you have trust, you need to deliver great content. I've intentionally invested in hiring folks from the GW community to help write consistently high-quality content, this gave us a solid foundation of brand equity. People know us. People trust us.
3. And then you wait...... (this is the tricky part nobody speaks about??). One day, Evan Noll reached out to me via cold DM with a super casual, friendly message (which has been the tone for our entire partnership). She asked: were we open to sponsorship?

This is where the thinking on my side began.

I created a Notion doc with:

• What we bring to the table
• Very explicitly what we stand for, what our values are, and what an ideal partnership looks like for us

The crux of the doc being: we're looking for a partner. A collaborator. An equal, rather than a transaction.

I'm still not sure if we hit the jackpot crossing paths with Evan, or if all VPs of Growth are this awesome, but she was immediately on the same page.

Evan Noll runs growth at BoomPop . They thoughtfully design amazing events for companies (think offsites, gatherings, summits etc). There's an obvious massive crossover in who we help, so there was clear alignment in terms of how we could collaborate, rather than just transact.

I spent an afternoon digging into their testimonials, their ethos, their quality of service. Lo and behold. They ticked ALL the boxes.

My excitement levels began to rise ??

Step 2: What's our why??

After a few messages back and forth, it was time for a call to figure out our mutual 'why?'. Why we were coming together to collaborate? Why now? Why would we be great partners?

It was here that Lindsey Lerner stepped in. You see, Lindsey and I had been ideating what a Generalist Podcast could look like. We knew there was a clear gap in the market. We knew there was massive demand. But to get a podcast off the ground takes a bit of resource.

And then, a lightbulb went off.

Perhaps this could be our why. Perhaps we team up with BoomPop , who believe in the vision of what we want to create, and together we can make it a reality.

What if our 'why' was for BoomPop to put their stake in the ground and say "YES, we'll be your early believer!"

Then came, the 'same page' realization ??

You see, Generalist World ?? is already a leading force in the generalist conversation. By pledging support, Boompop's hopping on the train with us. And together - we can move further, faster. This is what partnership is all about.

It became clear that BoomPop's motivation wasn't to convert as many GW members to BoomPop customers as possible (eg: the traditional sponsorship model). No. Their motivation was much more aligned, and IMO, much smarter. They're thinking long-term.

BoomPop 's audience could massively benefit from this podcast being in existence and Generalist World ?? was uniquely positioned to be the one to bring it to life.

Add in a few more sprinkles of other ways we can collaborate IRL (more on this to be announced soon... ??) and, voila, we had ourselves a very compelling 'why'.

Step 3: Crafting an offering that's win-win

The foundations for our partnership are:

• Clear expectations
• Explicit deliverables
• Transparent process
• Aligned mission

I crafted a simple offering hitting these points. Just a simple Notion doc, with 3 clearly priced packages, nothing fancy, and no hidden agendas.

I clicked send. My excitement levels rose to a 6.5/10 ??

Step 4: Legal signs off, we're off to the races

After a few contractual language tweaks, we both signed on the dotted line, and payment was sent at record speed.

It had just struck 8pm on a Friday evening and I was about to tuck into dinner when the notification came through..... My excitement levels reached record-breaking new heights (read: dancing around my living room) ????

BUT it's not why you may think.....

Yes, undoubtedly revenue is a fantastic boost for any business, but especially a bootstrapped / self-funded / independent company like Generalist World ?? .

But more than this, BoomPop 's sponsorship proved that:

• Sponsors can be driven by collaboration, not transaction
• Sponsorship doesn't have to feel gross and icky and like you're selling out. In fact, it shouldn't. To me, this feels like I've made a decision that benefits Generalist World members and the wider generalist movement. This is a strong signal that it's moving us in the right direction, for the right reasons
• And finally, it reiterates that money is, in fact, a vehicle. By now having extra resources to pour into Generally Curious , it's going to be 10x better straight out the gate, and more impactful, than if we were trying to stitch together enough cash to make it the level of quality it deserves.

And with that - go and give Generally Curious some ?? We have an UNBELIEVABLE lineup of Season One guests, so be sure to subscribe to get notified when our episodes go live.

We'll be providing space, a platform, and a microphone to tell the stories of world-class generalists. Folks who have danced across domains, industries, and problems. Who's CVs look unusual, but whose experience, by all measures, is incredible.

It's time the microphone went to the problem solvers, the dot connectors, the operators and the builders.

Generally Curious will be packed with tactical and strategic advice you can apply to your own squiggly career immediately.

This is the podcast I wish existed for my entire generalist career.

The biggest shoutouts must go to:

Lindsey Lerner , my partner in podcasting! This whole experience has been SO FUN and so smooth and you are a powerhouse at this stuff. Thank you.

Big Lux for the gorgeous podcast music (it was love at first listen).

The Generalist World ?? community for all your support AND for being involved in the making of the trailer .

Ece Kurtaraner for facilitating a super fun launch party!

Andrew Linn for being an impeccably fast, reliable, and professional podcast producer

And, ofc, Evan Noll , and the BoomPop team, for being an incredible partner every step of the way.