One of the most common problems for a lot of EU partners is establishing partnerships. We all know how important it is to have the best possible partners in order for us to be able to implement the best possible projects. Whether we are implementing Erasmus plus projects for Horizon 2020 projects we are always going to want to make sure that you will find the partners with the most experience and the most expertise.
Equally, potential partners are going to be looking for the exact same thing from us. If your organisation is only just starting in the world of European projects and you’re going to have to accept the fact that your lack of experience and expertise might be one of the main reasons as to why partners are not going to choose you. If you communicate through emails and you try to establish partnerships through the Internet you might realise that it is a bit more difficult than what you may originally have thought. In this matter, creating an announcement email and keeping your tone professional is crucial to building effective partnerships.
One of the greatest opportunities and EU partner has to establish new partnerships is events. European events are happening here and there all the time. If you do have the budget for it and we definitely suggest you find the budget for it, you need to attend as many of those events as possible. There are a few simple steps that you can follow in those events aiming at scoring a few partners when you get back. In this article we are going to show you those steps and explain each step to you, to help establish the best partnerships in EU events.
A smile goes along way.
How many times have you attended an event, not necessarily an EU event and you tried to talk to the person that obviously did not want to talk to you? At least that’s what you thought. That person may have actually been very interested in talking to you but if they did not have a happy face and a smile then, you’re most likely misinterpreted their intentions.
The moment you go to these events you need to show people that you are an open person willing to cooperate and collaborate in the best way possible. You’re trying to convince those people to become your associates. If you do not seem like a happy pleasant person to work with and we can guarantee that no one is going to want to work with you. A smile goes a long way and it can definitely help you set some pretty good foundations to start establishing partnerships.
Bring your portfolio with you.
Whether you have an old organisation or a new organisation there is something that you can put in your portfolio. The moment you go to an event and someone approaches you aiming to become your partner what is the very first thing you’re going to think about? The answer is quite simple. You will want to know what kind of experience and expertise that person or their organisation has.
As you understand, the organisation you’re aiming to approach is basically going to expect the same thing from you. Simply showing up and starting to talk about what you can do is not going to be enough. They will want to see facts. They will want to see your portfolio and by having it with you you’re going to be saving so much time and possibly moving the collaboration forward.
Now of course, were not talking about having pages of the pages of portfolio and expect the partner or potential partners to see them. But what you can do is to have a leaflet or a much more compact form of your portfolio that you can carry around and show people. Something that will be enough to show off your work but not too much to ask to make them feel tired or pressured to read it at that particular moment. Perhaps, something that you can give them to take with when they leave the event. You will be surprised by the number of partners who actually studying these types of papers later in the hotel room with a clear mind.
Bring your business card with you.
A business card is essential. The moment you approach a potential partner you will want to know that, that partner will be able to contact you whenever they need. After all, you’re the one trying to approach a new organisation and establish a partnership. If you do not have a business card with you with all the appropriate contact information on it you have lost that partner.
We can guarantee that they are not going to go online and try to search for your organisation. If you don’t give them a card to put in your wallet or their pocket there is a pretty good chance that, when they leave the event they will have actually forgotten about your organisation. Your card is not just going to be a paper with a contact number and email on it. It will be a reminder that you were there that you spoke to that person and that the actually wanted to get your card. 85% of the time the partners who have your card will contact you and those contacts can very easily turn into possible collaborations.
Talk about your ideas but don’t reveal too much.
Try to think about this from the point of view of the partner you want to approach. Someone is coming your way and they are claiming that they can be excellent partners for your Horizon 2020 proposal or your Erasmus plus proposal. Yes, you might be willing to listen to them but if they don’t have a portfolio with them your most likely going to get bored and eventually think that, they are not really professionals that they are not fit for your consortium.
However, what happens when that person actually starts talking about an idea that they have that could really easily fit your proposal? Whether that idea is complete and you can add it to your proposal straightaway or it needs more work, you’re definitely going to be interested. If the person gives you the entire idea who is to stop you from simply taking it and adding it to your proposal without necessarily establishing a collaboration with that person?
You must not be surprised to learn that there is a very big number of potential partners out there who would be willing to do something like that. After all, more partners means more obligations and is definitely not something that a lot of EU partners want. It is a smart idea for you to present a research idea that you might have but make sure that you will only give enough information to leave the partners wanting more and actually give them a reason to contact you.
Do your homework before the event.
How many times have you started talking to potential partner in an event and somewhere in the middle of the conversation you actually realise that, that person did not really know exactly what they were talking about? It seems like seemed like they did not really study the Erasmus plus guidebook or the Horizon 2020 guidebook. They simply went to the event aiming to become part of the consortium and basically not too much of the work themselves.
When you go to an event to talk about the specific programme or to approach potential partners for long-term partnerships you’re going to want to make sure that you will sound as professional as possible. Studying the official guidebooks and documentation from the European Union is going to have to be your number one priority. You will be an experienced partner with a lot of knowledge that will certainly seem reliable to any potential partner you might want to approach.
Show off your online professional profile.
A lot of partners do not know that but, having a website with complete information that gets updated every single day is actually the kind of website that can provide them the opportunity to learn more about European projects and programmes and of course, find more partners. If you do have an online presence meaning that you have a website, you will want to make sure that, that website will be updated as much as possible.
At the same time, actually do go to those events it is a good idea for you to reference your website when you are talking about things that could potentially book a partnership for you. For example, if your website has a lot of blog posts, news and updates on European programs and you’re definitely going to want potential partners to know about that.
You will basically be giving them a place with concentrated knowledge that they can visit every time they want to learn something new. Eventually, that place is going to become a brand in their mind and the brand will be organisation. We can guarantee that, they are going to start reaching out to you aiming to establish a partnership with you before you know it.
These are six very simple yet very important steps that you are going to want to take when you attend an EU event aiming at procuring partnerships for your EU project. You need to remember that you want to enter consortiums but at the same time you want to add people to yours as well. You need to understand that the relationship you’re going to establish with your partners is going to be a give-and-take relationship.
You cannot just expect other people to put you into their consortium. You will need to give them something back. That could be a spot in the consortium of projects you are preparing, expertise that you can put on the table or perhaps extra value that you can add to their proposal. Whichever the case, you will want to make sure that you will establish a clear communication channel. You will want them to know exactly what you can offer, that your available for a potential collaboration and perhaps a long-term partnership.
These events can be a real lifesaver for you and your organisation. The more recent you don’t then the more likely you are to understand how important they can be. We are not suggesting you attend every single one of them. The budget needed for something like that is massive. However, if you do plan on that ahead and you set some of your budget on the site just for these events you will definitely be able to attend at least three or four within the year.
These three or four events will be enough for you to meet at least a hundred potential new partners. You can exchange business cards with all of them and yes, you can return back to your own country and try to contact them as well. By making a good impression the channel will be open from both sides. You’re not the only one who is going to be making an effort to contact the partners. You will receive a lot of emails and you will definitely be able to start establishing partnerships with organisations you did not even know existed. Events can be an amazing opportunity for you to make sure that you’re not going to neglect it. Establish partnerships today.
