Step 3: Identify and Prioritize Partner Candidates

From the gaps you identified in your market validation work in Step One, start identifying companies who possess your missing capabilities. Read the trade rags, contact trade associations, search the web, and leverage your investor and advisor networks including your accounting and law firms. Who do the industry analysts say are the important companies in the space you're targeting? Add these companies to your recruitment target list. Using the criteria you identified in Step Two, prioritize your target list to whittle it down to a manageable number of companies to target.