Gaining the Edge by Partnering with Your Competition

When President Barack Obama won the 2006 election, he immediately went to his fiercest rival during the democratic primary with a job offer. Hilary Clinton was appointed Secretary of State, a powerful position that involved working with countries across the globe.

Many wondered how the two could form such a strategic alliance after slinging mud so venomously during the campaign. The answer was simple: President Obama understood the importance of transforming enemies into allies and then putting them into positions where he could keep a close eye on their subsequent moves.

You may not be running for president, but your company is in its own kind of fierce battle for customers that will go to the other guy if you don’t win them over first. Most business owners’ treat the competitor as the enemy, closely watching their every move and making strategic decisions based on what their competitors do.

If you’re a business owner in this situation right now, why not take a page out of President Obama’s playbook and transform that competitive business into an ally that provides benefits to your own business even while you are helping him?

Why Join Forces?

Most business owners will probably read this proposal and immediate discard it as contrary to everything they know about business. However, consider the potential rewards joint ventures with your competition might produce. Instead of constantly worrying about the customers your competitor is attracting, you can actually take some of that base for yourself as well as the sales and profits you stand to gain.

Trade concerns over what your competitor might be saying to customers about you for the confidence in knowing that the only information coming from the rival company is endorsements and referrals to your own establishment. Wouldn’t you sleep better at night?

Approaching Enemy Lines

Everyone knows that you don’t simply walk up to enemy lines unarmed and unprepared, so plan your attack before approaching your competitor about a potential joint venture.

First, look for competitors that do not sell an identical product to your own, but items that are related to yours that would attract a similar customer base. Do your research up front by learning what your potential partner’s strengths and weaknesses are and how your business could fill the gaps in their company plan.

Once you know how to approach your potential partner, plan a face-to-face meeting where you can sit down and present your joint venture proposal in a relaxed, non-confrontational environment. Offer a variety of options for your joint venture, including shared marketing tactics, endorsements and referrals and integration of products. Be prepared to be flexible with your ideas, in case your potential partner isn’t sold on your initial proposal. Once you determine the best structure for your joint venture, put the entire plan in writing to protect the interests of both parties.

Joint ventures are an excellent model of how transforming an enemy to an ally can be beneficial to both sides. By doing your homework and approaching a potential partner with care, you can both cash in on the agreement with additional customers, sales and a healthier bottom line for all.

Christian Fea is CEO of Synertegic, Inc. A Joint Venture Marketing firm. He exemplifies how to profit from Joint Venture relationships by creating profit centers with minimal risk and maximum profitability.

To discover more Joint Venture Marketing Strategies join his free report on Joint Venture Marketing.

Beginning a Joint Venture with Limited Capital

A business needs exposure to grow, particularly if it is a small business just starting out in the industry. However, these small companies also tend to have limited advertising budgets, making it challenging to get their names out to the general public. Many business owners have turned to joint ventures to stretch their advertising dollars, but you may be unsure of how this approach can help, given your tight budget and recent foray into the field. We have tips to help you begin a successful joint venture, no matter how limiting your current financial situation might be.

Building a Business Brand

The first step in a successful marketing campaign is to build a familiar business branding that customers can easily identify. Joint ventures make this process much simpler by allowing newer businesses to piggyback on the names and reputations of more established companies. If customers are loyal to one brand, they will be more likely to purchase a brand associated with the original business.

You don’t need much initial capital to partner with bigger businesses; simply research the needs of the business you are interested in and find out what your company could bring to the table to make the joint venture partnership complete.

Pooling Resources

The best feature of online marketing is that it doesn’t cost a small fortune to use many of the effective tools at your disposable. The cost of Internet marketing can also be cut exponentially by pooling resources with other companies involved in your joint venture.

While one partner can effectively split the cost of marketing with your business, those with truly limited advertising dollars can sign on with more than one JV partner to reduce marketing costs even further. This approach offers the biggest bang for your advertising dollar by granting you maximum exposure to potential customers with little up-front costs involved.

