The reputation challenge behind modern brand partnerships

A few days ago, news emerged that the Peak District National Park Authority had partnered with Skoda on a temporary rebrand, turning parts of the Peak District into the "Peaq District" to support the launch of a new electric vehicle. While intended as a creative activation and source of additional funding, the campaign quickly attracted criticism from residents, campaigners and sections of the media. Critics questioned whether a national park should commercialise part of its identity in this way, regardless of the commercial rationale behind the partnership.

For communicators, marketers and business leaders, the story offers an interesting reminder: the success of a brand partnership is rarely determined by the organisations involved alone.

Instead, it is determined by stakeholders and communities watching from the sidelines.

Not long ago, evaluating a sponsorship, partnership or community activation largely meant assessing audience fit, commercial opportunity and brand visibility. Those questions still matter. But today, a more important question is emerging:

Will stakeholders see the partnership as authentic, appropriate and beneficial?

Because today, brand partnerships are reputation exercises, not marketing exercises.

When fit isn't enough

On paper, the Peak District and Skoda partnership is quite logical.

Both organisations can point to themes around responsible access to nature and outdoor experiences. Yet much of the criticism isn’t about whether the partnership makes strategic sense – it centres on whether a protected national landscape should become part of a commercial brand campaign at all.

The issue is less about alignment and more about acceptance. As subsequent coverage highlighted, much of the debate quickly shifted beyond the creative execution itself and towards broader questions of commercialisation and whether the partnership had crossed an invisible line with key audiences.

Contrast that with an article I wrote last year on Everton FC's decision to award naming rights for its new stadium to Liverpool-headquartered law firm Hill Dickinson, where the overall response there was markedly different. 

Much of the public narrative focused on Hill Dickinson's deep roots in Liverpool, its longstanding contribution to the city and a shared ambition to support regeneration and long-term investment in the region. The partnership was positioned as something bigger than sponsorship alone.

The difference between the two examples isn't simply brand fit – it's stakeholder licence.

The audience that decides isn't always the audience you're targeting

One of the biggest mistakes organisations make is evaluating partnerships through the lens of primary audiences alone.

Clients, prospects, customers and investors all matter. But when criticism emerges, it often comes from non-primary audiences: employees, local communities, journalists, campaign groups, industry commentators or political stakeholders.

In other words, the audience that determines whether a partnership succeeds is often not the audience it was designed for.

In our own work supporting professional services firms, we've seen audience research, stakeholder mapping and message testing uncover important considerations long before launch, helping organisations strengthen opportunities, identify potential risks and refine communications strategies.

A simple test for modern partnerships

Before launching a new sponsorship, strategic partnership or community activation, organisations should think about three things:

Strategic fit: does this partnership support our business objectives?

Stakeholder licence: will key audiences support and understand the association?

Reputational resilience: are we prepared if stakeholders disagree?

Sometimes, the strongest partnerships don't avoid scrutiny, they prepare for it.

Brand partnership announcements are no longer the start of the conversation. They're the moment stakeholders begin their evaluation.

That's why the most successful associations are built long before contracts are signed, through audience insight, stakeholder understanding, message testing and communications planning.

Because ultimately, a brand partnership doesn't succeed when an organisation approves it, it succeeds when stakeholders do.