Forming Your Joint Venture Business Plan

Like any business that expects to succeed, your joint venture needs to have a plan – a business plan allows you and your JV partner to form a blueprint of your success and a strategy for achieving it. If you are forming a new JV, or have an existing JV without a business plan, here’s how to get one started right away.

A business plan doesn’t have to be a novel-length document. It could simply be a few pages that describe you and your JV partner, why you’re in business, and how you expect to achieve success. However, a more complicated JV that may require outside financing may require a more detailed business plan with professional biographies, marketing strategies, and financial projections.

Whatever the length and detail of your joint venture, here are the basic elements that all business plans need to have:

Executive Summary

Though this section is at the front, it should be written last after all the details have been thoroughly completed. The Executive Summary should be written meticulously and concisely and serves as an intro to the business plan. It should be about a few paragraphs, or no more than a few pages long, and contain just the fundamental nuggets of the rest of the document. Think of the summary as a “sneak preview” that will tantalize the reader into the rest of the document.

Company Description

This section should discuss your vision statement, the people, and business profile. It should contain details about you and your JV partner and include a bio your experiences and expertise. You will also want to talk about what why the JV is in business and what you plan to sell.

More detail in this section could include:

• Organization & Management
• Product or Service Line
• Management Details

Market Strategies

You need to identify who your market is and how you will market to them.  Discuss why your product or service fills an identified and unsaturated niche. Show details of market research performed. And be specific about your marketing strategies and goals, as well as how you and your JV partner will work together to tap into potential customers.

Competitive Analysis

Your JV is not the only one doing business in your niche. Include this section so you clearly identify who your competition is and why your product or service offering stands apart from the rest.

Financial Projections

This section is essential if your JV is looking for outside financing, such as loans or investors. Even if you do not show the plan to anyone else, it’s a good idea for you and your JV partner to formulate financial projections showing your expected cash outflows and anticipated revenues. A financial expert who can develop accurate projections based on dependable research should complete a detailed financial projection.

With a dependable business plan in hand, you and your JV partner have a reliable blueprint for achieving success. If you don’t already have one, get together with your JV partner and discuss forming a plan right away. It will help lead you down the road to a thriving JV!

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 Joint Venture Marketing Wealth Report.

Why You Should Pace Yourself and Your Joint Venture

Are you working at a rat race pace? American culture and norms dictate that we should give 100% to our jobs, 100% to our family, 100% to our religious and spiritual life, and the list goes on. Our culture is so dependent on overworking that it should be a
Constitutional amendment. But how can we possibly sustain such a pace with so much focus being sent in too many directions?

Each one of us feels a need for speed in getting things done. Certainly in business, it is no different. Your joint venture must be proactive in procuring business and react to various daily business stimuli. And any business owner and JV partner recognizes the importance of quick and decisive action, especially in a down economy.

You Can Afford To Slow Down

The fact is that you can accomplish more in less time when you focus and consciously direct your attention and efforts toward a specific task. Of course sometime’s quick decisions need to be made and put into action in the course of business. But are you really taking adequate time to come up with and compare alternative solutions? Sometimes a quick decision is not the best decision.

By taking time to reflect and weigh potential consequences in your business and JV decisions, you are able to make decisions with more confidence with more effectiveness.

How Slow Should You Go?

Of course, you want your JV to succeed and do everything you can to keep it moving along to produce profit for you and your JV partner. But how do you take the time to become more effective in less time? How do you decide how much time you need for major decisions?

• Determine a timeline – First, with each decision you need to make consider when your decision must be made. A quick decision may be required to satisfy a customer or react to a business situation. But take a moment to consider whether more time may be more beneficial in the end. With additional time, you may be able to brainstorm and come up with a better solution for your customer or a better response to a business question. Sometimes it may be a few minutes or perhaps it may take weeks. But with any business question, consider the impact of your bottom line if you decide too hastily.

• Reflection - Once you know you have some time, take the time to reflect. Reflection is an important part of pacing yourself. Taking quiet time to think and analyze the possibilities and alternatives gives you an important tool in making decisions, and that is confidence.

• Use your experience – In the writing realm, the common adage is “write what you know.” The same holds true in business. Use your experience and expertise that you’ve accumulated over the years to come up with solutions and make decisions. You may know that a strategy will not work based on past experience, or you may know what works like a charm.

Recognize that you must take risks and make decisions that may not work well. However, by taking the time to consider the possibilities, you allow your JV to take calculated risks – and that is how you succeed in business.

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 Joint Venture Marketing Wealth Report.

What’s Your Value In Your Joint Venture?

Most people are very liberal with their estimations of self-worth. In many cases, a person may think they are the most highly qualified worker and candidate for a promotion, but are simply passed over. How does one truly estimate their value to a company, and in the case of a joint venture, their worth toward the success of the JV?

Your value toward the effectiveness and success of your JV may be analyzed in a number of different ways. Most JVs are 50/50 between the partners, but many are weighted differently such as a 60/40 or a 70/30 split. In any case, it’s important for each partner to pull his own weight in relation to the agreed contribution. Here are some aspects that can give you an idea of how effective you are toward the JV’s success and your value to the bottom line.

Profit - This is one of the biggest value indicators. How does your contribution affect the profit capability of the JV?  Is profit dependent upon your role within the JV? Usually sales and marketing are a big factor in determining the profitability of a JV. But other ways can contribute to profit such as price determination, production efficiency, or expense reduction.

Purpose – What is your purpose within the JV? Are you there as a contributing partner, or do you take a back seat approach and observe and let things happen? Do you contribute ideas for improvement and strategy? Are you an action person who carries out the strategy?