Finding Cheap Tools

Online marketing offers a virtual plethora of advertising options, which range in cost from very pricey consultants to free tools you can easily learn to use on your own. Social marketing outlets like Facebook and LinkedIn are excellent options for expanding your company exposure with little or no cost to your business. Creating a blog also doesn’t cost much money, but can be a good way to establish yourself as an expert in your industry and market your company to potential customers.

You might also find that your JV partners have experience with particular advertising tools and are prepared to share their knowledge with you, especially if you can return the favor with expertise of your own in a different area.

Joint ventures are an effective marketing method, whether you have a little or a lot of capital to bring to the table. Research potential partners before you approach them to find out how your knowledge or resources could complement their own business offerings. Learn to use online marketing tools cheaply and effectively to enhance your public exposure. With a few handpicked JV partners at your side, your online marketing efforts are sure to bring a good value for your initial advertising investment.

Christian Fea is CEO of Synertegic, Inc. A Joint Venture Marketing firm. He exemplifies how to profit from Joint Venture relationships by creating profit centers with minimal risk and maximum profitability.

To discover more Joint Venture Marketing Strategies join his free report on Joint Venture Marketing.

How to Use Joint Ventures to Increase Profit

Building a business is all about building your bottom line, and one of the most effective ways to explode your profits is with the assistance of a joint venture. Joint ventures are agreements between two or more businesses that put you in partnership with one another for the purpose of building a bigger and more targeted customer base. These joint ventures come in a wide range of sizes and styles, but the primary purpose is to market your company to a broader range of potential customers.

We have tips to help you use your joint ventures to radically increase your profit margin.

Know Your Target Market

To find effective JV partners that will increase your customer base and profit margin, know what type of customers you want to attract from the get-go. Look at the current customers that buy from you and determine what related products they might be interested in.

For example, if you sell camping equipment, the customers that visit your website might also be interested in companies that sell hunting supplies or outdoor clothing.

Once you are familiar with the type of customer you typically sell to, you are better equipped to go out and find other businesses that cater to a similar market base.

Approach Your Prospects with Care

When you approach potential JV partners, do so with consideration for the benefits that they might receive from a professional relationship with you. Offer specific advantages that you come up with after carefully researching businesses to determine what they stand to offer and what they might want in return.

If you are a smaller business looking to hook a larger one for a joint venture, don’t be afraid to begin by offering a commission on your sales. While it may seem that you are cutting into your profits at the beginning, the rewards of a larger customer base in the long run will more than outweigh the initial costs of the endeavor.

Use Everything You Have

Once you have developed a solid joint venture relationship, market your partnership aggressively, using all the online marketing tools at your disposal. Most businesses benefit from back links, articles writing and auto-responders when they are used correctly. You will also benefit by learning about search engine optimization and keywords that will help potential customers readily find your company online. If you are unsure how to begin your online marketing strategy, meet with a professional consultant for a few tips or a complete marketing campaign.

When joint ventures are used to their fullest advantage, they can explode your profit base more efficiently than just about any other marketing strategy. By knowing your customer base and finding partners that appeal to a similar clientele, you have succeeded in targeting your advertising to the customers who are most likely to buy from you. When you tune into the finer points of online marketing, you have many effective tools at your disposal that will help you attract more customers and increase your profit margin exponentially. Joint ventures are just the beginning of a harmonious and profitable relationship.

Christian Fea is CEO of Synertegic, Inc. A Joint Venture Marketing firm. He exemplifies how to profit from Joint Venture relationships by creating profit centers with minimal risk and maximum profitability.

To discover more Joint Venture Marketing Strategies join his free report on Joint Venture Marketing.

How to Know Your Joint Venture is Working

A joint venture is only as good as the results it brings to your bottom line. The first step in a successful JV is to choose your prospective partners carefully based on the mutual benefits you both stand to receive from your partnership. The next step is to assess your arrangement periodically to ensure you are getting more out of the agreement than you invest. We have tips to help you evaluate your joint venture and determine whether it is working effectively for you.

Your Customer Base

A growing customer base is one of the easiest ways to tell if your joint venture is effective for your business. The primary purpose of most JV’s is to bring more customers to your website or through the doors of your business. If you see a steady increase in your customer base since your joint venture began, the arrangement is probably working well for your business. Look at the number of customers clicking on your website every day, or gauge the business of your store for a week or two to determine whether your JV is doing the job in bringing more customers to you.

