This blog is for healthcare leaders and organisations looking to develop strategic partnerships. I’ve been building and managing partnerships at THC Primary Care for nearly 11 years now, and one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that trust cannot be rushed.
Grace Andrews – the former Marketing Director for Steven Bartlett and The Diary of a CEO – recently used an analogy that captures this perfectly, and I want to borrow it because it applies just as much in healthcare as it does in media.
Think about your friendship group. When you bring a new friend along, the group doesn’t immediately trust the newcomer. They’re polite, but they’re watching. They’re working out whether this person is genuine and whether they’re going to stick around.
The fact that you brought them in accelerates the process. Your existing friends trust you, so they’re willing to give this new person more of a chance. The introduction carries weight. It doesn’t skip the trust-building, but it fast-tracks it.
That’s exactly what a long-term business partnership looks like. Businesses often expect instant returns, but the audience you’re trying to reach needs time to get to know and believe in your partner.
It’s Not a Transaction
The traditional view of sponsorship tends to be quite transactional – you agree terms, deliver, and move on. But that doesn’t build trust or familiarity. A long-term partnership is different. You’re saying: I believe in what you do, and I’m willing to invest the time. It’s the added value beyond the sponsorship that makes the difference.
Having just signed our fourth consecutive partnership contract with Pure Physiotherapy , and Medacy Ltd are signing their third consecutive partnership with us.
Both milestones say something important about what long-term commitment looks like in practice.
When Pure first partnered with us, whilst some of our community already knew of them, our partnership is about going beyond the sales pitch. We really try to educate the primary care network community on what good looks and how to get the most from their FCP service provider (even if it isn’t Pure).
Medacy’s journey tells a similar story. They didn’t sign one partnership and walk away. They came back a second time, and now a third. That doesn’t happen unless both sides are seeing real value. Each renewal has allowed the relationship to deepen and for our community to build genuine familiarity with the pharmacist services Medacy offer. That kind of consistency is what turns a partner from a name people recognise into a service people trust.
These two partnerships illustrate exactly why the long game matters. Pure and Medacy have both invested the time, and the results have compounded because of it.
What We Bring to the Table
Having supported over 300 Primary Care Networks (PCNs) across England, we understand the landscape and the people making decisions. We’ve built a content ecosystem – blogs, webinars, and podcasts – so our partners get visibility across multiple formats without producing the content themselves.
Our website is the hub, not social media. We use social media to attract new people, but it’s the website that keeps them coming back. Our audience uses our website like a repository, and that’s where the real value sits for partners.
Also, when I talk about Pure or Medacy, it’s because I understand their services and I’ve seen the impact first-hand. Our audience can tell the difference between a genuine recommendation and a paid placement.
What Makes a Long-Term Partnership Work
Know what your partner needs and go beyond visibility. Organisations seek partnerships because they want to grow, to reinforce their brand message and get their services in front of the right people.
When you understand their target market, the buying cycles, the decision-making processes, and the anticipated barriers, you’re offering consultancy alongside visibility. That’s exposure, access, and credibility all in one.
Be transparent and work closely together. I share our website stats with our partners openly – what’s performing, what isn’t. I’m clear about what I can offer and what I can’t guarantee.
Let the relationship grow beyond one person. If your partnership depends on a single contact, it’s fragile. I have learnt this the hard way, so my advice is to build relationships with the teams, not just with one person.
Start with commitment, but think long-term. I wouldn’t have entered / offered a multi-year partnership at the beginning or a new partnership. At THC, we offer 6 to 12-month partnerships because it takes that long for our community to get to know a partner. But go in with a long-term mindset. If you’re only thinking about what you’ll get from one blog or one quarter, you’re setting yourself up for disappointment.
And my plea to organisations is to value your partners, versus trying to get them to help grow your business for free. It’s insulting. If someone is giving you visibility, adding to your credibility, and access to an audience they’ve spent years building, that has value.
Play the Long Game
Whether you’re a provider looking for visibility, don’t expect instant results. Invest in the relationship, show up consistently, keep an open mind and be clear in the objective.
Just like that new friend being introduced to the group – it takes time. But the introduction is already accelerating things more than you realise.
