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Introduction
If you manage marketing for a brand with franchisees, dealers or a national network of partners, you already know this truth: co-branding is necessary—but risky.
Everyone wants their local logo on the flyer. Everyone wants to tweak pricing, add contact info or change the store hours. And before you know it, you’re reviewing 47 versions of the same file, fixing logos and re-aligning layouts one edit at a time.
This is the kind of work IRIS helps eliminate.
With GearBox®, we give your partners what they need to localize materials—without creating extra work for your team or letting the brand drift off course.
Where Co-Branding Usually Falls Apart
“Just send me a flyer I can edit.”
That’s how it starts. Then someone stretches the logo, removes the disclaimer and changes the font. Now you’re dealing with an off-brand ad with your name on it.
“We’ll send it to the printer ourselves.”
Sometimes that means a job gets printed wrong—or not at all. Or worse, they send an outdated version from last year.
“We’ll tweak it and get it back to you.”
Now your team’s stuck chasing down edits, reviewing PDFs and making approvals you shouldn’t have to touch.
What Good Co-Branding Should Look Like
Co-branding should be simple. Local teams should be able to:
- Personalize what matters (hours, pricing, contact info)
- Use only approved layouts and messaging
- Get their assets printed and delivered—without email chains
And your team should be able to:
- Lock down what must stay on brand
- Know who’s using what, and where
- Step in only when needed—not every time
That’s exactly how GearBox® handles it.
How GearBox® by IRIS Keeps Co-Branding Clean and Scalable
Locked templates that actually make life easier
Your team builds the base template. GearBox® keeps the logo, disclaimer and layout locked. Partners get edit access to only the fields they’re supposed to change—like their phone number or store-specific offer.
Role-based access so the right people see the right files
Dealers in Texas shouldn’t be downloading signage for the Northeast. GearBox® only shows materials that apply to a user’s location, tier or region.
Direct-to-vendor fulfillment
Once a file is customized, it’s sent straight to your preferred signage or print vendor—no need to email files or track down approvals.
Built-in tracking so you can spot problems early
GearBox® shows you who downloaded what, when it was launched, and where usage is low. That means you can support the teams that are lagging without chasing every file.
A Real Example: Ply Gem’s Co-Branding Without the Chaos
Ply Gem works with a wide dealer network. They needed to give partners localized materials—but not lose control of the brand.
With GearBox®, IRIS helped them:
- Deliver editable templates that dealers could use right away
- Protect brand standards across hundreds of locations
- Route signage to vendors automatically
- Track which partners were using what
No scattered files. No brand drift. Just clean, co-branded campaigns that actually got to market.
Read the Ply Gem Case Study
Final Thoughts
Co-branding doesn’t have to be messy. With the right tools in place, you can give partners freedom without giving up control.
GearBox® by IRIS helps marketing teams scale co-branded campaigns, keep fulfillment on track and make sure every partner is using the latest, most accurate version of what you built.
If you’re spending too much time chasing edits, realigning logos or approving files you didn’t even want to touch, it’s time to talk.
Let’s get your co-branding under control.
