What assets do other businesses have that would help your business? What assets does your business have that could help other businesses?
Using strategic alliances, businesses can make creative exchanges for mutual benefit.
For example, a dentist would normally close operations after 5 p.m. Another dentist served patients after work from 5:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. They were able to make a cost-sharing arrangement for mutual benefit.
Many businesses have affiliate arrangements where a business promotes another business’s product or service, in exchange for a share of the sales price. I just saw a person showing useful products on the Today television show where NBC is getting a commission for product sales. This can be a great way to grow a customer list by sharing customers.
Jay Abraham helped Carnival Cruises get started by brokering an exchange of unused cruise cabins for radio advertising. The radio stations used the cruise cabins as contest prizes to engage their audiences. Carnival Cruises received the benefit of the advertising for minimal out-of-pocket cost.
One of Jay’s students was able to make a partnership with a lawnmower manufacturer and distributor to manufacture and distribute motorcycles with unused factory capacity and space available at lawn mower distribution centers. The motorcycle manufacturer provided the molds for making motorcycle parts and the blueprints for the motorcycles.
Here are some questions to explore to identify potential strategic alliances, from Dan Kennedy’s Power Points collection:
- Who has distribution I can use?
- Who has products I could distribute?
- Who has contacts I could profit from?
- Who could profit from my contacts?
- Who has resources I could use without duplicating?
- Who could use resources I have?
Would you like my help to think about potential strategic alliances? To schedule an initial consultation, write to me at mgray@profitadvisors.com.