A joint venture opportunity may present itself when companies realize the value in pulling together to achieve similar goals. The reasons for creating a joint venture vary depending on the needs and strategies laid out. There are several companies struggling in all sectors of the economy that can benefit from working with each other.

Building their customer base and thus increasing their profits is the main reason former competitors join forces. Another reason may include a scenario when one company can provide excellent marketing strategies, but lack the capital or personnel resources to execute their ideas or maybe one company has the financial and personnel but lacks the ability to properly market their product or service to a specific target market.

Building and construction industry

The construction of a commercial property usually involves different companies forming a joint venture. The strength of each partner is spotlighted during different phases of the project. First, they invite one or more partners because of their experience in securing the necessary financing. Then two or more companies may guide the development and construction of the building(s). During this time, one company may establish a leadership role managing the architects, engineering, and all elements of the indoor and outdoor design. Meanwhile, they might hire a property management company, or maybe bring a third joint venture partner on board for the final phase of the project. The building and construction of commercial property industry are at the forefront of creatively using joint venture opportunities.

Travel industry

The stakeholders involved in the travel sector today often service niche markets. By coming together to provide services, which complement each other, the partners can improve their opportunities for growth.  Travel agencies, airlines, hotels, transport services, tourist destination sites are a few segments of the travel industry consistently seeking joint venture opportunities. The relationship can assist in reducing costs of advertising. As a result, they can offer discounts or features their direct competitors are lacking.

For example, in recent years two popular tourist trends have emerged: the mature travellers and those who stay closer to home to enjoy “staycations”. The tourism and convention bureau in a city or state may actively seek a joint venture opportunity with agencies focusing on these market segments. The bureau can give insider information regarding the advantages of a community, while the travel agency understands how to get the message out to a national or international audience.

Entertainment and event organizers

Event and entertainment organizers are sometimes small firms struggling to attract customers. A joint venture between the various service providers allows each to focus on what they do best. For weddings, a florist and caterer partnering is a natural fit. A wedding planner perhaps may choose to share marketing costs with unique venues for the ceremony or reception. Other possible joint venture opportunities exist between audiovisual service providers, photographers, musicians, and limo companies.

As noted by the examples above, joint venture opportunities can easily emerge from within specific industries but they can also be formed between seemingly unrelated markets. For example, “Destination Weddings” have become increasingly popular in recent years. A wedding planner for instance might form a partnership with a travel agency to increase their marketing reach. The “Destination Wedding” planner can then provide services and features that stand out from the majority of their competitors with the aid of their travel agent partner.

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.

Business news headlines feature successful joint venture examples throughout the marketplace, and across industries. Their success showcase reasons why joint ventures make sound business sense for companies. One reason includes the ability to share the expenses of launching a new product line related to research and development. Pooling their technological resources is another significant advantage. Additionally, joint ventures don’t usually face the same stringent government regulation that normally haunts mergers.

Driving to joint venture success

In the automobile industry recent joint venture examples include the successful teaming of Ford and Mazda. Dubbed ‘The Auto Alliance International’, which began with Ford’s idle body-casting center located in Michigan. When Mazda embarked on an expansion program, they paid for the plant and used it to build their vehicles. Later, Ford wanted a piece of the action and reached an agreement with Mazda to buy back a 50 percent stake in the property. Today this site produces both Ford Mustangs and the Mazda RXs. This is a picture perfect model for those looking for an example of how even competitors can work harmoniously toward their own goals.

A prescription for joint venture success

The pharmaceutical sector in recent years has seen several successful joint venture examples as the industry continually seeks ways to reduce the costs of research and marketing. Novartis and Procter & Gamble joined up and brought the drug Enablex to the marketplace together. At one point, Novartis was marketing the drug as Emselex, a prescription offered to patients for the treatment of incontinence. Eventually, Novartis sold the U.S. rights exclusively to Warner Chilcott. By saving money on the front end with their first joint venture agreement, Novartis was able to make their business attractive to other bidders. Currently, Enablex has an estimated 25 percent market share globally.

When considering a joint venture partnership, it’s necessary to keep your eye on moving the ball down the field toward success. If the long-term goal is to sell off the separate entity, remaining lean but sound is critical to attract future offers.

Mobile industry joint ventures

Successful joint venture examples in the fast growing mobile industry include Sony Ericsson. Sony, the popular company from Japan, is well known for its excellence in marketing electronics globally. The hallmark of the Swedish company Ericsson is the technology they have produced aimed at telecoms. The two formed a hard to beat alliance producing high quality mobile phones. The two companies tapped into their extensive marketing network, and stellar reputations to create a strong alliance.

