So far we have gone over exactly what joint ventures are, how they work and more importantly how you make money by getting involved in joint ventures.
What I want to do now is go over a few things about your “Market” and “Products” for that market.
This applies to all businesses whether they are selling an actual product or a service.
I’ve included a lot here. However, some of it may not apply to you, especially if you’re only doing joint ventures and are not marketing your own product.
Anyway, don’t get bogged down with all this. Remember to keep it simple, so you can get those joint venture deals going.
First we’ll briefly talk about a market then we’ll jump into finding a product to fit that market.
If this seems a little bit “stiff” and boring, I apologize. It’s essential that you grasp some of this, but by no means do you have to get it all, especially all at once in one reading.
But just stay with me, even if you just get some of it on the first “run thru”, it’s OK.
Here goes.
Choosing Your Target Market
The most important thing when you start looking for a joint venture deal is choosing the target market. Who will buy the product or use the service you will come up with?
Also, you should consider what’s called the “Unique Selling Proposition” or simply “USP”. Basically what that means is that you need to determine what the difference is between the products you’re considering joint venturing and the competition. In other words what makes this product “unique”. Or why do you think customers would be interested in it.
You need to give customers a special reason why they should buy this product.
I don’t believe you should ever compete on price, in fact I would suggest you never compete on price alone. Let the big boys with the deep pockets like Wall-Mart, K-Mart or Target compete on price, but not you.
Your USP might be to offer free or exceptional fast shipping, or some other personalized service that nobody else offers. Or maybe the product you’re considering is unique in some other way that sets it apart from the competitors.
You might have a product already in mind. It might be your own product, something you have created like an information product or something you’ve invented. Or maybe it’s a product you’re very passionate about.
However, if there’s no market for the product, no matter what you’re considering, you are just going to waste your time.
I see too many people falling in love with a product and then trying to find a market for that product. They will eventually fail.
In order to guarantee the greatest change of success, you need to “stack the deck” in your favor. In other words, you should choose a market that meets the following criteria:
The Market Must Be Easy To Target
It must be fairly easy to reach the market. Just do some searches on the Internet and see what you come up with. By spending an hour on the Internet researching your potential target market you will gather a lot of information. This is time well spent and it’s essential that you do it.
The Product Must Be Aimed At An Obvious Market
For example, people who use computers or are on the Internet would obviously be interested in computers, software and computer accessories. Pet owners would be interested in purchasing pet products; fishermen (and fisherwomen) would be interested in purchasing fishing equipment, and so on. I’m sure you get the idea.
The Prospects Should Have A Problem That Needs To Be Solved
The product must satisfy a need the prospect has, such as…
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- Do they want to save money?
- Do they want to lose weight?
- Do they want to make more money?
- What are their biggest concerns?
- What can the product solve for them?
- What are they afraid of that the product can solve for them?
- What will they lose if they don’t get the product?
- What will they save if they get the product?
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These are important questions that need to be answered.
Passionate Market
The market must be passionate about what the business is selling or they must have a high interest in things similar to what is being sold them
In other words, they must be interested in the product.
You must also be able to answer the following very important questions:
Is There A Market For This Particular Product?
First you need to determine if there is actually a market for the product. In other words, are there other businesses out there on the Web selling the same or similar products? If not, why not?
Don’t try to re-invent the wheel so to speak. If there are no other Web sites selling something similar to the product you’re considering, then there is probably little chance for your product to succeed.
Is The Market Large Enough?
You need to determine if the market is large enough. If there are only 500 other people in the whole world interested in what you’re trying to market, your market is way too little. Don’t waste your time.
Can They Afford It?
Your market has to afford what you’re selling. For example if you’re selling credit repair information, to a market where a large percentage of people can not afford what you’re trying to sell you are setting yourself up for a lot of headaches. Likewise, don’t try to sell business opportunities to people who are broke. Stay away from it.
Don’t Sell Anything Dirt Cheap To The “Freebie” Crowd
A lot of people surf the Internet just looking for free or cheap stuff. These are definitely not the customers you want.
Who Are Your Customers?
Your market must be easy to identify. You need to know who your customers are. Are they homeowners, people who have dogs, people who love to fish, men that drive BMW’s or whatever?
What we’ve just gone through are thoughts that could seem pretty obvious but you wouldn’t believe how many people have no idea that they are wasting their time and money by trying to combine and sell different products that are not related to the same market.
Or they’re trying to reinvent the wheel with a product that none or very few people are interested in. Or they’re trying to sell a product or service to a market that simply doesn’t exist.
The product must be targeted to a market that has…
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- The money
- The passion
- And want their problems solved by using the product or service you’re considering.
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It’s pretty simple when you really think about it, but it’s so overlooked in so many businesses and on so many Web sites. It’s really a shame.
Once you’ve concentrated on a market you’re interested in, it’s time to narrow your search down to a suitable product for that market. That’s next.