Joint venturing with others can completely transform your business. You bring some great things to the table, for sure. We live in a great time where you can absolutely earn a fantastic income working solely for yourself online. But that doesn’t mean you can or should go it in business alone
There are certain times when working with someone else can really be beneficial for you. They might have skills that you don’t have. They might have contacts that you don’t have. They might have a certain level of experience or know-how that you don’t have.
I can confidently say that as soon as you make the choice to start working in a joint venture with someone else, your entire business, and fortune, could transform.
Working in a joint venture partnership can transform your mindset, for one thing. Working alone can be very isolating. That can really get you down. It can zap your motivation and really hold you back. But the moment you start working with someone else, things can turn around. You’ll start to get excited about your work again.
Working in a joint venture partnership can be a great learning experience. You’ll get to bounce ideas off of a like-minded person who brings great things to the table. You’ll learn a great deal from them (and they from you) in a short period of time because you’re actively working on a project together.
Working in a joint venture partnership can help you earn more money. Not only will you get more done in a shorter period of time (allowing you to launch and earn from a product), but you’ll have double the reach… or more. It’s a great thing to have access to the contacts and customers of other established marketers.
You’re Sold… Now What?
So. You’re sold on the idea that entering into a JV partnership can be a great thing for your business. You’re excited that you could earn more money, grow your list, expand your contacts, and more. The problem is that you actually have to get the ball rolling.
First, you have to decide who you want to partner up with. This sometimes falls into your lap. You’ll be networking with other marketers and the idea of working together will just naturally come up. You’ll start to enthusiastically make plans. That can often be a great thing.
Other times, you know that you want to grow your business and have a feeling you can’t go it alone. You know you want to joint venture with someone but you have no idea who.
I always recommend networking as a business person. Don’t isolate yourself. You have to get to know other people and give them a chance to get to know you. Communicate on social media and on Skype groups. Interview people and take interview opportunities. Join exclusive paid forums. Rub elbows with people who are successful.
When you do that, the JV opportunities just seem to start presenting themselves. If they aren’t maybe you just aren’t looking hard enough or maybe you aren’t opening yourself up to the opportunities that are there.
The Scary Part of Starting to JV
There are some people who dive into the JV opportunity and go all-in. They have no problem contacting people, drawing up agreements, and getting started. They’re excited by the idea of JV’ing and by business in general.
For most of us, it’s not always that easy. For example, there’s a certain level of intimidation that comes along with approaching someone you don’t know very well. What if they reject you? What if you two aren’t a good fit after all? What if you get taken for a ride?
There are certainly any number of things that could go wrong. You can do what you can to protect yourself but nothing is 100%.
Then there’s the matter of getting to know someone and approaching someone. It can be especially intimidating if they’re more successful than you are. You start to feel like maybe you don’t really have anything to bring to the table after all. You start to step back and wonder if you shouldn’t wait a bit before you enter into a JV partnership.
All of these doubts and thoughts might be enough to stop you from getting started with a joint venture partner altogether.
It’s time to get past these doubts.
Let’s talk about what it means to approach your first potential JV Partner.
Approaching Your First Potential JV Partner
One of the first things you should know is that just because you approach someone with a JV offer, doesn’t mean they’re going to take it. There are many different reasons for this. It might be that they don’t have time right now, that they don’t have room in their business plan at the moment, or that they are going to be working with someone else instead. It could be that they don’t know you well enough yet or that they don’t want to work with a JV partner at all.
Know that you might approach several potential JV partners before someone agrees to work with you. Hopefully that won’t be the case, but it might be. There are certainly some things you can do that will improve your chances… but you should be prepared for rejection. Don’t worry, though, because when you find the right person, it will all be worth it.
If you want to improve your chances of having someone say, “yes!,” then make sure you take the time to get to know them first. Make sure you’re known in your niche. Make sure it’s clear that you bring some important things to the table. Build your relationship and network, network, network.
When you do find that right person and it’s time to approach them, have a good strategy in mind. Develop a plan for what you want to work on together. Get to know their business and where they are with their business and plans and what they might agree to.
Draw up a plan that makes it very clear that you will both see some incredible benefits by working together.
Approach the person who is your ideal JV candidate using the form of communication that is preferable to them. That might be email, Skype, phone, Facebook messenger, a forum you both belong to, etc.
Never, ever send out mass requests that aren’t personalized at all! The type of JV partnership I’m talking about is not a simple affiliate relationship where you’ll want tons of affiliates. The type I’m talking about is very personalized and one-on-one. Approach this potential partner very personally.
Give them time to think about your request. They might need to look at their schedule and plans. They might simply need time to think things over. You don’t need to rush things.
Once You Have a Response…
If the response from the potential partner is yes, then you can start drafting plans, goals, timelines, and things like that. It’s a huge relief to know that you now have a JV partner who is on the same wavelength and who officially wants to work with you. Those pre-ask jitters were all worth it—and now you both profit.
If the response is taking a while or the person seems to be stringing you along, then you might suggest to them that the idea be shelved for now. Make sure it’s clear that there are no hard feelings and that you will just revisit the idea later on.
If the response is no, don’t worry at all. There are plenty of fish in the sea, as they say. Know that that wasn’t the right partner or the right time. There may be other ways you can work with that person, such as an affiliate.
Know that if the response was negative, that doesn’t mean it’s time to stop. Ask someone else. You’ve decided that you’re in the right place in your business to enter into a JV partnership. Find someone else who fits the bill. There are tons of great people out there that you can work with. You can and likely will work with many different people over time.
Approach Your First Potential JV Partner Soon
Don’t hesitate—approach your first potential JV partner soon. We’ve talked about the great benefits. We’ve talked about the potential pitfalls and worries you might have. We’ve talked about the fact that you might get rejected a few times and that’s okay. The benefits certainly outweigh the costs—many times over.
Approach potential partners on a personal level with a personalized plan that makes it clear you will both benefit in a major way.