The Partner-Led Growth Guide

How to build alignment, activate co-sell, and drive conversion

Cover and interior spread of partner-led growth ebook

The partner marketing reckoning is here

Master partner-led growth in 2025—or risk falling behind.

The old playbook of spray-and-pray campaigns, generic co-sell motions, and marketplace afterthoughts has become a liability. Meanwhile, partner marketing leaders are pulling ahead by:

  • Converting marketplace visitors at 3x industry average

  • Proving ROI that secures 40% more MDF allocation

  • Activating co-sell opportunities 90 days earlier with AI

These aren’t future goals, they’re today’s reality. The Partner-Led Growth Guide shows you how to close the gap.

DOWNLOAD YOUR PARTNER-LED GROWTH GUIDE

Why 67% of partner programs fail to scale

Most partner programs aren’t broken; they’re just built on an outdated playbook. Funnels have fractured, leadership is demanding ROI proof, and AI is separating leaders from laggards. These three gaps are where programs stall:

Icon of dimensional pie chart with arrow running upward in the background

Attribution

CFOs demand ROI proof. “Influenced revenue” is over, without attribution, partner marketing budgets disappear.

Icon showing  funnel that is open at the bottom with an arrow and x screened in the background

Conversion

Funnels are bloated at the top, thin in the middle, disconnected at the bottom. Leads alone don’t move pipeline.

Icon representing AI with connecting lines leading of profile of a head

AI precision

Manual partner management is now “competitive suicide”. Teams without AI-driven precision fall behind competitors moving faster.

Your roadmap to partner-led growth

Winning in today’s partner ecosystem isn’t about more content or bigger events. It’s about precision. The Partner-Led Growth Guide breaks down the five areas where high-performing teams are creating measurable impact:

  • Marketplaces as performance channels with listings that drive pipeline

  • Co-sell that converts through joint plans, messaging, and activation

  • Events as deal accelerators that advance 15–20 strategic opportunities

  • Data + AI to accelerate execution, not add noise

  • MDF ROI by treating incentives like growth capital

Black and white hand drawing checkmarks onto circles labeled 1, 2, and 3

Real results from Knack client programs

These aren’t theoretical best practices—they’re outcomes our clients are already achieving by shifting from activity-based partner marketing to outcome-driven motions:

  • 40–60% improvement in partner-influenced pipeline

  • 25–35% reduction in deal cycle time

  • 200–400% improvement in MDF utilization efficiency

  • 15–25% increase in marketplace transaction volume

  • 50%+ increase in seller engagement with partner programs

Black and white hand open palm facing up with line boundcing up with an arrow to show improvement or increase

The partner marketing leaders who act now will shape the ecosystem for the next decade. The rest will be left behind.