Look around your community or industry to identify market leaders, which offer products, or services that can compliment your business efforts. A bookkeeping provider does not have the same expertise as a tax professional. They perhaps would consider forming a partnership with a tax firm because their clients need this service. On the other hand, a tax attorney or firm does not want the daily or monthly management responsibilities related to bookkeeping. Together, a joint venture will allow the two partners to expand their knowledge, personnel and customer base.

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.

Even if you’ve never done a partnership deal before and you’re currently working for a company and you don’t have a product or service of your own, you can start the process to making a profit in less then 24 hours using partnership brokering techniques. If you do have your own product or service you can apply the same partnership brokering strategies.

You can start brokering deals for quick cash and turn that into residual, passive income, repeat the process and compound them into $1000’s a month. This is not a difficult process once you understand the core ideology behind partnership deals. I’ve used the technique many times to generate income to the tune of $500 to $2000 per hour when the deal has run its course.

Let me give you a real-life example that identifies this partnership brokering strategy.

I’ll give one of the easiest partnership strategies that I used back in 1999 to generate $700 for 1 hour of work. When I was working in an insurance company developing a quoting system for a large online insurance application I got the opportunity to work with with the IT Director, Ron, directly. I had been consulting on a technology project for about a year when the need for a particular project came up that was outside my scope of knowledge. It was a new technology that I knew about but was not able to directly deliver what was needed to complete the project. However, I did know of several people through my Asset Network (these are people that I know that have other skills, resources and knowledge outside of my own) that could deliver the needed skills for this upcoming project. One guy in particular who does this type of work full time who’s name was John.

Since I already had built a trusting relationship through the value I provided to the Insurance Company over the last year and I had positioned myself as a “Value Provider”, I made the suggestion to the IT Director that I had access to the needed skill set he was looking for. Now keep in mind I had set myself up from the beginning as a “Value Provider” and not just a single source consultant that could only provide value for the skills I was hired for.  At the time I positioned myself as a “Technology Value Provider” so when other projects would come up and a need for other skill sets would arise, I could be in the position to solve the problem. I told Ron I had a qualified person that specializes in the skill set he needed. He told me to setup a discovery meeting where all of us could meet and discuss the project. We had the meeting, Ron was satisfied with what John could provide so we setup a time line on the project, discussed the rates and decided to move forward.

Total time on this project was about an hour and my commission for recommending John, as a solution to Ron’s current problem, setting up and managing the process was $700. Not bad for thinking out of the box by recommending a solution that I couldn’t provide, but knew of someone who could. How could you apply this example to a person or company where you can position yourself as problem solver and earn a commission for your efforts?

So what are the take away points that you can use immediately to start creating partnership brokering income? Regardless of what your skill sets are, you should always position yourself as a “Value Provider” and not just pigeon hole yourself into thinking that you only have skills in X, Y and Z. Instead, position yourself as a business development consultant as every company is in search of new clients and someone who can solve business related problems. Once a company or person sees you as a problem solver and you can deliver on what you say you can do, you could have a client for life. That client will gladly pay you a commission; a one time payment or even an ongoing residual income for solving their business related problems through your combining, recommending and advising them with resources you have access to.

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.

Business is all about developing relationships and forming partnerships to get your business off the ground. A poorly planned joint venture is destined to fail from the very start. One way to ensure this doesn’t happen is to create a joint venture agreement that is aligned with the goals of your JV.

Reciprocal

Reciprocity is very simple. If you’re good to your partner and create revenue for them, they’ll want to reciprocate. The referral mechanism for a reciprocal agreement could be as easy as displaying your partner’s business cards or adding its logo to your marketing materials. You are basically saying you give your partner’s company your stamp of approval. Think about how your pediatrician can recommend a good nutritionist for your kids, or how many Wal-Mart locations have a McDonald’s inside the store; this is reciprocity at work.

In mid-July, American Airlines, British Airways and Iberia were finally able to announce their joint venture. The European Commission had approved their partnership which allowed them to expand their code sharing. The companies were able to sell their partners’ flights under their own name and flight number. This venture gives American Airlines more cities to sell flights to and from Europe.  British Airways and Iberia would be able to use American Airlines extensive network in Canada, Mexico, the United States and South America. This is an example of a multi-national company successfully designing a reciprocal relationship that should fit the needs of both organizations. However, small local companies can do the same.