Your Profits

While joint ventures are primarily designed to bring more customers to your business, increased sales indicate that the customers driven to your website are legitimately interested in the goods or services you offer. When your sales increase, you know you are getting not just a customer base, but also a targeted base from your efforts. This ensures you get the biggest bang for your marketing buck by attracting customers that are more likely to buy from you in the first place.

Your Marketing Budget

The idea behind a joint venture is to get the best value for your marketing dollar. If you are seeing an exponential increase in customers and sales, with a much smaller increase to your advertising budget, your joint venture is working well. If you find yourself spending more and more on your advertising campaigns, it’s time to either meet with your JV partners to revamp your strategy or dissolve your partnership altogether in favor of a more lucrative option.

Your Relationship

When you and your JV partners share similar goals, it is much easier to make your venture work to the benefit of all businesses involved in the arrangement. Meet with your partners regularly to discuss the status of the joint venture and whether the current track appears to be the most beneficial one. When you can work harmoniously with your JV partners, it is much more likely that you can tweak your system when it doesn’t seem to be working effectively any longer.

Joint ventures are a popular, profitable way to build your business as long as they continue to work in your favor. Through periodic evaluations, you can decide if your JV is continuing to work for you and make necessary adjustments when necessary for the greatest value from your efforts.

Christian Fea is CEO of Synertegic, Inc. A Joint Venture Marketing firm. He exemplifies how to profit from Joint Venture relationships by creating profit centers with minimal risk and maximum profitability.

To discover more Joint Venture Marketing Strategies join his free report on Joint Venture Marketing.

5 Places to Find Prospective Joint Venture Marketing Partners

Joint venture marketing is an excellent method of expanding your target market base if you choose the right partners for the job. You want to partner with related businesses that have established a loyal customer base and can send some of their clientele your way for complementing products or service.

Sometimes the hardest part of launching a joint venture is finding the best businesses for the task. To help you find the right fit, we have five places where potential partners may be lurking.

Neighboring Businesses in Your Community

The first step in finding good JV partners is to scour your immediate community in search of possibilities. For example, if you run a catering business look for florists, wedding shops or photography studios nearby that might be in search of a similar market base. Working with neighboring businesses allows you to easily market one another’s companies to customers in the same area. It also allows you a wealth of joint venture opportunities beyond online marketing campaigns, such as flyers or newspaper advertisements.

Google Search

The Internet is the perfect place to broaden your base of potential JV partners. Begin by searching under keywords to help you find related businesses. Once you find a business that looks interesting, you can fully explore their website and possible reviews related to their company to determine if the business would be a good potential partner for online marketing.

Newsletters You Receive

Instead of tossing out all the marketing material you receive at your door or in the mail, take a look at the advertising to find out if it would be good joint venture material. Most of the flyers you receive will probably be for businesses within your community, which takes us back to the benefits listed in the first suggestion. If you find a business that looks enticing, check out their website or talk to the owner to find out if a joint venture would benefit both businesses.

Trade Shows

Trade shows are an excellent source for JV partners, particularly if you are running your own booth. This is a good way to meet other business owners while you are putting yourself out in the industry as an established business in your own right. Make sure you hit the trade show circuit with plenty of business cards, and collect those from other businesses so you can research the companies later.

Professional Matching Services

There are professional matching services that are in the business of helping companies find effective JV partners. These businesses charge a fee for their services, but in some cases, the fee is well worth the money if they can help you find the best JV partners for your needs. To ensure you get the biggest bang for your dollar, thoroughly research the matching company before signing on with them.

Finding JV partners can be a challenge, but there are many sources available. If you are willing to put in the time and effort, the right JV partner can increase your customer base for a fraction of what other advertising methods might cost.

Christian Fea is CEO of Synertegic, Inc. A Joint Venture Marketing firm. He exemplifies how to profit from Joint Venture relationships by creating profit centers with minimal risk and maximum profitability.

To discover more Joint Venture Marketing Strategies join his free report on Joint Venture Marketing.

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