Joint Ventures for the E-preneur

Joint ventures (JVs) are gaining popularity throughout the business world. Perhaps that's because they're such an effective way to make or increase profits -- even if you don't have a product to sell.

A JV is the entity created when two businesses, individuals, companies or other legal entities enter into an agreement. The joint venture benefits both parties by combining skills, customer bases, capital or other products or services.

The concept behind a joint venture is obvious if you have a product to sell. You would simply want to find a partner who could help you increase sales. Maybe you would look for someone with an established set of regular customers who could sell to them for a portion of the profit. You might also find someone who sells a product that offsets your own to sell together in a package. In this scenario, it's clear that both sides benefit from the partnership.

If you don't have a product to offer, you may have a harder time understanding or helping others to understand how a JV works. When you don't have a product, you're most likely offering skills and knowledge. In this case, you'll be marketing yourself as a "dealmaker."

The first step is to find a company with a product that suits your skill set. For example, if you're great at marketing and you know how to make money online, look for a company that needs help in those areas. Comb the Internet for excellent products with weak advertising. Look over all available aspects of their business, such as their website, order forms and other sales materials. Think of ways you can improve them.

When you have a few good ideas about what you can offer them, it's time to think about what you will ask from them in return. After all, it's a two-way business transaction. You can use these ideas to write a creative, detailed proposal to present to the company. If they like your proposal, then you can begin taking steps toward creating a JV -- writing a business plan, joint venture agreement and exit strategy.

Other businesses without products to sell use joint ventures in order to acquire such products. Buying products to sell with a marked-up price is costly and time-consuming. When you enter into a joint venture, you can often get these products for free.

Joint venture marketing, or JVM, is also becoming more popular as more and more people move to working online. JVM allows you to download free e-materials to sell on your website.

There are plenty of these free products available online. Many of them are labeled as Private Label Rights or Master Resell Rights products, meaning they are already packaged and ready to sell. All you have to do is add your contact information and it's ready to go.

The benefit to you in this situation is obvious: You receive products to offer on your site and the provider of those products benefits from the free advertising he gets on your site. You might also be obliged to offer the provider with a portion of your profits.

The Internet has created a whole new universe of joint venture opportunities for those seeking them. JV collaborative groups comprise Internet marketers who work together to promote each other. When they all advertise together and promote each other, they each reach exponentially more customers than they can on their own. If you become a member of one of these collaboratives, visitors might be required to sign up for the newsletter or e-book you offer, helping to create a large list of subscribers. Within these products you send your visitors, you can include your ads and those of your JV partners as well.

These days, even businesses without products can benefit from entering into joint ventures. Take caution, however, because in the Internet age it is more important than ever to read the small print. Before entering into any joint venture agreement, make sure you know what is expected of you and what you can expect to receive. Once you are knowledgeable about them, joint ventures can be a great avenue for a growing business.