25. How to Collaborate in Business: Why Coopetition Can Help You Grow
Updated: 3 days ago
Entrepreneurship can be exciting, fulfilling and wildly empowering.
It can also be lonely.
When you're the person making the decisions, delivering the work, creating content, answering emails, managing the money and trying to remember what you're making for dinner, it's easy to fall into the mindset that you have to figure everything out yourself.
And somewhere along the way, other business owners can start looking less like potential connections and more like competition.
Especially the ones doing something similar to you.
But what if they aren't?
Or at least, what if they don't only have to be competitors?
Learning how to collaborate with other entrepreneurs has introduced me to new audiences, given me access to skills and perspectives I didn't have, created referral relationships, opened up new marketing opportunities and—maybe just as importantly—made entrepreneurship feel a whole lot less lonely.
And yes, sometimes that means collaborating with people who technically compete with you.
There's even a word for it: Coopetition.
So let's talk about collaboration vs. competition, why working with other businesses can help you grow, and some practical collaboration ideas you can actually try.
If we haven't met yet, I’m Brittany, an online marketing strategist for female entrepreneurs. I teach women how to make their entrepreneurial dreams a reality through smart, actionable marketing strategies that get them seen, loved, and paid. Whether you’re eager to DIY your way to success or hire professionals to help you along the way–my goal is to make sure you walk away with the clarity you need to see the results you desire and build a life you love.
Table of Contents
What Is Coopetition?
Let's start with the slightly strange word.
Coopetition combines cooperation and competition.
It's the idea that two businesses can technically compete in the same market while also recognizing opportunities to work together.
Imagine two social media strategists.
On paper? Competitors.
But maybe one loves working with local brick-and-mortar businesses while the other primarily serves online coaches.
Maybe one specializes in strategy while the other loves done-for-you content creation.
Maybe one has a full client roster and needs someone trustworthy to refer inquiries to.
Maybe they have completely different personalities and attract different clients.
They can compete and collaborate. You see this in plenty of industries.
Independent businesses can work together to make more people aware of their entire category rather than fighting over one tiny pool of existing customers.
Instead of thinking: "There's only so much business to go around."
Coopetition asks: "How can we make the pie bigger?"
Because there is room for more than one photographer, social media manager, coach, copywriter, designer, wellness professional or consultant.
Not every client is your client. And that's actually a good thing! I share more about this on the full episode of Go Get Great which you can listen to here or on your favourite streaming platform:
Collaboration vs. Competition: Do You Have to Choose?
I don't think collaboration and competition have to be opposites.
Competition isn't inherently bad.
It can encourage innovation.
Show you what's possible.
Help you identify what makes your business different.
Push an industry forward.
The problem comes when competition convinces you that someone else's success threatens yours.
Suddenly you don't want to share another business's content because what if someone likes them more?
You won't recommend another service provider because what if the client never comes back?
You hesitate to connect with people in your own industry because you assume you're all fighting for the same customers.
That's a very small way to build a business.
Collaboration gives you another option.
You can confidently say: "They're really good at what they do."
without adding: "...which obviously means I am terrible at what I do." 😂
Both things can exist at the same time.
Should You Collaborate With Your Competitors?
Sometimes, absolutely.
But that doesn't mean you should collaborate with every person who has the same job title.
A good competitor collaboration needs alignment.
Ask:
Do our audiences overlap?
Do I respect their work?
Do our values align?
Do we have different strengths or approaches?
Could we create something together that's genuinely more useful?
Would I feel comfortable recommending this person to a client?
That last question is particularly important.
Collaboration involves transferring some of the trust you've built with your audience to another person. Protect that.
But when the fit is right, collaborating with a competitor can create referrals, learning opportunities, shared content and a much stronger professional network.
And referrals aren't necessarily lost business.
If someone isn't a fit for you—or you simply don't have capacity—connecting them with someone you trust still creates a positive experience.
That business owner may eventually return the favour. The client may remember that you helped them.
And you've strengthened your reputation as someone who genuinely wants people to find the right support.
How to Find the Right Businesses to Collaborate With
If you're wondering how to collaborate in business, don't start by creating an elaborate collaboration pitch.
Start with people.
Look at businesses that serve a similar audience but solve a different problem.
For example, a social media strategist might naturally collaborate with a:
Copywriter.
Brand photographer.
Web designer.
Email marketer.
Business coach.
Podcast manager.
Graphic designer.
Local small-business organization.
The services don't need to be identical.
In fact, complementary services often make collaborations easier because your audiences immediately understand the connection.
Ask yourself: Who else does my ideal client need before, during or after they need me?
There's your collaboration list. And then build actual relationships before appearing in someone's inbox with: "Hi stranger! Would you like to give me access to your audience?" 😂
Follow their work.
Comment.
Have conversations.
Share something useful they've created.
Meet people through networking events or communities.
The best collaborations usually start with relationships rather than cold pitches.
