Joint Venture Jitters

Some common questions that come up for people who are unaccustomed to the Joint Venture mindset can deprive them of the wonderful benefits of this powerful business tool. Preconceived ideas, misconceptions and biases, often the result of collectivist conditioning, about what is ethical and right, deny them access to the potentially exponential value and reciprocity inherent in the JV mindset. This is not surprising, given the fact that most small and medium business owners, and especially employed (and self-employed) people still operate with cumbersome, expensive and risky industrial age business paradigms that limit, tire and frustrate them. Think cold calling, fear of competition, scarcity thinking, risky advertising and marketing, high overhead, selling time and minimally productive “business networking” meetings.

“I can’t ethically refer someone or some product or service if I am receiving compensation for any resulting business.” Yes, you can. In fact, when the service provider pays you for the referred business, thereby radically reducing his risk and acquisition cost, his price and exposure are lower, resulting in a better deal for the referred customer. The vendor is paying to acquire the customer anyway. Instead of risky advertising that often doesn’t work, why should he not pay for results instead of promises and thereby stay in business long enough to provide the on-going service and support he is promising to his customers? The marketing and advertising choices of any vendor have nothing to do with his customers. And in a capitalist society you are allowed to be paid, compensated and rewarded for any value that you create.

“I have to disclose the fact that I am being compensated to the person I am referring.” You don’t. It’s none of his business, any more than your private budget is or Profit and Loss Statement is. When someone is thirsty and you direct them to the water vendor, they don’t care what your relationship with him is. They will be offered a product or service by that vendor and they will decide whether or not to accept it. If they do, you are entitled to be paid by the vendor. He should not hike his prices to accommodate your referral fee / commission, but even if he does, that is between him and his new prospect / customer. People do business by choice. Nobody is being forced or coerced.

“But I have always given people referrals and I never get paid.” That’s fine. Would you like to get paid? You don’t have to, of course. It’s like paying for a $25 meal with a $100 note and being too embarrassed and confused to take your change, or working for your boss for a whole month and then suggesting he keeps your salary to buy his wife a nice gift. Good for socialists and leeches, but not for real entrepreneurs.

“But I have been told I have to focus on my core business and I don’t want to be distracted by doing other business (JV’s)” Joint Venture should be conducted with minimal time, cost and risk. They don’t distract but they do create value and improve relationships, which will automatically decrease your customer attrition rate and increase referrals, goodwill, average transaction amount, and more. In addition, they will create multiple streams of passive income for you at a 100% profit margin, straight to your bottom line. If you learn from dinosaurs you will probably share their lifestyle. Don’t take advice from turkeys an expect to soar with eagles.

I know it’s hard to break free of restrictive, outdated conditioning, so we have created an ongoing support system that will help you shift your mindset and understanding to a place where you work smart and not harder. Consider joining the DollarMakers Joint Venture Forum. Don’t get shook up – hook up – with winners: www.dollarmakers.com

Robin J. Elliott

Fire or Skunk?

When driving home to our apartment, Rika and I saw a skunk waddling along the sidewalk. We had never seen a skunk before, but we recognized it from pictures and movies we have seen. It was great to see our first skunk! (This is our ninth year in North America.)We parked the car, got into the elevator and smelled something burning. As the elevator rose to our home on the eleventh floor, the smell got stronger. We were convinced there was a fire and surprised that the fire alarm hadn’t sounded. Our Chinese neighbors were outside our apartment and they were worried about their aged parents and the smell of fire. As the smell continued to increase, I decided to call 911. I told the operator I wasn’t sure if it was, indeed, a fire, but they said, “Better safe than sorry. Hit the alarm, sir. We’re coming.”

Three fire trucks arrived within four minutes and as they arrived one of our neighbors rushed up to them, holding his dog, Prince. He told us that the skunk we had seen (or a friend of the skunk we had seen) had sprayed Prince. One of the firemen said, “I know the smell of skunk!” I was really embarrassed but the firemen were very gracious and forgiving – they’re used to dumb immigrants like me! It was a relief and also an education; the smell hung around for days afterwards, even though the skunk never even entered the building. Jennifer Beale told me her dog was sprayed and the smell stayed on him for a month! Poor Prince. But he’ll survive.

Sometimes in life, we interpret a relatively harmless, albeit uncomfortable, skunk smell as a dangerous, life-threatening fire. That happens when we lack information and objectivity. And it could cost us money – what does it cost for three fire trucks to make a call? When you’re scared or emotional, you sometimes leap to confusions as I did. That’s why it’s so important to build a strong support system of smart, successful, positive people in your life and in your business. One phone call can change panic into peace and perspective. Often, we overreact to innocuous irritations. As a great speaker once said, “A lump in the throat is an inconvenience; a lump in the breast is more serious.” Usually, all we need is more information to resolve a sleepless night and sweaty palms. But it’s very important to determine the correct source of that information. When my information was from equally uninformed immigrants, I remained in the dark. You’re richer than you think, and often your mountains are really just molehills. A dangerous fire might just be a wandering skunk.

There are a lot of people out there, offering incorrect information to vulnerable people. We need to make sure that we’re getting appropriate information at all times. When you’re about to strut out onto an icy lake, you might want to first ask a few local yokels if it’s a good idea. When you decide to spend your life savings on the latest get rich quick scheme or a mutual fund, perhaps you should secure the counsel of a trusted third party who understands money and business, not a bank manager. (If your bank manager understood business, he’d have one.) Asking a virgin about childbirth is equally ridiculous. If you asked me about the smell of a skunk two weeks ago, I would give you the wrong information.

The beauty of belonging to the DollarMakers Joint Venture Forum is that you have access to hundreds of smart people around the world who understand that “what goes around comes around.” You can develop a balanced and accurate view of your options and opportunities and solutions to your challenges. Joint Ventures can help you solve problems fast by leveraging the existing resources of other Members. And you can reach your goals a lot faster when you work with other winners. Join now: http://www.dollarmakers.com/
Robin J. Elliott