Host an Educational Seminar to Attract New Clients

joint venture marketing

joint venture marketing

Reaching out to potential customers through a joint venture marketing partner by hosting an educational seminar is an effective way to attract new clients. There are a couple of ways to set up and host a seminar in order to get in front of new customers, the most popular being a meeting in person or a webinar that is done over the web. It’s essential when preparing to host a seminar that the focus of the seminar is a topic that will be of interest to the audience and be educational about the topic versus a pure business pitch selling a product or service. Remember to capture the content created during the seminar in order to use it for future marketing activities. Work closely with partners to craft exciting and interesting topics that will strengthen both companies’ brands with the target audience and consider opening the events up to anyone that may be interested as another channel for attracting new clients for both companies in the partnership.

Meet Up or Webinar to Attract New Clients

The first major decision that needs to be made when considering to host an educational seminar with a joint venture partner is whether the event should be a real in-person meeting or done through the web in the form of a webinar. There are pros and cons for both and here are few of the most common differences and items to be aware of when making a decision.

A meeting in person is beneficial because a face-to-face interaction allows for a much different relationship to form with potential clients versus an online exchange. It also allows provides more structure for the seminar and can be planned around a breakfast, lunch, or dinner which is often appreciated by people attending. If setting up an in-person seminar, then it’s also important to have marketing collateral prepared and printed as well as product samples on site if relevant. Live seminars should be video recorded in order to be used online later for building a library of interesting information for other future potential customers that are also interested in learning about the topic of the seminar. The biggest drawback for a live meeting are the costs associated with hosting such an event, especially if a location needs to be rented to host the seminar and the seminar is restricted to only a specific geographic area. However, if a partner has a conference room or larger meeting space that can be utilized and the number of potential clients in a specific area warrants a seminar in person then it should be highly considered.

An online webinar is a very effective method to reach many potential customers very easily. This is the best method if the customer base is spread over a large region. Depending on the platform that is chosen for hosting the webinar, the host can still share marketing collateral, PowerPoint presentations, and links with the audience. A webinar is generally easier to record, share or publish to the web and many webinar platforms have this capability built into the product.

Utilize Social Media to Maximize Seminars

Maximize your decision to host a seminar for a joint venture marketing partner’s existing clients by opening the seminar up to the public and promoting it through both company’s social media accounts. An industry related educational seminar should always be looked at as a way for both companies to increase their presence with potential customers. If a live seminar is being recorded it can also be streamed live so anyone that is not able to attend in-person can still attend via the web. Services like Ustream and Justin.tv allow for anyone to easily live stream video from the event. If your event is open to the public you can promote it through sites like MeetUp.com or eventful.com. Make sure that all partners promote seminars through their Facebook and Twitter accounts as well as through more traditional means such as mailers, email, phone calls, and personal recommendations to attend.

Remember when hosting an educational seminar the focus should be on the topic at hand for the majority of the event and through providing interesting and relevant information. The goal is to be seen as an industry expert that can help the potential customers which will ultimately attract new clients. Spending too much time directly pitching a product or service can be a hindrance to developing relationships with potential customers and be a turn off, so go easy with the pitch and have fun educating people about a topic that can be presented with passion.

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.

Discover more joint venture marketing Strategies join his free report on joint venture marketing.

joint venture marketing

joint venture marketing

6 Inches From Success

If I told you that you were 6 inches from success, would you believe me?

Probably not, sounds like a lofty concept, but it’s true and here’s why.

Your 6 inch success mechanism

Your brain, that 6 inch mass of matter between your ears is what determines how successful you are. Specifically, it’s the front part of your brain, just behind your eyes. When you come up with an idea, implement or take action on that idea you’re engaging the Frontal Lobe area of your brain.  The Frontal Lobe is one of the four major divisions of your brain, but that’s not really important here. What’s important is this this part of your brain regulates decision making, problem solving, control of your purposeful behaviors, consciousness and emotions. This is where all our experiences start, positive and negative.

If you think you’re right or you think you’re wrong, you’re exactly right…

You’re probably asking, “Why is this relevant to my success?” Good question! Let me start out by saying that most of us don’t even know what success means. I mean we say, “I want to be happy”, or “I want to be successful”, but we don’t take the next step to define what happiness is or what success really means to you. Why do we do this? Once reason is because it’s not logical, it’s an abstract process. It appears to be difficult. Anything that’s abstract can have an unlimited number of options. If we fuel our thoughts with so many ideas and never decide on a path to take, a direction to go in or define a starting point, we get overwhelmed and wind up not making any decisions at all.

