Creating Synergy

There is a way for small businesses to grow their market and create synergy without acquiring or merging. We call it a "Project Joint Venture."

Think of it this way: You have clients, another company has clients. Clients mean money. Your businesses are complementary and not competitive. Your products or services work well alone, but together they can produce greater results. That’s synergy. Working together may enable both of you to grow your businesses exponentially.

You’re each starting with an existing client base, and generally it is much easier to continue selling to existing clients than to win new business. If you effectively leverage each other’s clientele, your cost of sales goes down and your return goes up. If you can successfully present complementary products or services together, your offering is enhanced and becomes more attractive to a broader range of clients. By sharing marketing costs, you can effectively market beyond your mutual client base. Here’s how selling synergy might work for you.

Find Complementary Products or Services

Start by finding the right partner. Poll your clients for their interest in complementary services. To identify potential partners, look for similar target markets (such as law firms, seniors, female consumers), selling styles (home-based direct selling, consultative corporate selling), company size, and flexibility.

When meeting with a prospective partner, be fully prepared with concrete suggestions for ways you might work together equitably (see examples below) and what specific benefits both of you can expect to reap from the relationship. This will help you get a solid sense of the potential success of this partnership. Also, be conscious of your gut instincts—make sure you like, respect, and feel you can trust each other.

For some business owners, you may have to sell the concept of synergy. This will require sharing a fair amount of information about your companies. Some key questions to address: Are your goals aligned? Does the potential partner have the same perspective on clients as you do? Is your business driven by quick product sales or by customer referrals from long-standing relationships? If you determine you have the same goals, it’s time to strategically plan and execute your joint marketing strategy.

Team Up on a Business Pitch

Work with your partner to pinpoint the strengths and weaknesses of each business alone and as a unified force. Find strengths that intersect and put them in the forefront of any sales script or promotional material you develop. Make sure any graphic design elements and written messages will appeal to your target audience and set you apart from your competitors.

Know who your competitors are and how you stack up against them. Determine whether the synergy that is created opens up a potentially broader market than your combined client base.