Joint venture (JV) marketing is another way to get really warm leads flowing your way. That’s because a good JV means someone who’s really trusted in the niche is endorsing you or working with you. In effect, you get to borrow their credibility. It’s a good way to get warm traffic, a great way to generate opt-ins or sales, and it’s also a really good way to establish yourself in a new niche.
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So, with these benefits mind, take a look at these 17 tips, tricks and ideas for doing joint ventures with other people in your niche…
1. 17 Ideas for JVs
The different ways you can do a joint venture are only limited your imagination. However, here are several ideas to get you thinking about how to create a mutually beneficial joint venture deal:
- Co-host a webinar.
- Create a paid product together.
- Co-endorse each other on your respective platforms.
- Swap blog, newsletter or social media content (guest content).
- Create a lead magnet together.
- Co-write a blog post.
- Host a contest together.
- Interview each other for a podcast or webcast.
- Promote each other’s products.
- Promote each other on your thank you/download pages.\
- Write a Kindle or hard copy book together.
- Host an offline workshop together.
- Do a postcard mailing together.
- Create a giveaway event.
- Create a product bundling event.
- Raise money for a good cause together.
- Purchase an ad together (such as magazine ad).
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2. How to Find All the JV Partners You Need
Potential JV partners are everywhere if you know where to look. Here are ten ways to find all the JV partners you need:
- Run a general Google search for your niche keywords. E.G., “dog training”
- See who’s buying ads in your niche (on Google Ads, Facebook ads, and niche sites).
- Check social media to see who’s running popular pages and groups.
- Look at affiliate contests in your niche to see who’s always topping the leaderboard.
- Find out who has the most popular blogs in your niche. (Use Google, e.g., “dog training blogs.”)
- Check sites like Udemy, ClickBank and Amazon to see who’s selling popular infoproducts.
- Ask your audience what sorts of products they buy, whose blogs they read, and who they follow on social media.
- See who your existing partners are working with in the niche.
- Look offline at brick and mortar business owners.
- See who’s doing writing columns in popular niche publications.
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3. Do This Before Proposing a JV
When you do a JV with someone, your name is going to be associated with them for a very long time to come. That’s why you’ll want to do your due diligence on a potential partner before you approach them. All you have to do is search for their name, business name and product names in Google. If you see any red flags (such as bad customer service or not paying affiliates), cross them off your list and move on to someone more reputable.
4. How to Get More Partners Saying “Yes”
The #1 key to getting lots of joint venture partners is to build relationships first before you ever even think of proposing a JV. At the very least, you want people to recognize your name when it crosses their desk.
Here are ways to get that recognition and start building relationships:
- Become an affiliate and make a lot of sales and money for the potential partner.
- Contribute thoughtfully on the person’s various platforms (e.g., social media, groups and blogs).
- Visit the person at offline events, like expos ad conferences.
- Volunteer to help (with anything) if the person requests it.
- Create viral content which builds recognition.
- Start a private dialogue with potential partners.
- Retweet/share the person’s content.
- Blog about the person (and tag them on social media when you do so).
- Do JVs with other big names in the niche, which will get others to take notice of you.
- Build popular platforms in your niche (again, so people take notice of you).
- Be really good at what you do in your niche – people will start flocking to YOU.
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5. Using the “Foot in the Door” Technique
Even if you get name recognition or build a relationship first, your potential JV partner is still going to be cautious. That’s why you’ll want to use the foot in the door technique. This is where you request a small, easy JV first. Once that’s completed successfully, then you can ask for a larger one.
For example, you can a potential partner to submit a single tip for you to compile into a tips report, which will take them five minutes. Then later you can ask to co-host a webinar with them.
6. The “Cold Ask” Template
Sometimes you need to approach cold partners, or those with only a passing recognition of your name. Use this email template as a starting point for approaching these partners:
Subject Line: An invitation to [get some benefit]…
Hi [Name],
It’s [your name] here from [your business name/blog name/etc.] and I’m writing to invite you to [partner with you in some JV] that will make us both a lot of money.
Let me explain…
[Explain briefly what the JV is… e.g., swap blog content? Do a co-endorsement, etc.]
I think I’ve created an irresistible deal that’s going to be easy for you to say “yes” to. Here’s why:
- [create a bulleted list of benefits of what the partner gets if they work with you. E.G., “You’ll get 75% commissions…” or “You’ll get access to my 35,888-member mailing list…”]
The bottom line is that this is a great way for you to [get some main benefit], and you only need to invest [some small amount of time] in order to reap these benefits.
Let’s set something up. Hit reply now to [do whatever it is you want them to do – e.g., get your affiliate link… tell me what topic you’d like to write about… tell me when you’d like to do an interview… etc.].
