How the Dog Whisperer Can Help Your Joint Venture Relationship

Forming a joint venture can be wildly successful, and it can also become a headache. Joint venture partners come in all shapes and sizes. And though most entrepreneurs and business owners are professional in their conduct, many are still difficult to deal with, and personality conflicts can arise. So what can you do to help assure a sound relationship with your JV partner?

Take heed of advice from Cesar Millan, also known as the “Dog Whisperer”. Cesar has become the leading expert in dog psychology and dog rehabilitation. Although his strategies are aimed at canine “pack” instincts, his psychology can work well for joint venture partners as well. Here are some examples:

Calm-Assertive Energy

Cesar advocates that all dog owners display calm-assertive energy. An owner should show a dog that he or she is the pack leader using compassionate and calm methods. Yelling, nervousness, and anxiety are not good qualities of a good calm-assertive leader.

This tip doesn’t mean you have to set yourself apart from your JV partner as the “pack leader”.  Nor does it mean one of you must become the “calm-submissive” type that will obey the commands of the leader.

How this can benefit you and your JV partner is that you both display assertive behavior without becoming emotional. Energy is calm, and both are in control of all communications and tasks.

Set Rules, Boundaries, and Limitations

Cesar teaches that dogs must have rules, boundaries, and limitations to know how to respond to different situations. Your JV is just the same. Both you and your JV partner must set rules, boundaries, and limitations so you both are clear on your roles and responsibilities.

For instance, can you contact your JV partner any time of day? Do you have permission to access your JV partner’s facilities? And likewise, does your JV partner have permission to utilize your equipment? All this and more need to be pre-determined before the JV goes into effect. Your rules, boundaries, and limitations will help you and your JV partner know exactly what to expect from each other.

Clarify “Issues”

An unstable dog is unclear about its role. This causes anxiety, aggression and fear. Cesar Millan teaches that a dog must trust his owner to be a pack leader and know its role in the pack.

Likewise, you and your JV partner must know your roles. Who will perform the marketing? Who will keep the books? Who’s in charge of production? Clarify all these types of issues and you will have a more successful JV “pack”.

Achieve Balance

Ultimately, you want to achieve balance with your JV. Much like Cesar advocates for dog owners, balance creates a harmonic, productive, and happy life. Set and know your limitations and boundaries. Set up roles for you and your JV partner. Let Cesar Millan’s experience with canine psychology teach you similar lessons in JV psychology. All elements should be balanced so both parties are happy with the effort, as well as the outcome.

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.

250 million in 11 months using integration marketing

What I’m about to share with you could seriously change your financial future in a positive way…

Wait let me rephrase that.

What I’m about to share with you, directly led to over $250 million in sales for one of my clients in less than 11 months.

Okay, I don’t expect you to believe me, and I know that’s a bold statement so let me give you little background.

I’ll also fill you in on my latest marketing project (these are the same tactics that I used in creating the $250 million in sales for my client) that I’m working on with Mark Joyner, the legendary marketer and business building expert.

I’ll keep this short as possible while explaining this very powerful, “integrated” way of marketing yourself, your idea or your existing product or service.

As you know, I specialize in doing joint venture deals. I connect supply and demand chains, create new relationships, products and services and ethically use underutilized assets of other people, companies, networks, etc as distribution channels to create, automated profit centers.

I know that’s a mouth full, and it may sound confusing, but stick with me.

A little background first…

You see, leveraging existing relationships and trust of other people can literally cut years off of the time that it would take you to create these relationships and trust networks by yourself.  It’s one of the primary tactics that top level marketers and  entrepreneurs, from one-man startups to international corporations have used to launch and expand their businesses for the last 200 years.

If you can tap into these types of existing relationships (and I’ll show you how),  the time it will take you to start earning more money from your business (or start a new one) will be reduced by weeks, months and years. This is a proven fact that I personally witnessed week in and week out since I (unknowingly) started doing joint ventures back in 1989 at the will age of 19.

You’ve been on my list, RSS feed or read by regular blog posts, so you know that I try to push out high-quality, joint venture based information on a regular basis to give you proven ideas, tips, tactics and strategies that I’ve personally used to create millions of dollars for my clients over the years. Hopefully, I’ve earned your respect and most of all your trust in directing you towards being more profitable in your business using joint venture marketing techniques.

Okay, so maybe you know this already. You know about the power of leveraging other people’s underutilized assets. You’ve heard how joint ventures can quickly turn into profits. But, I’m willing to bet that you have not successfully executed a joint venture relationship as of yet.