Guilty of not deciding

I’m guilty of this myself. I can honestly say that there are things that’s I’ve wanted to do, be, have and experience that have taken me 20+ years to accomplish. Did it take me 20 years of trying to make them happen? No! They actually took me less than a week to accomplish, but that’s because I never made the decision to do those things. I’ve lost valuable relationships, 100’s of thousands of dollars, and most importantly I’ve wasted time. Something none of us can get back.  Once I decided, the outcome was quick and surprisingly easily to bring my intentions to fruition. What’s been in the back of your mind for weeks, months and years that you’ve not decided to take action on?

Get clear on what you want or you may never obtain it

You need to get quite with a pen and paper and define what does success really mean to you. Is it a finite amount of money in the bank, a business that earns us monthly, residual income, a certain type of car in the garage, a contribution to worthy cause, a smile from a loved one, the love and respect of your partner, the birth of your first child? These are definable, finite, explainable and tangible success goals. Once you define and write down what you actually want our Frontal Lobe goes to work to create what we’ve decided on. The crazy thing about this process is that it works automatically in our brains without us having to do much of the heavy lifting through conscience thought. The challenge is that we over-think, over-analyze, create doubt and simply don’t really believe we can obtain the objects, situations and conditions we want to create. Trust in this process. Think, decide, execute. The simple truth of positive and negative reinforcement will guide you towards your success goal. Don’t worry about making it perfect; just take the action needed to make progress.

Decision is your first step to a successful outcome

It’s relevant because all aspects of success start with a decision. This is part of your inner control mechanism. Sounds simple, but this is where most of us get blocked by fear, stop, never start or simply cast off our ideas as not import or they won’t fly. You’ll make excuses and come up with multiple reasons why your idea or concept won’t work.  These negative supporting thoughts are not based on reality or you actually deciding and doing something about it, but are merely based on 2 things, your past successes or your past failures.

Feed your brain with a positive outcome

When you think about something you’re feeding your brain. Feed it good thoughts and outcomes and your behavior will follow. Feed it negative, self-doubting thoughts and your reality will reflect those thoughts. Your brain uses points of reference as a starting point to execute your decisions. It’s almost like your brain is one big mind map. It starts with a core experience and builds out from there. This is why it’s so easy to fail or succeed based on your history and how you’ve handled your past experiences. Even if you’ve failed more than you’ve succeeded, you can flip that experience around in an instant by feeding your thoughts with successful outcomes as a way for your brain to go to work on what you want.

Define, decide, execute, repeat

So remember this. If you only remember once concept, one take away from this article, it’s to Define, Decide, Execute, Repeat. Define what you want. Get really clear on this and write it down. Decide that you’re going to do to make it happen. Take the steps needed by executing or taking action on your decision. You’ll be amazed at how a simple start can empower you to take the next step. This will happen through positive and negative feedback from your brain that will tell you what actions to take next. Repeat your actions until you get to your success level. It really is that easy so don’t waste any more time. Get working on what you want to create the life that’s in your mind’s eye.

Christian Fea is CEO of Synertegic, Inc. A Joint Venture Marketing firm. He exemplifies how to profit from Joint Venture Partnering relationships by creating profit centers with minimal risk and maximum profitability.

To discover more Joint Venture Marketing and Success Strategies join his free report on Joint Venture Marketing.

How To Increase Your Wealth Through Joint Ventures

How to increase your wealth is probably one of the most asked questions in the world. The challenge is there are no guaranteed answers for success. Progress depends on your capabilities, education, efforts and opportunities. The potential to increase your wealth on your own is one thing, finding a partner for a joint venture agreement opens up an entirely different pathway.

A joint venture is a business agreement, and the parties are all about contributed equity. In other words what do you bring to the table? So, where do you start when asking how to increase your wealth through joint ventures? Here are a few steps to consider:

Choose the right partner

This is often the hardest part, as the first step is generally the biggest challenge. Everybody will guarantee you the best deal and easy money, but do not fall for it. Carefully consider what your future partner is offering that balances out your areas of weakness. Choose wrong and you can fall further behind the curve because of wasted time and other resources.

