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[Cowell]

I've just created my first product - a digitally downloadable product.

May I know where can I find JV partners who are interested in promoting IM stuff?

[profitclinic]

Hi Sharlyn 

Now comes the hard part!

Do you target well-known people with massive lists who know the value of those lists? (And how can you tell whether those lists are genuinely responsive or not? Big does not always mean better.)

Do you target credible marketers with multiple, smaller, high-quality, tightly-targeted lists?

Do you target lesser-known marketers with mid-size lists of unknown quality? (Hey — any list but your own is of unknown quality, okay?)

Or do you look at forming some kind of strategic alliance with other, newer marketers with small lists?

There are plenty of ebooks and courses on all of these options and how to JV with them. As always, however, how do you know which ones are the real deals?

Despite all the claims of people trying to sell you "quick-fix" info-products about JVs, there are NO quick-fixes.

Instead of falling for the nonsense and hype, knuckle down and...

• Research all available options (and the safety, efficacy and value of those options),
• build relationships,
• work to create awareness and credibility for yourself,
• start your own affiliate program.

If you decide to set up your own affiliate program, find ways to attract productive affiliates with a good balance of...

• excellent, in-demand products,
• effective promotional resources,
• worthwhile commissions and incentives,
• regular communication, training, recognition and promotions,
• a policy of not recruiting people who don't actually DO anything,
• if you're really serious about selling through affiliates, adopt a strict policy of not competing with your own affiliates.
• Instead, focus your time, energy and resources on seeking, qualifying (and disqualifying duds!), training, communicating with, recognising and supporting productive, profitable affiliates.
• Pay your affiliates promptly and regularly. Look at weekly or even daily payment, rather than monthly. (It can actually be easier and smarter to pay daily than monthly, because the numbers are smaller, it becomes part of the daily routine and it builds huge loyalty with good affiliates. But remember to allow for guarantee periods.)

Sorry I can't give you a "magic formula" or "silver bullet" solution. But they don't exist — except in the minds of those targeted by unscrupulous sellers of "quick-fix" info-products.

John

[Cowell]

hi John,

Thanks for the detailed explanation.

I guess I'm stuff with promoting myown info-product. Sales come in like one sale every two days.
It's kind of slow and I know that this Work At Home System is a quality, well-researched program with excellent sales copy written and extensive affiliates promotional resources built-in. To top things off, this program provides users with their own autoresponders, opt-in list, videos and various PLR products and we are only selling it at $29.95.

so the aim is to get this product out to the market so that as many people as possible will get to know it.

problem is...we do not know any top-notch internet marketers or anyone with a list. So far all the sales came in from PPC.

[Tony Blake]

Sharlyn...

I went to your existing WAHS offer and checked it out...

You have a little bit of a challenge in attracting "top-notch" marketers to something like this... let me explain:

It seems to me that your site is not an original site to you... it is an affiliate site or one you purchased rights to... I did a simple (not deep) Google search and found several other sites exactly like yours, each with the same look (graphics, layout), same product, etc - Warren Knight even has his own domain/product page under the full name of the product... when I review the page (and those of others) I see that there is an affiliate program...

So... let's look at it this way... if you are an affiliate (or have purchased rights), what advantage is it to me to "partner" with you when I can go directly to the source or purchase the rights and keep the entire commission or sales profit to myself?... If there are many affiliates out there for this specific product, where you are just one of many "third party" participants, and/or I can go directly to the source and do exactly what you have done, why would I "JV" with you when I can easily set up my own system? - Why would I endorse and drive traffic (and my list, etc.) to something like this when I can drive the same traffic (list) to my own version of this offer and not have to split anything with you?

You see, this is where the massive conundrum happens... it's very difficult to get ANYONE interested in a JV when the product you are pitching for partnership is in and of itself a partnership with someone else, an affiliate program, where anyone can go direct and doesn't need to align with you... it's almost impossible, except for the barest newbies, to get anyone excited about becoming a partner of an affiliate of an affiliate program itself...

JV's while great, and what most people strive for, often only work best when the product that you are promoting is your own, almost always uniquely singular (this means no one has sold the rights or you're not participating in a 3rd party affiliate program), or limited in a way that the "outside" marketing force (your potential partners) cannot somehow do the exact same thing without working with you (closed program, etc.)...

Chances are that you will never find suitable and "top-notch" partners for your offer because of its very nature... coming from my own perspective - I don't need to partner with you if I can do what you are doing myself...

In order for most JV's to work out well for both parties (win/win), irregardless of what your attracting partners position in the market is, there has to be something unique, closed, limited in what you are offering and proposing... unfortunately this offer has none of the above...

The BIG question to ask is: what can you add or create that would make a JV proposal worth considering?

By the way - I often like to work with "smaller" list/marketing partners rather than the "big boys" or more established players (who often want a bigger and faster payday)... there's a reason why I prefer JV's this way and I explain it in this post - "One Fish... Two Fish... Red Fish... Blue Fish..."

Hope this helps...

Success!!!

Tony Blake
The "Seussical" Marketing Mindreader™
New Media/Content2.0™ Maven
Õ¿Õ¬

[Joseph Ratliff]

Excellent advice Tony!

Sharlyn, sometimes it's "defining" the typical Joint Venture within the Internet Marketing community that throws people off...

There's tons of advice out there to "find a list of marketers, and start sending email proposals to them."

That's actually one of the worst ways to start a Joint Venture in my opinion (from tested experience).  You see, JV's are more than just "will you promote this for me and receive X"...they are built on relationships.

And let's carry a couple of thought processes here that might help you in the future:

1)  Email is probably the number 1 method used for approaching marketers initially.  If you were receiving 20 - 30 emails a week, in the same "will you promote this for me and receive X" tone...how could anyone stand out from the crowd?  I would approach from a different angle like...

*  Local marketing seminars.  Meeting someone face to face and actually starting a personal relationship outside of the computer screen has a lasting effect.  When someone can put a name to a face, it's much easier to begin to trust that individual.

*  Social Marketing sites like Twitter and Facebook.  I have personally developed solid relationships with "marketing masters" using these two sites.  It's almost like attending a seminar...and you would be surprised at how easy it is to network using these sites (think relationship, not self-promotion).

*  Participating on the potential JV Partner's blog (if they have one).  Here, you simply start adding value to their blog with discussion and participation...then at the appropriate point contact them with "how you can help them"...and carefully develop the relationship from there.

2)  Your plan and approach are very important.  Most potential Joint Venture partners are not just seeking monetary compensation when it comes to JV's.  They are seeking a total "win / win" situation for their business...longer term than just one promotion.  What do you plan to do after the potential JV partner says "yes"?  If there is no answer to that question...it's probably better that you don't approach anyone with a JV yet.  Having a thorough plan, including how you are going to approach JV partners, is essential to success.

Joint Ventures are much like success itself...they are a journey, not a destination.

Hope that helps