Two heads are better than one. This is the phrase that comes to mind when I think of collaborative business relationships. There are several types that we see today. These include affiliates, alliances and joint ventures. This is such an overlooked yet incredibly powerful area of business growth that I thought I would give you just a preview of what we will be working on in our upcoming one day workshop on August 6th in Monrovia. I believe the best types of collaboration are those that both reduce costs while creating an additional income stream.
The Joint Venture
A Joint Venture is where two or more businesses share resources to create profitable new income opportunities, which otherwise would be too costly for only one of the businesses to achieve on their own. This structure can be found anywhere, any many industries seem to be practicing this type of collaboration today. One example is the Wal-Mart Super Center. When you walk into a Wal-Mart Super Center you see clothes, furniture, groceries, electronics, movies, etc. Imagine, with all the all different categories what it takes to merchandise this store. In reality, Wal-Mart’s products are merchandised through a joint venture with the many manufacturers of the products they sell. In the end both Wal-Mart and the manufacturers are profiting. Various brands can showcase their products and sell them, and Wal-Mart earns a portion of the sale for allowing them the use of their storefronts. They also save money on the need for specialized labor and merchandising costs. Wal-Mart knows how to outsource. This is truly a ‘win-win’ collaborative relationship.
Business within a Business
Even more creative is the store within a store concept that is cropping-up. We are starting to see various outlet type stores operating inside of a larger retailer. Just today I was in a local grocery store and I saw a video arcade, a Bank of America, a hair salon, and a Starbucks all in one grocery store! Think about how much sense this makes: Parents come to the grocery store to shop, and they leave their kids to play video games and pick them up when they are finished. They can do their banking, get their hair cut, have a coffee or a snack. This lowers costs, provides rental income, increases convenience and creates a better customer experience. With all of the changes taking place in our society we are seeing the emergence of creative alliance, affiliate and even cooperative competitive associations. The way collaboration is being used in business today is literally smashing the traditional concept of supplier, vendor and competitive relationships. The line between partner, competitor and supplier is blurring. In order to be more attractive we all must find ways of using Rule # 10 more effectively. We must collaborate rather than compete. Think about what you can do to create collaborative relationships that lower costs while increasing income.
Full Day Workshop
One of the things we will be working on in the full day Attract More Business Workshop is marketing collaboration. Attendees will learn how to build affiliates, alliances, joint ventures and how to develop collaborative relationships. Register for the August 6th workshop by this Friday, July 29th and receive a FREE bonus ticket for a friend or business associate at no additional charge. The pre-registration cost of this event is just $299, a savings of $200 from the event cost of $499 at the door. If you mention that you are a business update subscriber, I’ll even throw in a free telecoaching follow-up session so that you can get the most out of the event. That’s a total value of $1148 available now for just $299. Go to:http://www.sbanetwork.org/classes/upcoming_classes.asp to pre-register now!