Before you even approach someone or respond to a joint venture partnership offer, learn all you can about the individual or organization. Try to discover:

• How well is their business performing?
• What is their motivation for the partnership?
• Are they open to the idea of collaboration?
• Do you have the same business goals?
• What is their reputation in the marketplace?
• What does their financial background look like?

Sharing information and technology

If you want this to work, both sides must act as one. The joint venture partners need full access to technology and financial reports essential for the endeavor. While you need to have a strong working relationship, do not let your guard down as it relates to financial reporting. It is especially relevant to keep track of any business moves, no matter how insignificant they may seem. You should share all relevant information with your joint venture partner, and demand they do the same to avoid surprises down the road.

Take advantage of your partnership

Of course, in a good way! In today’s economy, it’s a challenge for small businesses to survive alone. Withholding key business information can hinder the success of the endeavor. Share market insights, marketing tools and customer contacts where relevant to the success of your joint venture. A partnership can also save you money by eliminating new employee hiring costs. If you attempted to expand on your own when creating new products or services, new staff is often a significant part of the investment costs. Reducing your expenses is an effective answer to the dilemma of how to increase your wealth.

The capacity

Let’s face it some businesses never reach the top on their own. It doesn’t always mean they’re not smart enough but having the right resources could have made the difference. A joint venture partner can help your business grow efficiently and cost effectively. Otherwise you may be full of exciting ideas, but with limited resources, those ideas will never come to life.

Entering a joint venture may be a tough decision, but it is worth taking a chance. Thousands of companies have found JV partnerships are an effective way to answer the question of “how to increase your wealth”. However, in order to achieve success and avoid risky situations, it’s necessary to define the process and take it one step at a time.

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.

How to Beat the Recession Using Joint Ventures

There is no doubt that the recent economic slowdown has directly impacted businesses of all shapes and sizes today. Joint ventures have traditionally been a method companies have used to create new business opportunities despite current economic conditions.

We’ll show you how joint ventures can help you raise your profit margin on your business, no matter what the current economic climate might be.

Pooling Resources

When you partner up with another business, you automatically pool your time, talent and money to produce the most effective advertising campaign for less investment up front.

You may find a JV partner that’s a whiz at online marketing or knows how to write a linkbait article that gets results. Maybe you can find a partner that already has a solid customer list that he’s willing to share. An endorsement from a larger company for a share of your profits can also be a good way to grow your business by pooling resources in a joint venture.

Consider what you have to offer and what you are lacking, and find a JV partner that complements your assets and liabilities.

Introducing a New Product

For larger companies, a joint venture is the perfect way to introduce a new product or service to the market for less money and risk. Try using the customer list of your JV partner to get a new product out to a test market. This list gets a free sample of an item they’re interested in, and you get to test the waters for your new concept without much cost up front.

Find a JV partner with a similar target market to ensure the customers you test are the most likely ones to buy your products or services.

Expanding Your Market Base

By simply sharing customer lists with your JV partner, you can expand your basic market base exponentially. However, you may also be able to increase the market base demographically by finding a partner with a similar, but slightly different, target market. While you may not go too far away from your target customer profile with this approach, you may find enough variables to greatly expand your base while continuing to attract the customers that are most likely to buy your products or services.

Acquiring Capital

Some joint ventures are created for the primary purpose of acquiring capital for both businesses to share. In some cases, a larger company might offer additional capital to a smaller business for marketing or product development if the larger business also benefits from the arrangement. If you find that cash is simply too tight to adequately grow and market your business at this time, perhaps a joint venture can provide the cash you need to jump-start your company’s growth.

Even in the midst of economic hardship, some companies find that joint ventures are one way to stay afloat. By partnering up with another business, you may be able to increase your resources, cash flow and customer base much more efficiently.

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.

The Pros and Cons of Using Joint Venture Matching Directories

You know that a joint venture is one of the most efficient ways to market your business, but you have no idea how to go about finding prospective partners for your venture. When you search online, you find a wealth of websites devoted solely to matching up companies into harmonious and profitable joint venture partnerships. Should you bite?

While these matching services may seem tempting at the start, there are a few things to consider before committing your company. We have the pros and cons of joint venture matching directories for your consideration.

