Pitfalls to Avoid in Joint Venture Marketing

If you have an online business or are planning to have one in the near future, you must be aware that a continuous stream of targeted visitors eager to buy your products is the only assured way to financial success. Among all the various methods that Internet marketers use to pull paying customers to their website, there probably isn’t one that is easier or more popular than Joint Ventures. If run well, it is guaranteed to increase sales and consequently your cash flow.

If this is such a proven method of getting targeted visitors to a site, why is it that more Internet marketers are not involved in it, especially those who are new to the business and desperate for website traffic? Why do some Joint Ventures not work very well, while others are run away successes?

If you would like to start a Joint Venture with the intent of boosting your online sales or have a unique product/service that you would like to market, you should be aware of the most common pitfalls to avoid:

1) Not making the first move: Reticence may be fine in other fields but definitely not when it comes to business and especially not in marketing. No one will come up to you and offer to partner with you in a Joint Venture. First of all, they do not know you - that, after all, is the point of getting involved in joint venturing - to make yourself known in the business as a player. Moreover, unless you have something unique to offer, whether a service or a product, most potential partners will not be very interested. If you are a new comer to Internet Marketing, or maybe because of it, you may be able to come up with a proposal that is fresh, challenging or lucrative enough to excite even an experienced marketer. But unless you reach out and actually sell your concept, your Joint Venture will remain just a fresh, challenging or lucrative IDEA.

2) Not following up on your proposal: You've sent out an offer of partnership to a select group of web site owners, a proposal you felt was well thought out with all the angles covered. You wait and wait and wait......, but you don't see a line of marketers banging on your door, begging to be allowed to join you. Do you get discouraged and wonder if you are in the right business or do you decide to follow up on your proposition. Remember the people you are contacting don't know you, are probably very busy and most likely have had many other offers previously which did not work out. It is natural for them to be wary. So the best plan of action would be to restate your Joint Venture offer, indicating that you are prepared to be flexible and are open to alternative suggestions. It often takes three or more emails and perhaps a phone call or two before you get a positive response.

3) Not customizing your Joint Venture proposals: Your offer will have no takers unless it is directed specifically to the interests of your potential partners. If you are vague about any of the details of proposal or if the guidelines are too general, you will not spark an interest in your readers. Creating a Joint Venture presentation should be done with care and much time, thought and research have to be applied before it is ready. It would be best if you found out as much as you can about the people you are sending your offer to, the kind of business they run and what kind of websites they have. Tailoring your proposal to their specific interests will definitely ensure a positive response, particularly when they realise that you have spent time and effort trying to understand their business practices.

4) Not offering a lucrative commission: If you want well established businesses to partner with you, you have to make it worth their while. After all their chief contributions to the venture are their expertise, reputation and time. Offering them high commissions of 50 percent or more will definitely work in your favor.

5) Not partnering with smaller businesses: - Instead of highly ambitious ventures with big businesses, you could partner with smaller ones that are similar to or have products and/or services that are related to your own market. By starting small, you have a better chance of success. It will also give you a greater say in how it should be run, as both you and your partners are on a more or less equal footing. Once you understand the mechanics of running a Joint Venture and have built a good record of performance, you will not only have the confidence to approach well known marketers, you will also have the experience and proficiency to deal with them.

Getting ahead in business is not just about making money; it is about being creative, being able to make bold decisions and not being afraid to take a risk. With commitment and the knowledge of what to avoid, there is really no reason why you should not be setting up your own successful Joint Venture.