Hello there, now I don’t know about you but for me the idea of doing joint ventures was one that initially we shied away from, too messy, too difficult to organise etc etc. But then we did one, which worked really well and we were off – my advice do one and I guarantee once you’ve done one you’ll do more, so here we go ….
What is a JV? Read on …..
A joint venture is a business agreement where you and another person put your resources together in a project. The project can be short-term or long-term, and there can be other people involved as well. The whole idea is that 2 heads are better than one.
The main benefit is that you get access to a bigger market and distribution network (your partner does too – yours!). You can share skills with your partner and accomplish more. Joint ventures also offer some security because you’re sharing the risks. You’re sharing costs too, which is nice!
An example of a joint venture might be a marketer teaming up with a writer to create a PLR store. The marketer benefits from the writer’s skills and doesn’t have to outsource and pay a writer. The writer benefits by using the marketer’s expertise at selling the articles. Each person brings something to the table that benefits the project.
How To Find A Joint Venture Partner
The hardest part about doing a joint venture is finding a good partner. There are several ways to do this. One is to hang around internet marketing forums or forums in your niche and get to know people. If you find someone you’d like to work with, PM them through the site.
An even easier way is to contact a webmaster directly through their site. Find a high-traffic site in your niche and email them directly. They may not be looking for a joint venture opportunity, so give them a proposal and explain to them what you can bring to the table.
Probably the best way to find JV partners (but it’s not as easy as contacting people through forums or sites) is to go to offline marketing events like seminars. People go to these events to specifically look for possible JV partners and everybody’s there to mingle, socialize and build connections.
Tips On Doing Your JV
The main disadvantage of doing a joint venture is that you run the risk of getting screwed over. It could be because you just picked the wrong partner who actually isn’t as skilled or serious as you thought, or somebody takes the money and runs leaving you stranded. Unfortunately, these things happen sometimes.
The best way to protect yourself is to choose your partner carefully. Get to know them well before you work with them. It also helps if you find them through a referral from a friend or acquaintance. They might tell you about someone they worked with before and all went well; this means that you know you can trust them.
Even if you find a trustworthy business partner, you should always get everything in writing. The two of you should make a JV agreement that states the details of the project and the responsibilities of each partner. Everything should be specific and clearly stated, but you should also allow for changes to be made during the project. Keep it flexible.
Sometimes joint ventures go badly and it’s not always because one party is cheating the other. It could be just due to lack of experience. When things don’t go as planned, remember that it’s a learning experience for you. Sometimes it takes a few JV’s before you finally get it right.
To your ongoing success
Tony
