Small Business Guide - Small Business Resources
    (Add to Favorites  |  View All Articles  |  Resource Directory)

Who Makes the BEST Alliance


What types of companies do you want to align yourself with?

What is the best company to align with? It is a company that does not quite compete with your core business. By this we mean that the company has offerings that dovetail into what you have to offer. If you were selling tire rims, then you would likely want to form an alliance with a company that sells tires. The relationship would work for both companies. Even though you are in the same industry, you both have a different focus. By forming an alliance, you both win. So how do you find such companies? First, you will need to determine what your core business is, and second, what other business would be beneficial for you to offer without taking away from your core. Once you discover the type of business you want to align with, you must do research to see if they already have such alliances with your competition.

Also some companies are not interested in alliances and want to have an open field for other components that dovetail into their business. You must make sure that when you find a good potential alliance, you approach them with well-researched facts. You must be able to show how it will benefit them as well as you. Alliances are like partnerships, both parties need to have everything in writing, including expectations. There also needs to be trust on both sides before the agreement is entered into. Do not pick any company and go from there, do your research first.

When you think about it, many alliances are formed, but few ever work well without doing research. It is likely you will call this type of relationship a Channel Partner, or dealer. Even though these names seem familiar, each has its own unique expectations. When looking for an alliance with another company, you should make sure you look in the right places.

Bette Daoust, Ph.D. has been networking with others since leaving high school years ago. Realizing that no one really cared about what she did in life unless she had someone to tell and excite. She decided to find the best ways to get people's attention, be creative in how she presented herself and products, getting people to know who she was, and being visible all the time. Her friends and colleagues have often dubbed her the "Networking Queen". Blueprint for Networking Success: 150 ways to promote yourself is the first in this series. Blueprint for Branding Yourself: Another 150 ways to promote yourself is planned for release in 2005. For more information visit http://www.BlueprintBooks.com


MORE RESOURCES:

News provided by Yahoo! News and Google News

Small Business Administration 's lending points to optimism
As the jobless rate continues to inch downward and the economy shows signs of life, more and more small business owners and entrepreneurs are exploring options for expanding their companies, a state official said last week.

Small biz loan demand up, Federal Reserve says - CNNMoney

Small biz loan demand up, Federal Reserve says
CNNMoney
By Jose Pagliery @CNNMoney February 1, 2012: 9:18 AM ET NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- A growing portion of the nation's banks saw a spike in demand for loans to smaller firms late last year, according to the latest Federal Reserve figures.

and more »

Take a small business health check
IS YOUR business up and coming, going from strength to strength, faltering or failing?

Romney's idea for auto hike on minimum wage could harm small biz - Examiner.com

Romney's idea for auto hike on minimum wage could harm small biz
Examiner.com
Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney said on Wednesday he supports automatic hikes in the federal minimum wage. Congress has never passed legislation to put the minimum wage on auto hike. Asked for further comments by the Associated Press, ...

and more »

Is Facebook advertising right for your small business?
BizBytes 101 shares tips for navigating the issues of social media advertising.

Airport restaurant... small biz corner - The Jackson Citizen Patriot - MLive.com

Airport restaurant... small biz corner
The Jackson Citizen Patriot - MLive.com
By Sara Scott | sscott2@mlive.com When Don Gaddes started the Airport Restaurant and Spirits in the 1950's, it was called Don's Airport Restaurant. Gaddes continued to run the restaurant until his niece, Dianne Weems, purchased the business in 1995.

Small business: How to tackle volatility
Read the words that go along with the daily ups and downs in the stock market indices, and you are bombarded with meaningless tripe. If Main Street has any money set aside to pay for big expenses like housing, college tuition and retirement, it needs to earn about an 8 percent return on that money every year.

Florida small biz owners eye primary - CBS News

Florida small biz owners eye primary
CBS News
When Paramount Performance Marketing, a printing plant in Jacksonville, Florida, closed last month after a century in business, owner Jon Cummins laid off his last 24 employees. JACKSONVILLE, FLA. (CBS) - When Paramount Performance Marketing, ...

Small Business Summit deemed successful
The second annual Small Business Summit offered through the Sampson County Economic Development Commission and the Small Business Center at Sampson Community College proved to be successful. Despi...

Home | Site Map | Privacy Statement | More Articles
© 2006