Problem Solving – Are you a creative problem solver? Solving problems may not seem to have a direct effect on profit, but when solutions create faster and more efficient production, quicker market response time, or a better product, then value is certainly realized.

Speed – Can you perform work more efficiently in less time? Many people are valuable because they get things done. They know the shortcuts necessary to get an action complete, or perhaps have the contacts to call and get things completed faster.

Motivation – Many people are valuable because of their personality. They are catalysts for others to get things done. They may be the enthusiastic motivator for productivity, creativity, and ultimately, a part of the success of the JV. Their personality never wavers between ups and downs.  Rather, they are consistently optimistic and cooperative and are able to get people to respond to them in positive ways.

Pride – Are you someone who takes pride in your work? Ultimately, if you are proud of the work you create and perform for a JV, then your value is intrinsic with its success.  People who take pride are more effective and have a stronger desire to see success.

How does your value quotient add up? Do you feel you contribute enough? Too much? Not enough? Ultimately, if you want your JV to be successful, you must realize your value to the partnership and contribute your share of value. In doing so, you will feel good about your part in the JV and realize the potential profit for your added value.

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 Joint Venture Marketing Wealth Report.

Staying Optimistic About Your Joint Venture in a Down Economy

With the entire world losing almost one-third of its monetary value over the last few years, it’s difficult to stay optimistic about making money or profit in business, much less staying afloat. Should you choose to dissolve the JV and focus on your own business or put the extra effort into keeping the JV alive until happy days are here again?

Weighing the Pessimists and the Optimists

Though many business owners have a pessimistic outlook, they are sadly correct. And unfortunately, it is the pessimistic ones who will bail out and cut their losses and save what assets they can before losing everything. It is the pessimists who say that things will not improve and complain about how business should happen.

However, the business owners and JV partners who succeed are the ones who remain optimistic and take charge of their psychological mindset of doing business in a downturned economy. While ten years ago business owners and executives were reading books about squashing the competition and making millions, now bookstores’ shelves are cleared of books about sustaining through tough economic losses and simply keeping business alive.

The fact is that it is the optimist who will survive the current economic crisis, and not only survive, but thrive. The optimist in a JV looks for what is going well in their venture, and what is likely to improve, and then focuses energies to keep the right business elements navigated through the muck and mire of a raging economic whitewater rapid. The optimist also is aware of economic change and realizes that the JV business process much change with it.

Ways to Stay Positive

What can you do to remain optimistic through this tough economic climate?

• Don’t Panic – Level headedness and patience must prevail in order for your JV to survive.

• Listen to the pessimists – They will likely reveal what is true about slower economic times. By listening you can discover what not to do.

• Keep the outlook positive – The optimist knows that a recession is only temporary and that they are a natural progression of business evolution. As history has shown, things will improve.

• Always focus on your strengths – Doing what works best for you and your JV is the key to keeping your JV alive and thriving.

• Analyze good and bad – Evaluate the difficulties of your JV and try to discover whether it is due to consumer panic and fear, or whether it is a normal cycle of economic swings.

• Look for ways to improve – Your JV’s success through economic recession depends on your ability to find ways to improve and do business during tough times.

So how will you approach your attitude in order to wade through the economic climate? Will you be pessimistic and give up hope? Or will you face the raging rapids and find the silver lining along the cloudy path?

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 Joint Venture Marketing Wealth Report.

How Mistakes Can Help Your JV

To error is human. We all make mistakes. But the key to making mistakes is to learn from them and improve upon prior decisions or actions. Even Thomas Edison, inventor of the common incandescent light bulb, went through at least 3,000 theories before developing the correct combination of filament, glass, current, and efficiency. But through his trial-and error process to develop a long-lasting, low-cost light bulb for general household use, he also discovered a number of other practical electrical system elements that were required for private light bulb use, such as the parallel circuit, underground conductor network, as well as safety fuses and insulating materials.

Mistakes are the seeds for improvement. No matter how well founded our theories are, mistakes are the key to finding the perfect and best solution. The same goes with a joint venture. You may find a great JV partner and develop an exciting business idea, but no matter how sound your business plan is, you’re likely to encounter mistakes. However, should mistakes be considered failure and grounds for giving up? Absolutely not.

With that said, how do you improve upon mistakes and errors of judgment? Not every decision we make will work perfectly. You and your JV partner may have decided to promote your JV business idea through a local trade magazine but with disappointing results and at a high advertising cost. However, once the results are in, you can meet to discuss other options that may work better.

Here is a four-step process of improving from mistakes:

1. Recognize and Admit the Mistake – Take time to review results of an attempted strategy. Or if you’ve been going along at status quo, keep your eyes open for irregularities that may result from poor decisions. You’ve heard the idiom that there’s no use beating a dead horse. Don’t continue with a strategy that doesn’t work just because it was your best idea. Admit it was the wrong choice.

2. Glean Valuable Info from the Mistake – With any JV business strategy and action, you always want to find ways to improve. Mistakes can offer the best educational advice on how to improve. Analyze both the positive and negative reactions to your failed JV business strategy. You can discover things that were great about a choice, as well as learn what not to use again or what needs improvement.

3. Formulate New Ideas – Now it’s time to improve. What was it that made your JV strategy or action fail? What worked well? You may discover that your packaging needs improving or the choice of distributor was the mistake. Joint venture and business strategies are a process.  Edison didn’t make 3,000 mistakes. He discovered 3,000 ways not to develop the incandescent light bulb.

4. Move On – When you have analyzed your mistakes and formulated new plans, move forward and try to get it right. Put your new JV business plan into action and wait for the next results.

Your JV, like any business, requires a method of constant improvement. Take time to review the mistakes you or your JV partner have made, and with the right attitude of learning and improving, you will make your JV a success.

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 Joint Venture Marketing Wealth Report.

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