Joint venture marketing is an excellent method of expanding your target market base if you choose the right partners for the job. You want to partner with related businesses that have established a loyal customer base and can send some of their clientele your way for complementing products or service.
Sometimes the hardest part of launching a joint venture is finding the best businesses for the task. To help you find the right fit, we have five places where potential partners may be lurking.
Neighboring Businesses in Your Community
The first step in finding good JV partners is to scour your immediate community in search of possibilities. For example, if you run a catering business look for florists, wedding shops or photography studios nearby that might be in search of a similar market base. Working with neighboring businesses allows you to easily market one another’s companies to customers in the same area. It also allows you a wealth of joint venture opportunities beyond online marketing campaigns, such as flyers or newspaper advertisements.
Google Search
The Internet is the perfect place to broaden your base of potential JV partners. Begin by searching under keywords to help you find related businesses. Once you find a business that looks interesting, you can fully explore their website and possible reviews related to their company to determine if the business would be a good potential partner for online marketing.
Newsletters You Receive
Instead of tossing out all the marketing material you receive at your door or in the mail, take a look at the advertising to find out if it would be good joint venture material. Most of the flyers you receive will probably be for businesses within your community, which takes us back to the benefits listed in the first suggestion. If you find a business that looks enticing, check out their website or talk to the owner to find out if a joint venture would benefit both businesses.
Trade Shows
Trade shows are an excellent source for JV partners, particularly if you are running your own booth. This is a good way to meet other business owners while you are putting yourself out in the industry as an established business in your own right. Make sure you hit the trade show circuit with plenty of business cards, and collect those from other businesses so you can research the companies later.
Professional Matching Services
There are professional matching services that are in the business of helping companies find effective JV partners. These businesses charge a fee for their services, but in some cases, the fee is well worth the money if they can help you find the best JV partners for your needs. To ensure you get the biggest bang for your dollar, thoroughly research the matching company before signing on with them.
Finding JV partners can be a challenge, but there are many sources available. If you are willing to put in the time and effort, the right JV partner can increase your customer base for a fraction of what other advertising methods might cost.
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.
