PTO Today has a strong Partner Value Proposition

I recently spoke with John Driscoll, VP Sales & Business Development for PTO Today. John was kind enough to answer some questions regarding their Partnership Marketing programs and the PTO Today Value Proposition. Here is what he had to say.....

1. When looking to partner with another brand, what criterion must they hold for you to be willing to team up with them?

By virtue of the audience we reach (moms/families with K-8 children) we inherently attract "family friendly" brands. The primary litmus test we use when deciding to partner with someone is whether the brand is a good fit for the program we are seeking a sponsor for. Even before that we make sure any programs we develop are compelling for our audience. That means something like a Family Movie Night at a school (sponsored by Hollywood Video) versus say a "Family Allergy Night". I use that example because we actually had an allergy product brand come to us with a lot of money looking to do something like that. It's not so much "ethics" that prevent us from doing things like that as it is that we want our audience to say "everything that has ever come from PTO Today makes sense for us and has been a great program". That way our audience remains receptive to our offerings and it obviously works better for the client as well.

2. Why would a brand want to partner with PTO?

Probably the primary reason companies seek out partnerships with us is that it allows them to reach a very targeted audience in a unique way, with the added value of an implied endorsement from the school. They are looking to leverage our connection to school parent groups (PTO & PTA groups) as an efficient and effective conduit for reaching families of school-aged children. In addition there are several "in-school" marketing companies that reach kids/families by offering free curriculum materials to teachers. There has been some criticism that this is an "intrusion into the classroom". Our programs and offering take place outside of curriculum time - as for example with our School Family Nights program, as well as our Back2School 2007 program.

3. What are PTO’s partnership objectives? (i.e., awareness, revenue, added value for members, etc….)

Yes they are twofold. Its very much a growing part of our business model and its a key part of our revenue growth. At the same time we are fortunate that the programs we've developed our typically free to our audience and programs that they respond very favorably to, so it helps us build a stronger and deeper connection which in turn allows us to deliver more for our sponsor clients. It's very much a circular dynamic in terms of having sponsored programs which in turn strengthens our relationship to our groups, thus allowing us to do even more for clients moving forward.

4. Are there any specific brands that you would like to partner with?

I would say that any family focused brand can be a good partner for us. A good example of a perfect fit for us is Leapfrog Enterprises. They are a leader in children's educational toys/software. Because we connect with parents who are highly involved in their child's education we deliver the perfect audience for them. Conversely their product offerings are relevant and of great interest to our audience. The one area where I think we could serve both our audience and the client well that we'd like to explore some more is the technology arena. I really think we could do some interesting things for someone like Microsoft or HP, or Dell.