Profit Sharing

Profit sharing also means risk sharing. When you decide to choose a profit sharing joint venture, you’re also agreeing to share half the risk and half the potential losses. To avoid confusion the contract must clearly state that both companies are equal partners. All profits, risks and loses are shared equally between you and your joint venture partners.

Delta Airlines and Air France/KLM put together a $12 million per year profit-sharing venture which would allow the companies to become a single carrier on North Atlantic routes. This offer also extends to a previous venture between Northwest and KLM which has been in place since 1997. This is the most advanced model of successful international of airline cooperation. The benefit to customers and the businesses are paramount. Where can you form a joint venture marketing agreement with a local partner that will answer the needs of your customers?

The Best of Both Worlds

Recently SkyWest and Virgin Blue Group signed a 10-year joint venture agreement which will provide Australia with up to 18 Virgin Blue-branded aircraft. This venture makes it possible for SkyWest and Virgin Blue to operate at a number of existing and new destinations in Australia.

If both reciprocal and profit-sharing agreements seem like a good option for your business, you’re in luck because a joint venture marketing agreement is completely customizable. All you have to do is put what you want in writing to be presented to your potential partner at negotiations. You may have to make some compromises, but that’s the case in most business partnerships.

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.

Each year pharmaceutical companies spend billions on marketing, advertising and partnerships. They enter into these agreements in hopes they will improve their bottom line. Whether the venture is sponsorship, research outsourcing or directly to the consumer, the end result is the same, effective marketing techniques create revenue.

Funding Research Project

The world’s largest drug maker, Pfizer announced in November of 2010 a sponsorship deal with University of California San Francisco (UCSF) to develop new biologic treatments. Pfizer agreed to set up joint laboratories on campus, combining the basic research expertise at UCSF with Pfizer’s knowledge of drug development. UCSF researchers will benefit because they will be allowed to publish their findings in academic journals. The university will also share with Pfizer the ownership rights to the new drugs, which will mean millions for the school. Pfizer, like many pharmaceutical companies, has been affected by the economic downturn of the past couple years which have caused venture capitalists to turn more cautious. The venture capitalists are now often requiring more and more evidence from scientific entrepreneurs, including university faculty, before they will consider financing promising new therapies through clinical trials.

Direct to Consumers

Have you seen Avandia logos on pens and notepads at your physician’s office? Or been given a free sample of Os-Cal Ultra 600+ D to try? Those items are freebies given to the physician’s office by the GlaxoSmithKline pharmaceutical company to get physicians to prescribe their brand of medications to you. Both the physician and the GlaxoSmithKline Company benefit from you taking that specific medication. Another example of marketing that is direct to consumers is Merck & Co., they are taking big measures to boost sales of newer and brand-name drugs while addressing patient adherence concerns by stepping up “loyalty card” programs, receive in mail or e-mail coupons and rebates. The proliferation of discounts on certain prescription medications is gaining traction, observers say, because they enable patients to reduce out-of-pocket costs.

Sponsorship

The Johnson & Johnson Company, which produce health care products, sponsor youth softball programs. Johnson & Johnson has the opportunity to promote products to their target audience, the parents, as well as help out the communities by funding youth sports programs. They hand out first aid kits during games as needed or sunscreen on hot sunny days, the consumer will see the products and become aware of what the company has to offer.

Some pharmaceutical companies like Eli Lilly take sponsorship into the professional sports arena. Eli Lilly and the PGA Tour announced a partnership in November of 2003. To support the partnership the companies developed a series of golf-themed vignettes featuring some of golf’s top players. The vignettes focused primarily on the emotional connection to the game with themes such as relaxation, preparation and confidence. The agreement also included an on-site component; whereby Eli Lilly joined MasterCard(R) as a sponsor of the electronic scoreboards at PGA TOUR and Champions Tour events. A partnership with the PGA TOUR allowed Eli Lilly to connect with millions of golf fans, many of whom enjoy golf because it is both relaxing and invigorating.

Naturally most small businesses do not have the same level of marketing dollars; however the principles related to joint venture marketing are the same at any budget level.

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.

Education has always been a pillar of strength upon which society rests. Although the education industry has evolved, the concept remains the same: providing the next generation with the right tools of knowledge and morals to move society a step forward.

Over the years, the education industry has evolved to where profits and balance sheets matter as much as the quality education and the right infrastructure. In an ever growing world, with opportunities increasing every day, providing the right kind of infrastructure is costly. So, for a higher education institute to live up to the standards it aspires, it needs an inflow of students and financial support from alumni, the business community and government. In order to have students, the right kind of exposure in the high demand fields is essential. Advertising and marketing, which are very burdensome to the bottom-line generally, can be aided through the use of joint venture marketing.

