PARTNER AGREEMENTS
Partners sell the product. You keep the customer.
Channel revenue, referral programs, and white-label arrangements for Ontario SaaS, IT services, and tech companies.
THE DIRECT ANSWER
What is a partner or reseller agreement?
A partner or reseller agreement is the contract that governs how another business sells, refers, or bundles your product or service. It covers territory, pricing, brand use, commission or margin, exclusivity, compliance obligations, and what happens when the partnership ends. In Ontario it also needs to handle tax treatment and cross-border flow if partners sell beyond the province.
WHY IT MATTERS
The details that decide who owns the customer.
Channel revenue looks easy on a slide. A partner sells your thing, you pay them a cut, everyone wins. In practice, the details are where money and brand value get quietly given away.
There are at least four common structures: pure referral (partner sends leads, you close), reseller (partner buys from you and resells, with or without markup), white-label (partner sells under their brand), and channel or distributor (partner holds inventory, customer contracts, and support). Each has a different fit for different products, and each needs different contract mechanics.
The common failure modes: vague territory definitions that trigger fights over who owns a deal, margin structures that erode as partners stack on top of each other, brand misuse, unclear ownership of the customer relationship when the partner leaves, and missing termination tails that let a partner keep commissions long after they stop selling.
HOW WE SUPPORT YOU
01
Draft referral, reseller, white-label, and distributor agreements tailored to your product.
02
Structure commission, margin, and revenue-share mechanics that hold up at scale.
03
Define territory, exclusivity, and field-of-use without creating future disputes.
04
Protect IP, brand, and trademark use through clear licence grants inside the partner agreement.
05
Handle termination, post-termination tails, and transition of customer relationships.
06
Review and negotiate partner paper sent by larger counterparties like MSPs, agencies, and platforms.
FAQ
Common questions about partner and reseller agreements.
What's the difference between a reseller and a referral partner?
Should I offer exclusive territories?
Who owns the customer?
How long should commission tails run?
Do I need a separate agreement for every partner?
What about international partners?
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