Collaboration Idea #1: Email List Features
One of my favourite collaboration ideas for business is also one of the simplest:
Introduce another entrepreneur to your email list.
You could share:
A helpful free resource.
An upcoming workshop.
Their podcast.
A product you genuinely use.
A service your audience might need.
An event.
They can do the same for you.
This works particularly well because email audiences have already chosen to hear from you.
If I introduce someone by saying: "I've worked with this person, trust them and think you should know about what they're doing," that carries more weight than the person appearing randomly in your Instagram feed.
But again: protect that trust.
Don't promote something simply because somebody agreed to promote you in return.
Ask whether you'd recommend it even without the swap.
If the answer is no, don't put it in front of your audience.
For a more formal email collaboration, agree beforehand on what you're sharing, when the emails will go out, what the CTA is and what each person is hoping to accomplish. Simple. Mutually beneficial. And useful to both audiences.
Collaboration Idea #2: Networking and Referrals
Networking sometimes gets reduced to: "Go into a room, collect as many business cards as possible and aggressively explain what you do."
No wonder people, including myself hate it. 😂
Try approaching networking as a way to build your business ecosystem instead.
Who do you enjoy talking to?
Who serves similar people?
Whose work do you respect?
Who has knowledge you don't?
Who might you refer business to?
Who could potentially refer business to you?
The person you meet doesn't need to become your client for that conversation to be valuable.
They might invite you onto a podcast six months later.
Introduce you to somebody.
Become a referral partner.
Collaborate on an event.
Answer a question when you're stuck.
Or simply become one of the people you can message and say: "Is business being weird for you this week too?" 😂
That's valuable.
Collaboration Idea #3: Joint Webinars and Workshops
Joint webinars can be fantastic because they allow two people to combine expertise around one shared audience problem.
The important part is starting with the problem, not the two businesses.
Don't say: "Brittany knows social media and Sarah knows nutrition. Let's do a webinar!"
Okay...about what?
Instead ask: What problem do both of our audiences have that we're uniquely equipped to solve together?
Maybe a marketing strategist and wellness professional teach entrepreneurs how to plan their work around energy and business demands.
A photographer and social strategist could teach business owners how to create a bank of brand photos they can actually turn into content.
A copywriter and web designer could teach people what their service-based website needs to convert.
Now the collaboration makes sense.
When you're planning it, decide:
Who teaches what?
Who hosts?
Who handles registration?
Who creates the promotional content?
Who receives the attendee information?
What happens with the replay?
How will you follow up?
What is the CTA afterward?
Those conversations aren't particularly exciting, but they prevent a lot of: "Oh...I thought you were doing that." later.
Collaboration Idea #4: Social Media Collaborations
Social media gives you plenty of ways to collaborate without creating an entire event.
You could create a collaborative Reel or post.
Host a Live.
Do a Q&A.
Feature another business in your Stories.
Share each other's useful content.
Create a recurring educational series.
Or run an aligned giveaway.
The key word there is aligned.
A giveaway that attracts 5,000 people who only want the prize doesn't necessarily help your business.
I'd rather collaborate with someone who gives me exposure to 100 people who are genuinely relevant than 10,000 people who will never care about what I do.
Same with collaborative content.
Don't collaborate purely because someone has a large following.
Ask: Would their audience genuinely benefit from knowing me?
And: Would my audience genuinely benefit from knowing them?
If both answers are yes, you're onto something.
Collaboration Idea #5: Podcast and Blog Features
Considering you're reading a blog connected to a podcast episode, this one feels particularly appropriate. 😂
Guest content is one of my favourite forms of collaboration because everybody gets something useful. A podcast host gets expertise and a new perspective for their audience.
The guest gets introduced to people who may never have discovered them otherwise. The audience gets useful content.
And both people walk away with something they can continue sharing.
The same principle applies to:
Guest blog posts.
YouTube interviews.
Newsletter interviews.
Expert roundups.
Case studies.
Collaborative guides.
You don't necessarily need to create something together from scratch. Sometimes giving someone access to your platform and expertise is the collaboration.
Collaboration Idea #6: Service Exchanges
This is one I have personally used in my business.
When you're building a business, the shopping list of things you could pay someone to help with is approximately endless.
Website.
Copywriting.
Marketing.
Photography.
Bookkeeping.
Tech.
Design.
Equipment.
And especially early on, the money for all of those things isn't necessarily sitting in your business bank account waiting patiently to be spent.
A service exchange or barter arrangement can help.
You provide something you're good at. They provide something you need. No money changes hands, but value does.
I've exchanged marketing support for services my business needed, and these arrangements can be genuinely helpful when they're structured properly.
The important word is properly.
Barter doesn't mean: "We'll both just kind of help each other whenever forever."
Please don't do that to yourself. 😂
Treat it like paid work. Define:
What each person provides.
The approximate value.
Deliverables.
