Integration Partnerships

---
name: integration-partnerships
description: >-
  Builds go-to-market for technology integration partnerships: partner
  selection, integration launch plans, marketplace listings, and co-selling
  motions. Use when the user is launching an integration, getting listed on a
  partner marketplace, or turning an integration into pipeline. Triggers on:
  "integration partnership", "tech partnership", "API partnership", "marketplace
  listing".
license: MIT
compatibility: Claude Code, Codex, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Gemini CLI, OpenCode, Goose, Hermes, Windsurf, Zed
metadata:
  version: "1.0.0"
  author: LeadMagic
  category: partnerships
  tags: [partnerships, integrations, technology-partners, marketplace, API]
  frameworks:
    - "Bob Moore — Ecosystem-Led Growth"
    - "Salesforce AppExchange and HubSpot App Marketplace — Listing requirements"
    - "Jay McBain (Canalys) — Partner ecosystem influence"
  related_skills:
    [
      partnership-strategy,
      co-marketing,
      leadmagic-integrations,
      api-enrichment,
      sales-enablement,
    ]
---

# Integration Partnerships

## Overview

Technology integration partnerships are the highest-ROI partnership type for
B2B SaaS. When your product integrates with a platform your ICP already uses,
discovery happens inside their workflow. This skill covers integration strategy,
GTM launch, marketplace presence, and co-selling.

## Authoritative Foundations
- **Bob Moore — Ecosystem-Led Growth** — Prioritize integration partners by customer overlap and co-sell potential, not logo size.
- **Salesforce AppExchange and HubSpot App Marketplace — Listing requirements** — Plan the security review, listing assets, and certification steps into the launch timeline.
- **Jay McBain (Canalys) — Partner ecosystem influence** — Integrations extend the influence of every partner who recommends the tool; brief partner teams, not only customers.

## When to Use

- "Build integration partnerships"
- "Launch a tech partnership"
- "Get listed on a marketplace"
- "Integration GTM strategy"

## Step-by-Step Process

### Phase 1: Integration Selection

Prioritize integrations by:

- **ICP overlap:** % of your ICP using this platform (score 1-10)
- **Workflow adjacency:** Does the integration happen where the user already is?
  (score 1-10)
- **Build complexity:** Hours to build a meaningful v1 integration
- **Partnership openness:** Does the platform have a partner program? marketplace?
- **Revenue potential:** Will this integration drive new deals or expand existing?

Score >35: Build now. Score 25-35: Build soon. Score <25: Deprioritize.

### Phase 2: Integration Design

- **Minimum Viable Integration (MVI):** What's the one thing users need the
  integration to do? Ship that first. Don't build 10 features.
- **Integration depth levels:**
  - Level 1: Data sync (push/pull data between systems)
  - Level 2: Workflow trigger (event in system A triggers action in system B)
  - Level 3: Embedded experience (your UI inside their product or vice versa)
  - Level 4: Co-created product (new product built on the integration)
- **Start at Level 1 or 2.** Level 3-4 takes years of partnership maturity.

### Phase 3: Partner GTM Launch

- **Integration announcement:** Blog post (both companies), email blast (both),
  social promotion (both), Product Hunt if appropriate
- **Joint documentation:** Setup guide with screenshots. < 5 minutes to activate.
- **Co-branded landing page:** "How [Partner] + [You] work together" with use cases
- **Sales enablement:** Both sales teams trained on the joint value prop.
  "If a prospect uses [Partner], mention our integration — it's often the reason
  they buy."
- **Customer migration path:** For prospects using a competitor + [Partner]:
  "Switch to [You] and keep your [Partner] integration — here's the migration guide."

### Phase 4: Marketplace Presence

- **App marketplace listing:** High-quality listing with: logo, 1-line description,
  detailed description, screenshots, setup guide, reviews, support link
- **Category optimization:** List in the most relevant categories. Monitor category
  ranking weekly — it drives discovery.
- **Reviews:** Get 10+ reviews from mutual customers. Ask within 30 days of integration
  activation. Respond to every review.
- **Featured placement:** Negotiate featured/app-of-the-week placement with the
  platform's partner team. Requires relationship building.

### Phase 5: Co-Selling

- **Account mapping:** Use Crossbeam/Reveal to identify shared accounts without
  sharing customer lists directly.
- **Co-selling play:** "We noticed you use [Partner]. Our integration with them
  enables [specific value]. Want to see it?"
- **Partner-sourced deals:** Formal deal registration so partners get credit
  for referring deals they identified through account mapping.
- **Joint QBRs:** Quarterly with top integration partners. Review shared pipeline,
  plan joint campaigns, align on roadmap.

## Output Format

Integration partnership plan with: partner prioritization matrix, MVI spec,
GTM launch checklist, marketplace optimization, and co-selling playbook.

## Quality Check

Before delivering, verify:

- [ ] All required sections are complete
- [ ] Output matches the user's stated need
- [ ] Named frameworks are cited for key recommendations
- [ ] No vague claims — every recommendation has a specific action
- [ ] Deliverable is ready for operational use, not just conceptual

## Common Pitfalls

1. **Skipping research.** Building output without understanding the specific context. Fix: always gather required inputs before producing deliverables.
2. **Generic output.** "Improve your process" without concrete steps. Fix: every recommendation must include a specific action, timeline, and owner.
3. **Missing framework citations.** Advice without named authorities. Fix: ground every recommendation in a cited framework from a recognized authority.

## Implementation Depth

Use this section when the user asks for a finished asset, not a high-level explanation.

### Diagnostic Questions

1. What is the primary motion: founder-led, sales-led, product-led, partner-led, or lifecycle-led?
2. Which ICP tier is the output for: small business, mid-market, enterprise, or mixed?
3. What proof is available today: customer stories, usage data, third-party validation, screenshots, or none?
4. What system will execute the work: CRM, sequencer, warehouse, support desk, product analytics, or manual workflow?
5. What decision will the user make from this output: launch, prioritize, route, rewrite, score, coach, or measure?

### Framework Application

Map the recommendation explicitly to the named frameworks in this skill:

- Technology Partnership Framework: apply only the part that directly improves the requested deliverable.
- Platform Ecosystem Strategy: apply only the part that directly improves the requested deliverable.
- Crossbeam — Ecosystem-Led Growth: apply only the part that directly improves the requested deliverable.

### Deliverable Standard

A strong output from this skill includes:

- A crisp diagnosis of the current situation
- A recommended path with tradeoffs, not a generic list
- A concrete artifact the user can use immediately: table, script, checklist, scorecard, sequence, dashboard spec, or implementation plan
- A measurement plan with leading and lagging indicators
- Risks and edge cases called out before execution

### Adaptation Rules

- For small business: reduce complexity, shorten time-to-value, and prioritize owner/operator clarity.
- For mid-market: include workflow ownership, handoffs, integrations, and enablement assets.
- For enterprise: include governance, risk, procurement, stakeholder mapping, and proof requirements.

## Execution Artifacts

- `references/framework-notes.md` — Named frameworks and reference tables
- `templates/output-template.md` — Deliverable shell for agent output
- `scripts/check-output.py` — Lightweight deliverable validator

## Related Skills

- partnership-strategy, co-marketing, leadmagic-integrations, api-enrichment, sales-enablement