Benefits of Joint Venture Directories

Websites that are geared to helping you find prospective joint venture partners can offer a number of benefits, including:

• Number of Prospects - Many of these websites act as clearinghouses for companies looking to enter a joint venture, so you may have numerous JV opportunities from which to choose.

• Time Savings – By heading to a website to find a prospective partners, you save the time of pounding the pavement and creating proposals for prospects you locate on your own. Everything is completed from the comfort of your home or office in a time frame that you choose.

• Variety – Companies of all shapes and sizes are attracted to joint venture websites, so you many find a greater diversity in prospects than you would dig up on your own.

While there are a number of potential benefits in heading to a joint venture directory, this approach is not a good fit for all businesses. There are also some disadvantages to resorting to this method of finding a joint venture partner.

Drawbacks of Joint Venture Directories

Although there are many joint venture websites available for your perusal, not all are created equal. In fact, some websites may offer few decent prospects at all. In addition, they may charge you a fee to use their services, leaving you a few dollars poorer – and no closer to finding the profitable joint venture you were hoping for. Here are some of the biggest drawbacks to choosing a directory for locating your joint venture partner:

• Cost – Some directories require you to pay for their services up front before you really know how helpful their services will be.

• Information – Most directories require you to post information about your company for the world to see. If you are not comfortable with this exposure, a joint venture directory may not be the best choice.

• Poor Prospects - If a directory does not effectively screen companies before adding them to their list, you may end up with a list of poor prospects with whom you would rather not get involved.

If you decide to use a joint venture directory to find your next JV partner, make sure you research the directory thoroughly before signing on for their services. This is especially true if you will have to pay money or provide information up front. By taking the time to investigate a directory service before you use it, you will be more likely to find a service that can effectively help you find a profitable joint venture that is a good match for your own company.

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.

Tips to Coordinate a Successful Joint Venture

Joint ventures provide some of the best value for your marketing dollar today. By riding the coattails of a larger company, or combining resources with a business similar in size to your own, you can exponentially increase your customer base and your bottom line.

The success of your joint venture begins at the outset with the establishment of your JV partnership. We have tips to help you coordinate a successful venture right from your first contact with a prospective partner.

The Screening Process

The right JV partners will set the stage for overall success. To ensure you find the best possible partners for your arrangement, consider the following:

• The nature of the partner’s business and how well it relates to your own

• The reputation and history of the business

• The overall purpose and goals of the other business for the joint venture

• The ability to work well with and trust the partnering business

• The benefits both businesses will stand to gain from the joint venture

The more carefully you screen your potential partners, the more likely you’ll be to embark on a successful partnership.

The Legal Process

Once you find a prospective partner that meets your pre-screening qualifications, it’s time to deal with the legal aspect of the process. No matter how comfortable you feel with your JV partner, you want to have a full agreement put into writing and signed by both parties. Potential issues to address in the contract include:

• Management issues – who will manage what

• Availability and allocation of common resources

• Mutual gains and how they will be disbursed

• Accounting principles for the JV

• Taxes and potential deductions

• Specific business plan, including purpose and goals

There are a couple of options for drawing up a JV contract. First, look for templates online that have been specifically designed for this purpose. Second, hire the services of an attorney that specializes in business issues like joint ventures to handle the legal part of the process for you.

The Partnership Process

After the relationship is in full swing, there are a few factors to keep in mind to ensure your collaboration continues to motor along smoothly:

• Strive for regular communication between partners to assess the arrangement and make necessary changes

• Keep your word to your partner in all business endeavors, so a circle of trust is built

• Set a time-line to reassess your partnership and determine whether to continue or disband in favor of other potential arrangements

• Aggressively market your joint venture, using all possible Internet options, to ensure the partnership brings you the best return

Joint ventures are a popular method of growing a business today, but many companies are still shying away from the concept for fear of getting roped into an ineffective arrangement. With these tips in mind, you can rest assured your joint venture will be as successful and harmonious as possible.

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.

Benefits and Risks of a Joint Venture

You may be hearing about more and more small businesses using joint ventures to explode their profits by effectively building their customer base. But is a joint venture the right choice for your company?

While you are the only one who can accurately answer this question, we can give you the factors necessary to make an educated decision. Check out these lists of the benefits and risks associated with joint ventures to find out if this business model is a good choice for you.

