# Build your network in your Business Account

Add retail, consumer, and media brands to your network in your Business Account by choosing a relationship type and sending a consent-based invitation.

The Network module turns Business Account from a single-brand system into a network of brands. You don't add brands directly. You invite them, and each connection is a consent-based relationship that controls who can access your content and data.

Those relationships are the base for partnerships and monetization across brands. For how Network fits with the rest of Genuin, see [Network: what it does and where to start](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/network/network-what-it-does-and-where-to-start).

## Choose a relationship type

The relationship type defines how your brand connects to the other brand, and it sets access and monetization logic for the relationship.

| Relationship | When to use it | For example |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Partner | An external relationship already exists | A retail brand partnering with a media publisher |
| Holding Company | The other brand is your parent brand | A parent company that manages several sub-brands |
| House Brand | The other brand is a subsidiary or a brand you own | One of the sub-brands under that parent |
| Aspire to Partner | You want to start a new collaboration | A brand exploring a partnership it doesn't have yet |

Choose the right type up front. For what each type grants, see [How brand relationship types and access control work](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/network/how-does-brand-relationship-type-and-access-control-work-in-the-network-module).

## Add a brand

The **Network** tab in **Manage** is visible only under specific brand type conditions.

1. Go to **Manage** > **Network**.
2. Select the tab for the brand's category: **Retail Brands**, **Consumer Brands**, or **Media & Entertainment Brands**.
   ![The Network page with the Retail Brands tab selected and the + Add Retail Brand button highlighted on the Get Started to Build Your Network panel.](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/lnrtvsvr/development/6f43b387496b1c6323b0c5dc567f0c35964036b3-1440x878.jpg)
   *Step 2: On the Retail Brands tab, the button reads + Add Retail Brand.*
   ![The Network page with the Consumer Brands tab selected and the + Add Consumer Brand button highlighted on the Get Started to Build Your Network panel.](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/lnrtvsvr/development/65007ecdbb09cde624b624cd18a8e2aa8ddcdf98-1440x878.jpg)
   *Step 2: On the Consumer Brands tab, the button reads + Add Consumer Brand.*
   ![The Network page with the Media & Entertainment Brands tab selected and the + Add Media Brand button highlighted on the Get Started to Build Your Network panel.](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/lnrtvsvr/development/0f62cedcb8cd3803fbf3c633ab2eadb1b7ffaf3e-1440x878.jpg)
   *Step 2: On the Media & Entertainment Brands tab, the button reads + Add Media Brand.*
3. Click the tab's add button: **+ Add Retail Brand**, **+ Add Consumer Brand**, or **+ Add Media Brand**.
   ![The Add Retail Brand panel at its Brand Details step, with Partner selected under Brand Relationship and fields for Brand Handle, Brand Name, Contact Emails, Contact Phone Number, Website URL, and Social Media Handles.](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/lnrtvsvr/development/3dae916252ce71efc12e89a5bd48273aa9a834da-1441x1262.jpg)
   *Step 3: Pick the relationship and fill in the brand details; fields marked with an asterisk are required.*
4. Under **Brand Relationship**, select **Partner**, **Holding Company**, **House Brand**, or **Aspire to Partner**.
5. Enter the brand details. Search **Brand Handle** for an existing brand, or click **New brand** and enter its **Brand Name**. **Contact Emails** and **Website URL** are required. If the brand has no handle yet, it can be added later without recreating the relationship.
6. Click **Next**.
7. On the **Content Access** step, select what you request from the brand and what you provide.
8. Click **Next**.
9. On the **Notification** step, review the email preview.
   ![The Notification step of the Add Retail Brand panel, with Email checked and SMS unchecked under Invitation, an invitation email preview, and the Add button highlighted.](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/lnrtvsvr/development/b50c3957cc99d19d402b3e050b536791560b8fcc-1439x902.jpg)
   *Step 9: Review the email preview, then click Add to send the invitation.*
10. Click **Add** to send the invitation.
    ![The Sent view of the Retail Brands tab, listing Grubhub with the status Pending and the relationship Partner, under a Retail brand added notification.](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/lnrtvsvr/development/f83d46c9d55ebe4884c0d267f18e634f06f1e106-1440x880.jpg)
    *Step 10: The invited brand appears in the Network table as Invite Sent.*

Use valid work email addresses, not dummy domains. We recommend adding more than one contact email because it raises the chance that someone accepts.

### How the panel behaves

- The panel has three steps: **Brand Details**, **Content Access**, and **Notification**. Only **Brand Details** is open at first, and each later step unlocks when you click **Next**.
- You can go back to an earlier step without losing what you entered. Clicking a locked step does nothing.
- **Partner** is the default **Brand Relationship**, and each option shows a short helper text.
- Picking an existing brand from the **Brand Handle** search shows it as a chip and fills in its contact emails and **Website URL**. The filled-in **Website URL** is read-only, and you can add more contact emails.
- Removing the selected brand, or changing the relationship type, clears the brand details below it.
- If a brand has no social handles or communities, **Content Access** shows an empty state. When your own brand has no social handles, an **Add Social Handle** button appears.
- Clicking **Cancel** or the close (**X**) on any step opens the **Discard Changes** popup. **Keep Editing** keeps your entries, and **Discard** closes the panel and resets the form.

You can also add brands during setup. In **Build**, the **Launch Community Media Network** steps for retail, consumer, and media brands open the same panel.

## Track the invitation

The brand appears in the Network table with one of four statuses: **Invite Sent**, **Invite Received**, **Active**, or **Rejected**. You see **Invite Sent** for an invitation you sent, and the invited brand sees **Invite Received**.

![The Network table's Received view, listing brands with the statuses Invite Received, Rejected, and Active, and row menus offering View Invite and View Details.](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/lnrtvsvr/development/3f28fe2ac97dcf615a4ed9ec65f992b850d95285-1440x878.jpg)
*Each row shows the brand's status and relationship type.*

Invitations are consent-driven, so no access is granted until the brand accepts. Until then, the brand's social handles stay hidden in **Curate**. Track pending invitations regularly so partnerships don't stall.

Each relationship shows under the tab it was created from, for both your brand and the invited brand. You can search the table by brand name or handle, and filter it by **Brand Destination**, **Status**, or **Relationship**. Columns can't be sorted.

To respond to invitations, resend or cancel them, and change content access, see [Manage network invitations, content access, and brand relationships](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/network/partners/how-do-i-manage-network-invitations-content-access-and-brand-relationships).

## Limitations

- **Invitation required.** Every connection needs an invitation that the other brand accepts.
- **Unique handles.** The brand handle must be unique, and social handles can't be reused.
- **No bulk invites.** You invite brands one at a time.
- **Editing.** You can edit a brand's details only after it rejects your invitation, with **Edit Brand**. On an active relationship, you can change content access and add social handles from **View Details**.
- **Social handles after acceptance.** You can access a brand's social handles only after it accepts the invitation.
- **One holding company.** Your brand can have only one active or pending Holding Company relationship at a time. A rejected or canceled one frees the slot.

## See also

- [Brand Partner Invitations and Permissions](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/network/brand-partner-invitations-and-permissions)
- [Invite a partner brand and set content access](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/network/partners/how-do-i-build-and-manage-a-network-of-partner-brands)
- [Manage network invitations, content access, and brand relationships](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/network/partners/how-do-i-manage-network-invitations-content-access-and-brand-relationships)
- [How brand invitations and acceptance flows work](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/network/how-do-brand-invitations-and-acceptance-flows-work-in-the-network-module)
- [Accept and manage invitations in the Genuin network](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/network/accepting-and-managing-invitations-in-the-genuin-network)