After You ~ Joint Venture Strategies With the Other Guy in Mind

Copyright (c) 2008 Christian Fea

As an entrepreneur and business owner, it's a given that you are constantly thinking of ways to grow your business and increase your profits. Joint venturing is a great way to do just that. However, many times business owners approach the concept of the joint venture with a "what's in it for me attitude," as opposed to taking a look at what's in it for the potential joint venture partner.

Approaching a joint venture opportunity from this other person's perspective can be a great way to open doors for future joint venture opportunities. Your ability to successfully expose your joint venture partner's product or service to your network makes you a valuable asset to their company. Combine that with word-of-mouth marketing, and you will have other companies coming to you to propose joint venture ideas. So think about providing "the other guy" with a fantastic joint venture experience, knowing that your efforts on the front end will reap great rewards down the road.

Once you've proven yourself in several situations, you may find that more opportunities for larger joint ventures come your way. Successful people tend to create more success. Joint ventures are intended to create marketing synergies that allow monies, ideas, and market share to grow. The more valuable you are in creating a winning joint venture for your partners, the more valuable you'll be when it comes time for future joint ventures. Think about what you can bring to the table and how you can best benefit your joint venture partners.

For instance, one small business owner recognized that there was a product that would do very well in salon, and that the product was not being offered by any other salon in the region. She researched the market and put together a proposal. In her proposal, she showed how she would take the time to introduce the product to the salon's clients, since she was aware that the salon owner had no time to promote additional products.

She then showed how the salon could make anywhere from an additional $300 - $1000 per week, simply by making a strong product introduction and then capitalizing on the reorders. Her role would be to introduce the product, and share in the revenue generated. The salon's job would be to give her access to the customers and then help to promote the re-orders via the internet. The salon owner loved the idea. They started the venture with the understanding that the feedback from the customers would ultimately be the deciding factor. The customers loved the product, the salon owner saw a profit, and the business owner increased her market share and profit. It was a win-win all the way around. Of course, other businesses have now contacted the small business owner about the product and are looking to see if there are other products she might be able to bring to the table on behalf of their businesses.

In the scenario above, the small business owner took the risk of giving time and the initiative of approaching another business owner. She looked to see how it could benefit the other business first. Needless to say, there is a strong on-going relationship between the salon owner and the small businesswoman. Think about the benefit to your potential joint venture partner, put together an operating strategy, and reap the mutual rewards.