What is a Joint Venture?

Joint ventures can take on many looks, but the basic gist is that two or more companies come together to pool their talents, resources and customer lists for the benefit of all. The joint venture allows you to share advertising dollars for a more effective campaign and gives you the opportunity to ride the coattails of a bigger, more established company in order to boost your reputation and build your customer base.

Most joint ventures take place between related companies that share a similar target market, but do not compete directly in the goods and services they offer.

Benefits of a Joint Venture

There are many reasons to consider jumping into a joint venture with another small business, including:

• Access to a whole new target market through your JV partner
• The ability to reach a larger market base through pooled resources
• The opportunity to capitalize on the established reputation of a more experienced business
• The sharing of risks, as well as resources, to make your advertising dollar stretch further
• Access to resources you may not have had in the past, such as specific skills your JV partner brings to the table that you did not currently have in your own labor pool

With so many excellent advantages involved in joint ventures, it is a wonder why more companies are not hopping on the bandwagon. In fact, you can find many joint ventures that already boast a track record of success, making these business models and attractive option indeed. However, JV marketing may not be the right approach for everyone.

Drawbacks of a Joint Venture

Before you jump into your first joint venture, it is important to assess the risks associated with such a business agreement. These risks may include:

• Unclear objectives for the partnership, which may result in unmet expectations and hard feelings on both sides
• Different objectives may result in the JV with the partners actually working against one another, using valuable resources and energy without bringing about the desired outcome
• Partners are not sufficiently committed to the joint venture, which leaves one partner shouldering the bulk of the responsibility with decreased benefits

The moral of the story is that if you decide a joint venture is the right choice for your company, it is very important to define the terms of your agreement in detail and have both JV partners sign a written contract that commits them to those terms. With proper preparation and realistic expectations, joint ventures can provide a marketing opportunity that reaps much better results than an individual marketing campaign might.

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.

Beginning a Joint Venture with Limited Capital

A business needs exposure to grow, particularly if it is a small business just starting out in the industry. However, these small companies also tend to have limited advertising budgets, making it challenging to get their names out to the general public. Many business owners have turned to joint ventures to stretch their advertising dollars, but you may be unsure of how this approach can help, given your tight budget and recent foray into the field. We have tips to help you begin a successful joint venture, no matter how limiting your current financial situation might be.

Building a Business Brand

The first step in a successful marketing campaign is to build a familiar business branding that customers can easily identify. Joint ventures make this process much simpler by allowing newer businesses to piggyback on the names and reputations of more established companies. If customers are loyal to one brand, they will be more likely to purchase a brand associated with the original business.

You don’t need much initial capital to partner with bigger businesses; simply research the needs of the business you are interested in and find out what your company could bring to the table to make the joint venture partnership complete.

Pooling Resources

The best feature of online marketing is that it doesn’t cost a small fortune to use many of the effective tools at your disposable. The cost of Internet marketing can also be cut exponentially by pooling resources with other companies involved in your joint venture.

While one partner can effectively split the cost of marketing with your business, those with truly limited advertising dollars can sign on with more than one JV partner to reduce marketing costs even further. This approach offers the biggest bang for your advertising dollar by granting you maximum exposure to potential customers with little up-front costs involved.

Finding Cheap Tools

Online marketing offers a virtual plethora of advertising options, which range in cost from very pricey consultants to free tools you can easily learn to use on your own. Social marketing outlets like Facebook and LinkedIn are excellent options for expanding your company exposure with little or no cost to your business. Creating a blog also doesn’t cost much money, but can be a good way to establish yourself as an expert in your industry and market your company to potential customers.

You might also find that your JV partners have experience with particular advertising tools and are prepared to share their knowledge with you, especially if you can return the favor with expertise of your own in a different area.

Joint ventures are an effective marketing method, whether you have a little or a lot of capital to bring to the table. Research potential partners before you approach them to find out how your knowledge or resources could complement their own business offerings. Learn to use online marketing tools cheaply and effectively to enhance your public exposure. With a few handpicked JV partners at your side, your online marketing efforts are sure to bring a good value for your initial advertising investment.

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.

Tips for Successful Joint Venture Negotiations

Because joint ventures involve more than one business at a time, it pays to learn how to play nicely with others before embarking on your first JV partnership. The negotiation fun begins when you find a prospective partner to draw into your proposal and ends when you draw up a solid contract with the business. We have negotiation tips that will help the process flow as smoothly as possible.

