| You may have heard of joint venture | | | | |
| marketing, It's used frequently by savvy | | | | YOU MUST BE ENDORSED The most important thing |
| entrepreneurs to increase profits and add | | | | is you must have your fellow entrepreneur |
| loads of prospects to their customer list. | | | | include a letter of endorsement. |
| | | | |
| So what is joint venture marketing (or j/v)? | | | | He has already established a relationship |
| | | | with his customers. You haven't. If his |
| Speaking at the Information Marketing Boot | | | | customers are satisfied with his product, |
| Camp ( Joint venture expert and entrepreneur | | | | then they'll much more open to receiving |
| John Alanis describes it as "a mutually | | | | information from him about other products. |
| beneficial agreement to sell similar products | | | | |
| or services to customers or prospects." | | | | Without the endorsement, the customer |
| | | | response will drop significantly. |
| You approach another entrepreneur and ask | | | | |
| them if they'll endorse your product and | | | | You can also ghost write the endorsement |
| allow you to mail to their customer list. | | | | letter for your j/v partner and then have him |
| | | | sign it. |
| In exchange, you give the entrepreneur a cut | | | | |
| of the gross profits, usually anywhere from 5 | | | | APPROACHING A J/V PARTNER The best way to |
| to 25 percent. Or you could arrange a list | | | | approach a potential joint venture partner is |
| swap. | | | | to send a letter and then follow up by phone. |
| | | | Be prepared to phone at least a couple of |
| J/V marketing allows you to quickly add | | | | times before your partner agrees. |
| hundreds or thousands of names to your | | | | |
| customer list. | | | | When sending out the letter proposing a joint |
| | | | venture partnership, be sure to do the |
| The first step is to find a suitable joint | | | | following: |
| venture partner. | | | | |
| | | | Offer to do all the work. You'll handle all |
| Where do you look? | | | | the mailing, marketing documents, and product |
| | | | fulfilment. |
| Try your own customers first. Send out a | | | | |
| letter or email announcing you're looking for | | | | Collect the customer money yourself and then |
| a j/v partner. Be sure to tell them you're | | | | send your j/v partner his cut for each sale. |
| looking for a partner who sells similar | | | | |
| products to your own. And ask how many | | | | Stress the fact that your partner will be |
| customers they have on their list. Obviously, | | | | "getting money for no work." This is a strong |
| the more, the better. | | | | incentive for an entrepreneur to become your |
| | | | j/v partner. |
| Another way of to find j/v partners is in | | | | |
| trade publications. Look at the advertisers. | | | | You will deduct your mailing costs and other |
| You'll probably find a few that sell similar | | | | expenses first and then split the balance |
| products to your own. Contact them by phone | | | | with the partner. |
| or letter and explain you'd like to create a | | | | |
| joint venture with them. | | | | Always get your j/v partner to sign your |
| | | | letter agreeing to your terms. |
| Also look in the Standard Rate and Data | | | | |
| Service (SRDS) ( This directory has every | | | | Include an "exit clause." This allows you to |
| commercially available mailing list, the list | | | | cancel the j/v agreement if you find your |
| owner, etc. Most larger libraries will have a | | | | partner is a headache to deal with. |
| copy of SRDS, although it may be a year or | | | | |
| two out of date. | | | | By following these steps to a joint venture, |
| | | | you'll be able to quickly add hundreds or |
| As well, check out the Oxbridge Directory of | | | | thousands of potential customers to your |
| Newsletters ( It's an excellent source for | | | | database that normally would take years to |
| potential customers from newsletter | | | | accumulate. |
| subscriptions. It's an expensive directory to | | | | |
| buy, but ask your library if they have a | | | | And, most importantly, you'll increase your |
| copy. | | | | sales. |