One of our core values at Crossbeam is “feed the network”. That’s because the network of companies connected to and sharing data with their partners in Crossbeam is the most valuable asset for our customers to drive revenue with Ecosystem-Led Growth.

And that value isn’t limited to connections with direct partners. Partner ecosystems aren’t the hub and spoke of your company surrounded by its partners — they’re a network graph in which your partners have their own spokes, including you. This means that every time a new partnership is formed, the network graph grows by far more than that one connection.

In this visualization of the companies sharing data on Crossbeam’s platform over time, you can see what this robust network growth looks like:

The many “neighborhoods” of an ecosystem

So how can this ever-growing network of partnerships help your company expand its market?

Another source of data that we analyze for important patterns and insights is the network graph from Partnerbase, the largest global database of companies and their partner ecosystems, created by Crossbeam. The network graph for Partnerbase includes all SaaS companies worldwide that have five or more partners (whether or not they are registered on the Crossbeam platform itself) — this amounts to over 14,000 companies and almost 190,000 partnerships between them. 

Looking closely at this network graph reveals that this web of connections actually has a layer of organization that has significant value beyond the size and density of the network. We find that groups of similarly partnered companies tend to form concentrations or “neighborhoods” of different verticals. (Note: these neighborhoods don’t have firm boundaries that contain every company in that vertical and no others, but they do have particularly high concentrations of companies in the given sector.)

These neighborhoods are tightly connected and overlapping, because many companies (nodes) have connections (edges) with partners in other verticals. The nodes get progressively darker blue depending on how central the company is to the network (i.e., how many edges it has). The “Mega Nodes” neighborhood includes companies like Google, Salesforce, Amazon, and others that have huge network graphs from partnering with many companies across most if not every vertical.

Follow the neighborhood map to new opportunities 

The information that we get from the Partnerbase network graph can serve as “directions” to other verticals — and markets — that could be big opportunities for your company. In Partnerbase, you can see your partners, and your partners’ partners, and your partners’ partners’ partners…you get the idea.

With this visibility beyond your own network, you can discover potential partners that fit and even help shape your growth strategy, and with whom you can connect through a mutual partner. 

Also expanding your view of untapped opportunities is the Greenfield feature in Crossbeam itself, which takes account mapping a step beyond your and your partners’ mutual customers and prospects by surfacing potential leads that are not yet in your database but could be highly relevant to your business.

Healthy, thriving ecosystems lift all boats because partners win when you win — and the more connections you can establish, the more opportunities you have to pursue new industries, markets, and verticals. And the more data you have, the more clearly you can see the path ahead.