Let’s take this one step deeper. There is a subcategory to doing joint ventures that allowed me to “integrate” my clients services directly into the existing sales process of another company for no upfront, out-of-pocket costs and with very little risk. In fact, the entire process was set up with a phone call and one face-to-face meeting.

So let me help you take the next step and introduce you to the specific way of setting up profitable joint venture deals through a process called “integration marketing”. In short, integration marketing literally allows you to integrate or insert your existing product or service into the existing sales process of a related product or service.

Integration marketing techniques have been used by some of the world’s most famous companies including Microsoft, McDonald’s, HP and Wal-Mart,  but don’t let that intimidate you or send you down the ” this won’t work for me” highway. It works just as well for small start-ups and  entrepreneurs at home in their pajamas. The same tactics apply regardless of the size of your company. It works if you are one man or woman show or if you manage a complex international corporation with thousands of employees.

My latest project has connected me with the legendary marketer, Mark Joyner. Mark has written an entire book on the subject of integration marketing. He’s taken the concept and broken it down into bite sized, easy to understand concepts that make it easy to understand and apply these integration marketing tactics to your own business. He’s even come up with a method based on “predicted math” that you can use to ensure the highest probability of success when you apply these integration marketing methods.

My next post will give you specifics of how you can start increasing your profits  using these integration marketing techniques.

How To Double Your Profits With a Joint Venture

How can you double your profits with a joint venture? Just ask Watsco, Inc.! In July of 2009, the company completed a joint venture transaction, and by the end of the year, their 4th quarter net income doubled from the previous year. The earnings information was just released in February 2010 and has sent the company stock soaring.

How Watsco Doubled Earnings

What did Watsco do to provide such a jump in their revenue? The company capitalized upon the demand for more efficient air conditioning and heating in the U.S.

Watsco is a Florida-based company that specializes in the distribution of heating and cooling products and equipment. A joint venture was formed in 2009 with Carrier Corporation, a leading manufacturer of air conditioners and furnaces. The JV was intended to increase the market position and add new product lines.

They succeeded.

How the Joint Venture Worked

Watsco determined that there was a need and potential demand for replacement cooling and heating systems, especially in the Sunbelt region of the U.S. Thanks to U.S. government tax incentives for installing more energy-efficient appliances, homeowners started demanding these products be installed before the tax incentives expired. Watsco heard the call and responded.

The joint venture allowed Watsco to expand their distribution across the country, as well as expand their market base from mainly contractors to general retail outlet stores. It also provided working capital to expand its business and develop new products to fit the needs of the market.

The End Result of the Joint Venture

The result was extraordinary. By operating from 505 stores in 34 states and serving over 50,000 contractor customers with over 4,500 employees, Watsco’s new Carrier Enterprises LLC trumped the competition.

However, the new LLC doesn’t just sell the Carrier brand appliances. Thanks to the Watsco distribution contacts, it also built a strong product line up of premium HVAC products, all of which are built with the latest energy efficient technology.

This synergistic approach to market demand was successful. By taking a keen eye to potential market demand, Watsco’s strategic alliance with the Carrier brand and outlet stores filled a niche. Just in the 3-month period from October to December 2009, the joint venture saw an 82% increase in sales of energy-efficient products. Total Q3 revenue for Watsco increased 68% to $563.6 million and ended with a net profit of $7.1 million. That is a 54% increase of net profits from the same period in 2008!

What You Can Learn from This Case Study?

What can you glean from Watsco’s success? Take heed of their strategy:

• Watch for consumer trends. Markets constantly change as do demand for particular products.

• Find the niche. Watsco saw the potential niche for energy efficient products thanks to consumer demand and government tax incentives.

• Find the right and most strategic partner. Watsco partnered with the popular Carrier brand of heating and cooling products. This helped increase Watsco’s potential distribution channels and increased exposure to other quality brands.

This is a great example of how a joint venture can result in synergistic results. Though you may not have the same profit results, a strategic joint venture can help you capture new markets and see an increase in your sales.

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 You Can Learn About Joint Ventures from eBay and Craigslist

Joint ventures can provide both partners with tremendous success, but even the best intentions can go awry. One example of an off track joint venture involves online marketing giants eBay and Craigslist.

In 2004, eBay and Craigslist entered into an agreement whereby the two companies would try to expand more into global markets. However, the joint venture soon stagnated to the point where eBay was trying to market the 28.5% share in Craigslist to other companies, and Craigslist was fighting to get it back.

