If you've been marketing on the Internet for long you probably have heard about the power of Joint Ventures (JV's).

Over the years, I have labored trying to do everything myself. I finally realized you can get more done with the help of others. Accounting, web programming and graphical design come to mind in an instant. You're better off outsourcing jobs rather than trying to learn it yourself. Let them tell you what they're interested in. The products or services you offer should be matched to your business. For instance, real estate agents can easily endorse landscapers, carpet cleaners, and house painters.

Bottom line? You just can't do everything yourself...

If you want to be successful you have to delegate jobs... period. Once you start doing this you'll find trusted people you can count on to get the job done so you concentrate on the most important function of your business - the marketing!

And a huge part of marketing is creating a customer list of your own. The bigger the better. You can make about a $1.00 per name every month from your own "house" list. If you build a quality list of targeted prospects you can start enjoying the good life... just ask anyone who owns a list of 5,000 customers or more. You can make money easily with your own in-house offers, and quickly cash in endorsing products from others.

This is where Joint Ventures come in. They are huge money-makers. Most businesses shy away from them because they think they'll lose their customers. But this is nonsense if you have good customer service and offer your customers only high-quality products or services. If you do, they aren't going anywhere. And you'll profit from your good business sense...

So how do you do a Joint Venture?

First, you need to look at your customer base and figure out their buying habits. The easiest way to find this out is to simply ask them through a survey, contest or simple questionnaire. Let them tell you what they're interested in. The products or services you offer should be matched to your business. For instance, real estate agents can easily endorse landscapers, carpet cleaners, and house painters.

Once you find a JV partner you can put together a campaign to your list offering a special deal because, of course, they are your valued customer. You can work out a 50-50 split on gross profit with your JV partner, or better, without a hitch (remember that they are building their list too, so don't be afraid to get a good deal!).

And yes, this works both ways. If you have a product you can quickly build a huge list using Joint Ventures. Find firms who have products that are a "fit" with you and put together a campaign they can't refuse. Even if you break even on the offer you'll pick up hundreds of customers you can profit from for years to come.

All in all, Joint Venture's are an often-forgotten strategy many businesses could use to profit quickly and easily.