Captive audience

Various companies reap significant benefits from a joint venture with an academic institute. Computer and software companies and other high tech companies partner with various institutions and offer their products at lower rates, resulting in an upswing in their share of market. This is beneficial for companies seeking a captive market of students and faculty, who appreciate the access to low cost equipment or software guaranteeing a steady volume of sales. The companies enjoy an opportunity to build brand loyalty with future shoppers (college students).

There are numerous examples of joint venture marketing with college institutions with well-known brands. For years Microsoft has offered software very cheap to enrolled college students and this year Apple has heavily marketing a special discount for college students on their popular laptops. Banks also offer loans at lower interest rates to students and of course the somewhat controversial credit card offers has gone on for over 20 years.

In the real world

Recently, Google and the British library embarked on a project to digitize and publish hundreds of books previously unavailable online. This partnership will bring a wealth of never before seen information out into the digital world. It might not lead to any direct profits, but the availability of the information is tremendous for readers around the world. Google gets the chance to earn high marks for corporate citizenship.

There are various government agencies and non-profit organizations who partner with companies to provide grants for research and scholarships. They do their bit for society and they even earn publicity for it. This results in the colleges becoming an integral part of the company’s research and development for new products efforts and scientific discoveries.

Institutes have shown great success with partnerships with foreign universities and colleges giving them global exposure and international presence. One example of a technological partnership is Dell. They have academic affiliations with various universities across the nation and world. The company actively recruits from the best institutes as well.

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.

A joint venture is a business agreement in which parties agree to work together on a project sharing assets toward a common goal. Commercial real estate investment is a fairly commonplace joint venture in the marketplace. Together two or more companies can combine their resources – everything from finances, marketing, technology and staff – to develop and manage a profitable commercial real estate property such as a shopping center or office building.

The two or more companies involved in the agreement share control over construction, marketing and management and other related expenses. The partners, while sharing risks, are also able to legally keep this particular business venture separate from the rest of their organization.

There are several advantages for entering into commercial real estate joint ventures. First, it allows companies to gain access to capital which is tight in today’s economy. Also, one company may have more management related expertise than money and this allows them to continue to grow.

The challenges of the joint ventures include the amount of time required to build the right kind of relationship.  Integration can also take time as employees bring in different cultures and expectations into the venture. But the advantages far outweigh the risks involved and many companies in America are taking the plunge into such ventures.

If they build it, will the shoppers come?

Recently, Tanger Factory Outlet Centers, Inc., (NYSE:SKT) and Simon Property Group, Inc., (NYSE:SPG) announced a 50/50 joint venture agreement for the development, construction, leasing and management of a Tanger Outlet Center south of Houston, Texas.

The Tanger Outlets will be located in Texas City, TX which is approximately 30 miles south of Houston and 20 miles north of Galveston. The area receives an estimated 100,000 vehicles per day near the anticipated location Exit 17 of Interstate 45 at Holland Road. The center is expected to feature over 90 brand names and designer outlet stores when the first phase of approximately 350,000 square feet is completed. Tanger and Simon separately have a strong reputation throughout Texas and experts see this as a good marriage.

Steven B. Tanger, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tanger Outlet Centers, Inc., commented, “The opportunity to build a Tanger Outlet Center south of Houston makes perfect sense. Our partnership with Simon will provide our retail partners with what we believe are the best location and strongest development. When built, we will offer residents and visitors to this region one of the nation’s best brand name and designer outlet shopping centers with today’s style and fashion trends at the best values every day.”

Another company Worldwide Realty Corporation, the real estate arm of Children of America, specializing is also asking for interest from other firms to get into a joint venture opportunity.

Just show me the money

Another common option are lenders with money available for investment, seeking what they see believe might be good investment opportunities without the headache of daily operations. Then they partner with construction and property management firms to locate, build and lease the properties on their behalf.

Still all about the money but no hard hats involved

This week Prudential Mortgage Capital Company and affiliated funds of Perella Weinberg Partners disclosed their plans to work together to originate commercial mortgages. This partnership taps into Prudential’s credit and finance expertise and Perella Weinberg Partners’ real estate lending and investing experience.

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.

Where are you focusing your time?

Are your current actions bringing you closer to or further from your major objectives in your life, family or business?

This short optimization video challenges your to write down everything you do for the next 7 days to see exactly where your time is going.

I think you’ll be amazed at where your time is spent compared to where you “think” it’s spent.

To your success,

Christian

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.

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.