Newsletter: Stage 1: Partnership Proof Builder 🧱 ; Why Your Content Needs to be Machine-Readable 🤖 ; Why Celebrity-Led Causes at Davos are Disappointing 🫠​

In my ​last issue​, I introduced you to the Partnership Proof System—a simple way to help nonprofits stop pitching partnerships without proof.

Today, I want to zoom in on the first stage: the Partnership Proof Builder.

One of the biggest misconceptions I see in nonprofit partnerships is the idea that you need a big, splashy partnership before companies will take you seriously.

You don’t.

What you need is proof.

✔️ Proof that partnerships can work for your organization

✔️ Proof that you can execute

✔️ Proof that there’s real value on both sides of the table

Without proof, partnership conversations stall—or never start at all.

I see this constantly. Nonprofits want to “build a partnership program,” but they don’t yet have a partnership they can point to with confidence.

No case study.

No clear example.

No simple story that says, “Here’s what this looks like when it works.”

That’s exactly why the Partnership Proof Builder exists.

It’s designed for organizations that don’t yet have a partnership they can confidently point to and say, “This is what it looks like when it works.”

This work isn’t about chasing any partner.

It’s about designing one realistic, executable partnership—from the start—with a case study in mind.

Instead of starting with a long strategy deck or a list of “target companies,” we start somewhere far more practical.

Together, we identify one partnership opportunity you can execute—based on your mission, audience, assets, and capacity, using what you already have.

Then we design that partnership intentionally so that if and when it launches, it’s:

• Clear in its value to the business

• Realistic to execute without stretching your team

• Structured to produce observable results

• Designed to be documented and turned into a case study

That work includes:

• Clarifying what you can credibly offer a corporate partner right now

• Identifying where you already have proximity, trust, or leverage

• Shaping a partnership idea that’s achievable—not aspirational

• Mapping a clear path from conversation to commitment

The goal isn’t to build a “partnership program.”

The goal is to build your first piece of partnership proof—a partnership strong enough to be referenced, repeated, and built on.

Because once you have that, everything changes.

Outreach gets easier.

Conversations get shorter.

Confidence goes up.

And if that first partnership is strong enough, it can become a case study that forms the foundation for everything that follows.

That’s the work of the Partnership Proof Builder.

👉🏻 If this sounds like what your nonprofit needs right now, just reply to this email.

✍️ Partnership Notes

A partnership insight that matters.

​If your case studies aren’t machine-readable, they’re becoming invisible​.
💡 A smart MarketingProfs article explains how AI agents are reshaping discovery—filtering, summarizing, and recommending options long before a human ever shows up. That shift means partnerships aren’t being discovered the old way anymore. If your case studies and partnership web page aren’t clearly structured, outcome-focused, and easy to interpret, they may never make the shortlist at all. High-tech visibility gets you seen. High-touch proof gets you chosen.

🤑 Marketing Your Cause

One move nonprofits should steal.

​If your content isn’t helping real conversations, it’s not doing its job​.
💡 A recent Content Marketing Institute article shows that B2B sales reps rely on simple, practical content—one-pagers, case examples, and clear summaries—to move conversations forward. For nonprofits, the lesson is straightforward: create marketing assets that people can actually use when talking about your cause. That means fewer glossy reports and more plain-spoken explanations of impact, outcomes, and value. Content that gets shared beats content that just gets published.

😎 Cool Jobs in Cause

Find your next adventure.

1. Corporate Partnerships Manager, ​Operation Warm​, Remote

🧠🍌 Brain Food

What's feeding my thinking.

Why celebrity-led causes at Davos feel inspiring—and disappointing​.
💡 Boston-boy Matt Damon ​courting corporate partners at Davos​ checks all the right boxes: star power, urgency, and a solvable-sounding problem. But critics have been questioning this model for over a decade, and not much has changed. This evergreen essay from the Carnegie Council reminds us that awareness is not impact, and that partnerships without accountability can end up polishing the system instead of changing it.