Joint Venture marketing has become a highly popular way for small businesses to maximize their profits. When two or more businesses combine their resources synergistically, it creates greater marketing impact and bigger profits than either can have alone.

Doing joint ventures has many benefits, but there are also many mistakes that can be made. These mistakes can be costly, not only in revenue, but in credibility with your client base.

These are not the only joint venture marketing mistakes made by small businesses, but as these are the most common, avoiding or correcting them will certainly put you on the right path.

Here are the five most common mistakes to avoid:

1. Not taking the time to ensure that your partner has great-quality products and services and a solid reputation.

When you choose a partner, it is imperative to choose one that has high-quality products and services as well as a good reputation within the industry. Sometimes, a company may look better on the surface than it really is. Your credibility is at stake if you partner up with a company that has sub-standard products and services or one that is popular for bad customer service. Do your research about your potential joint venture partners and review their products and services before endorsing them as these issues will reflect on you and your business!

2. Offering your partner too small of a deal

There has to be an incentive for your partner to engage with you, and offering too small of a deal wont make it worth their time and effort. Remember that endorsers with a large, targeted and loyal client base are the most wanted joint venture partners. Theyll partner with others if you offer a percentage of the profits thats too low. So make this mental note... if they are worth pursuing, they are worth sharing the profits with.

3. Simply handing over your client list

This can constitute breach of contract with your clients if you have committed to their privacy. Youve also worked very hard to build your client list, and this forms part of the value you have to contribute to the joint venture relationship. If you simply hand over your client list, you have no point of leverage.

4. Not devising an exit strategy

Even the best of relationships can go sour, or simply not work. Make sure you have an open door to leave the joint venture if for any reason it is not working out.

5. Committing to a long term relationship from the beginning, without testing your strategy first

Any joint venture should involve a trial period to see if profits will show a real upwards trend, or if the idea is a valid one. If you sign a long term contract, you may be stuck in a no-win situation with no way to escape. As with any marketing strategy, test in small numbers first, before rolling out fully.

Joint Venture marketing is very lucrative, and with some forethought and planning, can help springboard your business to new success levels. Just make sure to do your homework right from the start, and avoid these pitfalls to ensure high returns on your investment of time, money and effort.

Copyright 2005 by Habiba Abubakar and Emprez. All rights reserved.

Note: You are welcome to republish this article as long as the resource box at the end is included fully and unaltered.

Habiba Abubakar

Habiba Abubakar, a.k.a. The Profit Diva, is President and CEO of Emprez – a marketing consultancy and information publishing company that helps small businesses grow and excel in profits.

It didn’t take long for Habiba’s entrepreneurial spirit to surface. In one way or another, she has been involved with small businesses since the 1990s. Her earliest business experience was at age 12, when she persuaded her Grandma to let her sell some Arabian veils to her school friends. Since then, Habiba continuously dabbled into several business opportunities - even during her university education, and when she had a day job - until she found her forte.

After graduating with a Law Degree (LL.B Honors), Habiba made her debut into the corporate world as a sales representative with Marcus Evans Conferences. She soon realized that marketing is her real passion. Habiba switched careers and consequently held marketing positions at Bloomberg L.P, Macfarlanes, HLB Lists, Salans, Buzzacott Chartered Accountants and other blue-chip organizations.

With years of experience in marketing, Habiba founded Emprez to help small businesses cure what she calls the "mediocre profits syndrome." Under Emprez, Habiba set up two subsidiaries to serve separate niche markets.

Through restaurantmarketingstrategy.com, she works with restaurant owners that are struggling to attract more customers and trying to build undying customer loyalty.

Through Profit Diva, Habiba specializes in helping small business owners attract more clients and increase profits by developing, implementing and managing joint venture projects as part of their marketing mix and overall business strategy.

As a speaker, author, consultant and entrepreneur, Habiba is no stranger to the ups and downs of running a business.

As an alumna of Middlesex University Law School, Habiba is often invited back for speaking engagements. She also participates in the university’s annual Alumni Mentoring Scheme by taking on penultimate year marketing students.

Known for her "more clients and greater profits in 180 days" promise, Habiba has been featured in Benefits Marketing Online Magazine, Restaurant Business Magazine, Pizza, Pasta & Italian Food Magazine, Masala Magazine, and commpiled.com, to name a few.

Habiba’s philosophy is simple: "In this world there’s no CAN’T, only WON’T and more often than not, that’s the difference between success and failure."