Preparation

This step is important, whether you are approaching a prospective partner for the very first time or working out a contract that benefits both parties. From the very beginning, it is important to do your homework about prospective JV partners, ranging from the products they sell to the types of clientele with whom they typically work.  Learn a bit about their bottom line as well, including their possible profit margins, unique challenges and available resources. Knowing your JV partner well will benefit you in wooing new partners, as well as drawing up a contract that is mutually beneficial.

Providing Information

In addition to learning everything you can about your prospective partner, it’s important to be prepared to offer the key information about your own business clearly and concisely. Determine how your partner might benefit from working with your business and outline those benefits precisely in your original proposal. List the needs your business has and the way a joint venture will meet those needs so you can maintain consistent priorities throughout the negotiation process.

Benefits vs. Risks

When embarking on a joint venture, write down a list of all the benefits each partner stands to gain, as well as any risks that might be undertaken. Risks should be reduced to a minimum throughout the negotiation process, so that both parties are comfortable with the arrangement. Leveraging current resources, rather than creating new ones can do this. Put benefits into writing, so each JV partner has clear expectations and possible recourse if expectations are not met.

Writing a Contract

All good negotiations begin and end with a comprehensive contract that protects the interests of all partners. The contract should include the overall purpose of the joint venture, the benefits the partners stand to gain and a solid timeline. If you are unsure how long to continue your joint venture, set a specific date to review the partnership and assess its success. Include concrete criteria to fully evaluate the partnership, as well as a fallback option if the arrangement is not going as planned.

Beyond these basic steps, effective negotiation is characterized by honesty and transparency between both JV partners. Remember that most joint ventures continue on for some time, so start yours out on the right foot with negotiations that are truthful, open and professional. Keep the process going with regular contact with your JV partner to assess your current arrangement and make adjustments as necessary in your plan. An effective joint venture offers many potential benefits, including a broader customer base and higher profit margins for everyone involved.

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.

Tips for Successful Joint Venture Negotiations

Because joint ventures involve more than one business at a time, it pays to learn how to play nicely with others before embarking on your first JV partnership. The negotiation fun begins when you find a prospective partner to draw into your proposal and ends when you draw up a solid contract with the business. We have negotiation tips that will help the process flow as smoothly as possible.

Preparation

This step is important, whether you are approaching a prospective partner for the very first time or working out a contract that benefits both parties. From the very beginning, it is important to do your homework about prospective JV partners, ranging from the products they sell to the types of clientele with whom they typically work.  Learn a bit about their bottom line as well, including their possible profit margins, unique challenges and available resources. Knowing your JV partner well will benefit you in wooing new partners, as well as drawing up a contract that is mutually beneficial.

Providing Information

In addition to learning everything you can about your prospective partner, it’s important to be prepared to offer the key information about your own business clearly and concisely. Determine how your partner might benefit from working with your business and outline those benefits precisely in your original proposal. List the needs your business has and the way a joint venture will meet those needs so you can maintain consistent priorities throughout the negotiation process.

Benefits vs. Risks

When embarking on a joint venture, write down a list of all the benefits each partner stands to gain, as well as any risks that might be undertaken. Risks should be reduced to a minimum throughout the negotiation process, so that both parties are comfortable with the arrangement. Leveraging current resources, rather than creating new ones can do this. Put benefits into writing, so each JV partner has clear expectations and possible recourse if expectations are not met.

Writing a Contract

All good negotiations begin and end with a comprehensive contract that protects the interests of all partners. The contract should include the overall purpose of the joint venture, the benefits the partners stand to gain and a solid timeline. If you are unsure how long to continue your joint venture, set a specific date to review the partnership and assess its success. Include concrete criteria to fully evaluate the partnership, as well as a fallback option if the arrangement is not going as planned.

Beyond these basic steps, effective negotiation is characterized by honesty and transparency between both JV partners. Remember that most joint ventures continue on for some time, so start yours out on the right foot with negotiations that are truthful, open and professional. Keep the process going with regular contact with your JV partner to assess your current arrangement and make adjustments as necessary in your plan. An effective joint venture offers many potential benefits, including a broader customer base and higher profit margins for everyone involved.

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.

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