The biggest problem with this joint venture is that the two companies obviously had completely different intentions and goals. Craigslist wanted to retain authority and management of its own operations, but learn from eBay about larger online classified operations. eBay wanted to use their share in Craigslist to better compete against Google in the online classified industry and maximize profit potential in Craigslist operations. Although both companies had a shared intention of expanding into bigger global markets, their alternative intentions soiled the relationship, and they are now in litigation to end the JV.

Looking at the original intention of the JV, it was a good one. However, there are things you can learn to prevent such a tragedy from occurring in your own JV. Here are some things to consider:

Write Out the Intention of the JV as a Mission Statement

Before your JV goes “live”, you and your JV partner need to know exactly what is expected from one another. Are you looking to have access to technology while your JV partner needs help in reducing expenses? Or perhaps you both are looking to enter into bigger national markets by combining forces?

The mission is critical to ensuring that you and your JV partner will not have disputes over the overarching goals.

Explicitly Write Out the Partner Responsibilities

What will you be contributing to the JV? What will your JV partner contribute? Who will manage the accounting books? Who will handle distribution?

All of the facets need to be clearly outlined in the beginning. You don’t want to have a finished product ready, but find your JV partner reluctant to distribute it appropriately. Know who is responsible for every step of the joint venture.

Shelter Your Proprietary Information

eBay used confidential Craigslist information and techniques to form its own “free” online classifieds, called Kijiji. Craigslist did not want another competitor, especially one that was using its own technology and industry secrets.

Although you may agree to share certain proprietary information to develop a new product, be careful what information you do share. Keep your proprietary information private. Remember, you are still in business for yourself.

Define the Exit Strategy

eBay and Craigslist are still in a lengthy and expensive dispute on how to dissolve the joint venture partnership. You can avoid legal litigation by defining exactly how your JV will dissolve if things go wrong, as well as if things go right.

Joint ventures don’t have to end badly. Knowing all expectations and responsibilities will help you and your JV partner get the most benefit and profit from your JV 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 Joint Venture Marketing Wealth Report.

How A Joint Venture Mentor Can Help You Create Your Own Successful JV

You have considered the idea of forming up a joint venture. Perhaps it’s to get help with manufacturing or technology that you don’t have. Or maybe it’s to help build a business and customer network. Or perhaps it’s for the good old-fashioned reason of making great profit. However, you’re afraid to take that first step into the unknown realm of joint ventures. You’ll be glad to know there is help available to JV newcomers in the form of mentors!

What is a JV Mentor?

A JV mentor is simply a coach, an individual who has experienced all the rewards and challenges. They are wise individuals who can offer great advice from their experience. They can help you find the right JV partner and form the strategies needed to make a JV a success on the first try.

Do JV mentors and coaches cost money? Most of them do, yes. But the money invested in a good mentor to learn how to avoid costly mistakes is money well spent. Here are some ways a JV mentor can help you:

•    CD & DVD Coaching – Many successful individuals who have made money through JVs have put together a training program via CD or even DVD video. Rather than work one-on-one with fewer people, their recorded training products offer advice to numerous entrepreneurs who want to improve their business through JVs. A recorded training system can offer helpful tips, great advice, and step-by-step guides to making your own successful JV.

However, be on the lookout for JV programs that are all fluff and no content. Conduct the research on your potential JV mentor first. If an offer sounds too good to be true, it most likely is. Make sure you are buying a product from a trustworthy and experienced individual before you plunk down hundreds of dollars for useless CDs.

•    One-on-One Training – Oftentimes a successful individual who has made their mark in the joint venture world will offer their services one-on-one to help mentor newcomers. These are organized individuals who may have formed a streamlined process for making a successful JV and want to share their knowledge and wisdom.

One-on-one mentors don’t usually offer full access to individuals. To do so would be extremely expensive. Rather, you could join in with a limited size group that meets for a few hours each week online or via phone to ask questions to the mentor. These group sessions can be very helpful and cost efficient since you don’t have to pay for all the mentor’s time yourself.

•    Government Assisted Mentoring – If you are an economically and social disadvantage individual who owns and controls a business, you may qualify for mentorship through the Business Development Program through the Small Business Administration. Mentors are chosen carefully to help disadvantaged business owners compete in American economy, as well as the federal government contract market. Protégés can form JVs with mentors who can help with financial or technical assistance, offer small loans, and give management advice. Check with the SBA website for more information.

Joint Ventures can be a great way to improve your business and your profits, but the unknown aspects of a JV are often difficult obstacles to overcome. Get help through a mentor if you have questions and get your JV started with confidence.

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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