I look forward to hearing from you!
[your name]
P.S. If you prefer phone to emails, feel free to call me at [number].
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7. How to Create a JV Your Partners Will Love
No matter what sort of JV you’re doing, the key is to create one that’s mutually (and equally) beneficial to both you and your partner. Or, better yet, stack the deck in your partner’s favor (especially if you’re partnering with someone who has more assets than you). In essence, you do most of the work and let your partner reap most of the rewards.
8. How to Create a Successful Venture for Everyone
While this particular joint venture may be the most important thing you have going on right now, it’s not your partner’s top priority. That’s why part of creating a successful venture is to keep your partners motivated and remind them of what steps they need to take next. In other words, you need to manage the partnership and keep everyone moving forward.
For example, if the JV is going to take a month to complete, you may touch base weekly at first, and then several times per week in the last two weeks of the project.
9. What To Do With Your Best Partners
When you’re doing JVs, think long term. Specifically, you’ll want to create semi-permanent ventures with your best partners.
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For example, you might put a semi-permanent link on your newsletter confirmation page that advertises your partner’s newsletter, and they may do the same for you.
Another example: you might co-endorse each other inside your respective lead magnets.
10. What to Do When Someone Says No
You are going to get far more “no” responses than “yes” responses. When someone says no, be polite and thank them for their time. Then work on building a relationship with them so that in the future you can propose another joint venture.
11. The Trick for Building Relationships Offline
One of the best places to build relationships is face-to-face at offline conferences, expos, trade shows and similar.
Here’s the key: get to know a prospective partner rather than proposing a joint venture. For example, if they just came back from vacation in Maui, ask them about it. When they get home, they’ll remember you, the person who talked about something that personally interests them (and they’ll forget about the dozens of others who just wanted to talk shop and propose JVs).
12. The Two Keys to Avoiding Misunderstandings
One key to a smooth JV is to avoid misunderstandings that can derail your project. Here are the two things you need to do to avoid these misunderstandings:
- Create a written agreement. This should outline exactly what each of you contributes to the venture, and what benefits you’ll both get in return.
- Set expectations upfront. For example, let the partner know what your work process is like, how (and how often) you’ll communicate with them, what you expect of them, etc.
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13. Do Your Homework
Before you approach a potential partner, do your homework first. Research them online, read their blog, look at their products, and browse their social media pages. The more you know about someone before you approach them, the easier it will be for you to do two things:
- Send messages to them that really resonate with them.
- Create JVs that are in their wheelhouse.
For example, if you notice that a person does a lot of webinars, then you might propose that you do a webinar together.
14. Capitalize On Success
You’ve just completed a successful joint venture with one or more partners. Now what?
Here are your next steps:
- Be sure this JV is truly done. For example, if you need to pay commissions or uphold any other part of the bargain, do it now.
- Send a sincere thank you. For a nice touch, you might send a handwritten thank you via the postal mail.
- Capitalize on your success. Start thinking about the next JV you can do with this partner, and plant a seed while they’re still enjoying the benefits of the current JV.
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15. Taking Your Proposals Offline
Don’t limit yourself to doing joint ventures with online marketers, authors, coaches and business owners. Be sure to look offline too at your local business owners.
For example, if you’re in a dog-related niche, then you might think about JVs you can do with:
- Veterinarians.
- Groomers.
- Boarders.
- Trainers.
- Doggy daycares.
- Pet supplies businesses.
Which brings us to the next point…
16. 3 Ideas for Offline JVs
What sort of joint ventures can you do with offline business owners and other people? Check out these ideas:
- Swap bags for a flyer. You buy shopping bags for the partner, and in exchange they insert your flyer into a shopping bag for each of their customers. They get free bags and you get to generate leads. Win win!
- Do a talk or demo in their store. For example, you can do a free dog-training demonstration at a pet supplies store. You get to generate leads, and the store owner gets a surge of foot traffic that day. Win win!
- Create an event together, such as a workshop. You can rent a hotel conference room for a few hours and put on a paid workshop with your partner (or partners). For example, in the dog training niche you might put on a workshop to talk dog training with a dog trainer, a veterinarian behaviorist, and a doggy daycare owner.
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17. Ask for Introductions
Want a quick way to build trust with a new potential partner? Then ask a mutual acquaintance to introduce you. A potential partner is going to be much more open to your offer if their trusted friend introduces you, or better yet, if that friend actually endorses/recommends you.
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Conclusion
A single joint venture can easily bring you thousands of dollars (and even more as time goes by). That’s why you’ll want to seek out potential JV partners, build relationships, and start doing mutually beneficial JVs as soon as possible!
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