Timeline.
Revision limits.
Communication.
Anything explicitly excluded.
And make sure you actually want what you're receiving.
Free isn't a good deal if you don't need it. Service exchanges can be an incredibly useful form of coopetition or collaboration, but they should still respect everyone's time and expertise.
How to Pitch a Business Collaboration
This is one area I'd add to the original episode because it answers the natural next question: Okay, but how do I actually ask someone to collaborate?
Don't make it complicated.
Start with why them.
Show that you're familiar with their work. Then explain the connection you see between your audiences or expertise.
Offer a specific idea.
And explain why you think it could benefit both sides. Something like:
I've really enjoyed your content around X, and I think there's a natural overlap between your audience and mine. I had an idea for a joint Instagram Live about X, where I could cover Y and you could share your perspective on Z. I think it could give both of our communities some really practical takeaways. Would you be interested in chatting about it?
Notice what's missing?
"You have 38,000 followers and I would like some of them." 😂
Make the collaboration about shared value, not access and give people room to say no.
A collaboration can be a good idea and still not fit someone's current capacity.
I have a whole blog post sharing tips to pitch yourself as a podcast guest and actually get booked, including a sample pitch letter. You can find it here.
What Makes a Business Collaboration Work?
Whether you're swapping services, recording a podcast or building an entire joint offer, the same basic principles apply.
You need alignment.
The audiences don't have to be identical, but the partnership should make sense.
You need mutual value.
That doesn't necessarily mean everything has to be exactly 50/50, but both parties should understand what they're gaining and contributing.
You need clear expectations.
Who's doing what?
When?
What are you allowed to do with the resulting content?
Who's paying for expenses?
Who owns leads or registrations?
And you need communication.
Please do not build an entire collaboration based on assumptions.
Talk about the awkward logistical things before they become awkward logistical problems.
The best collaborations feel easy to the audience because the people behind them did the work to make expectations clear.
Business Collaboration FAQs
What does coopetition mean?
Coopetition combines cooperation and competition. It describes businesses that may compete within the same market but also work together when doing so can create value for both businesses, their audiences or the industry as a whole.
What is the difference between collaboration vs. competition?
Competition focuses on businesses independently working to attract customers or market share, while collaboration involves working together toward a shared outcome. The two aren't mutually exclusive. Businesses can compete in some areas while collaborating through referrals, education, events or shared marketing.
How do you collaborate with another business?
Start by finding a business with a compatible audience, values and goal. Build a genuine relationship, identify something you could create or promote together, clearly define what each person will contribute and agree on responsibilities before beginning.
What are some collaboration ideas for businesses?
Business collaboration ideas include email features, podcast interviews, guest blogs, webinars, workshops, social media Lives, collaborative posts, referrals, giveaways, service exchanges, joint resources and networking partnerships.
Should I collaborate with my competition?
You can collaborate with competitors when the relationship is respectful and your businesses have enough distinction to create mutual value. Competitors may have different specialties, capacity, approaches or ideal clients, which can make referrals and shared educational content particularly useful.
What are some collaboration strategies that don't cost money?
Try sharing another business's content, creating a collaborative social post, hosting a Live, swapping email features, guesting on a podcast, exchanging blog content, building referral relationships or arranging a fair service exchange.
How do I know whether a business collaboration is a good fit?
Look for audience alignment, compatible values, mutual benefit, complementary expertise and clear communication. Most importantly, ask whether you'd feel comfortable recommending the other business to your own audience.
Final Thoughts: You Don't Have to Grow Alone
Business does not have to be one giant race against everybody doing something remotely similar to you.
You can celebrate another entrepreneur's win without taking anything away from yours.
You can recommend someone in your industry.
Refer the client who isn't right for you.
Share somebody else's resource.
Invite another expert onto your platform.
Trade skills.
Create something together.
And yes, you can even collaborate with your competition.
If you're learning how to collaborate, don't start by trying to create some enormous partnership.
Pick one person.
Start a conversation.
Share their work.
Invite them for coffee.
Suggest a Live.
Make the introduction.
See where it goes.
Because sometimes your next growth opportunity isn't hiding inside another thing you need to learn or another task you need to do yourself.
It might be sitting inside a conversation with someone building right alongside you. For more marketing and business growth suggestions tune into the other 100+ episode of the Go Get Great podcast.
Episode References
Interested in collaborating with me? Let's connect!
Give us a follow if you're ready to take life from good to great, you'll be the first to know when we share more about motherhood and business. If it really resonated, the kids and I would do a happy dance if you left us a review 💗 ~ Brittany
00:00 Intro
2:00 Defining collaboration and co-opetition
3:40 Should you work with your competition?
7:40 The power of list sharing
9:13 Networking, do we really need to?
10:24 What about joint webinars?
13:00 Social media as a collaboration tool
16:30 Service exchanges can accelerate your business
18:30 Wrap up
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