Here’s a recap of the two joint venture examples from my March 30th post:

• The affiliate with a product to sell, partnering with someone whose mailing list or heavy-traffic website offers strong marketing opportunities for the product.
• The affiliate with a dried-up mailing list, partnering with the writer who brings that list back to revenue-generating life.

What does it take to enter into a joint venture and make it work? Here are three requirements:

Networking

The right partner can make the difference between a joint venture that succeeds and one that bombs. Networking with affiliates or other individuals, whose niches are similar to yours, helps in finding that partner. Once you do, cultivating a business relationship with that partner requires regular and open communication. Sure, this takes time and effort. But it’s no different from anything else you do to make money in affiliate marketing.

Revenue-Sharing

Getting the partner on board may require giving him/her as much as 75% of the profits. However, what the partner brings to the table can justify such a high price.

In the first example, the partner’s large and loyal mailing list can generate a significant increase in sales over a short time period.

In the second example, the partner’s content to your mailing list can generate new revenue without your having to spend time writing the content yourself – or paying for advertising.

25% of a much larger pie can easily work out to more revenue than 100% of crumbs.

Teamwork and Cooperation

Joint ventures emerge from the unique strengths of their participants. For your venture to work, you and your partner must work together to utilize your individual strengths. Maintain lines of communication to ensure you are both on the same page.

This can mean checking your ego at the door and realizing that sometimes your efforts alone are not enough. Given that affiliate marketing at times can be a quite solitary experience, that’s not always easy.

But in the end, you must ask yourself, “Am I in this business to bolster my pride, or to make money?” The most successful affiliates choose the latter option.

A joint venture done right is truly a win-win situation for you and your partner. The experience could lead to other successful ventures with that partner. Or it can lead to ventures with other partners as you expand your networking efforts. Even if you prefer not to pursue a joint venture, it’s often worth your time to explore the possibility.