Over the weekend my family attended Country Thunder. It was our second time there, and our first time at a concert post-COVID. The crowd was super friendly and not too thick, the act variety was decent, and the best part was a surprise collab! Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton got married just two weeks before and this was the first time they performed together since they tied the knot. Blake was a headliner and his huge country following and stage presence made him a great act on his own. But WOW, having his spouse, a pop singer with a different and strong following, collab with him just elevated the experience on an unanticipated level. It was the last day, last act of the whole weekend: What a note to end on!
Anyway, whether they are a surprise or not, collabs are a great tool to elevate value. Use them to breathe new life into tried-and-true collateral or create something totally new. An example is a local bar association's holiday social. The group elevated the experience by inviting other bar associations to join in so it was a bigger, stronger, cheaper, and more diverse event. Attendees learned about the other associations in the community and expanded their personal networks. A win-win!
What value are you trying to provide stakeholders? What other person(s) or organization(s) can you partner with to make that value even more relevant?
