Start & Run a Graphic Design Business. Michael Huggins

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СКАЧАТЬ Make sure the person has support from his or her significant other

      This one might seem a little strange at first glance, since you are not hiring the person’s family or spouse, you’re hiring the person. But if he or she has a life partner, it’s wise to get that person’s support of the partnership as well. Owning a business with another person is hard work and can be very taxing on his or her family, especially a spouse or life partner. Make sure everyone is on board. A partnership that doesn’t start with the consent of a spouse can end in disaster early.

      4.6 Base the partnership on compatible values, drive, and work ethics

      There are a lot of nice people in the world, but that doesn’t mean they should be your partner. Recognize that not all people will bring the same drive and desire that you bring to your business. If you are determined to make your business work at all costs, be sure your partner shares the same sentiment. Make sure you match your drive, desire, and work ethics for the greatest success. If you can’t line up these three things, you’ll be frustrated and disappointed almost every time.

      4.7 Hear the person’s heart’s desire

      Ask questions about your future partner’s goals, needs, and desires. What is it that he or she is looking for most from your partnership together? Will you be able to provide it through the partnership? Ask the person about his or her expectations of the business and of your partnership. Determine if he or she is compatible with your goals and if the person’s passions match yours.

      4.8 For better or worse — partnering with your spouse or life partner

      One way a partnership can work is if you are both 100 percent sold on the idea of making it work. You both absolutely have no intention of backing away. Good or bad. Rain or shine. Funnily enough, it starts to sound a little like a marriage vow, which is a good comparison. This is why partnering with a spouse or life partner could work for you. You’ve already committed the first half of your life to that person; why not commit the rest of it, too?

      In a lot of ways a partnership in business is very similar to a life partnership. If you both are committed to making your relationship work, maybe you’re ready to take on a grand-sized business challenge! Be warned, this is not a surefire recipe for business success. Forming a business with your life partner will not only be challenging, but it will put added strain on your relationship.

      Consider partnering with a spouse very carefully. Your spouse may love you and want to give you your heart’s desire, but that doesn’t mean that he or she is cut out for the job. Treat your life partner as you would any other business partner candidate. You might even interview each other to make sure you are both right and ready for a business partnership. If you’re not ready for business together, and you start one, the impact on the rest of your life could be devastating.

      5. Write a Detailed Partnership Contract

      A very successful business mentor of mine once said this to me about partnerships: “One thing you know for sure about partnerships — someday they will end. So start them with the end in mind.” This means that, before you enter into a partnership with someone, you need to talk about every aspect of the business that you can possibly think of, which includes how and when it will end. Don’t take any item or issue for granted.

      Determine who is responsible for each duty in the business, complete with an expectation for each item. Be sure that both of you share the responsibility where income, payments, and client support are concerned. As well, it’s important that both partners share a commitment to business growth and development. That means that you both have an important responsibility in getting and maintaining clients and projects.

      Another important item is the need for partner accountability. Include clauses in the agreement to hold each other accountable. This means you clearly outline what each partner is required to do, at scheduled times, and the penalty if the person doesn’t meet the requirement. Add checkpoints into your business contract so that you can both evaluate each partner’s performance objectively. Include penalties at each checkpoint and enforce them in the event that you or your partner is not holding up his or her end of the agreement.

      In extreme cases in which one partner is failing to follow through on his or her commitments, you might both agree to transfer the ownership of the company to one partner.

      Lastly, get the advice of lawyers. You should each have your own lawyer look at what you’ve both outlined and created in the contract. Ask the lawyers to provide guidance and feedback and then bring your edits together for signing of the final contract. Don’t rush into your business just to make money. Slow it down and plan wisely. If it’s a good partnership contract, it will make you both lots of money once you get started.

      6. Alternatives to Partnering

      People get into to partnerships for many different reasons, but partnerships are not for everyone. The following sections discuss alternatives to partnerships while still having some of the benefits of a partnership.

      6.1 Forming a strategic alliance

      No one says that your business has to be a traditional partnership. There is another type of arrangement that could work to your advantage. It’s called a strategic alliance.

      Forming a strategic alliance involves approaching other businesses that have complementary services in order to create a mutually beneficial business relationship. For example, if you design corporate communication materials, you might approach a business writer to form an alliance. The writer provides all the content for the designs you create. In return, the writer directs all his or her clients to use your services for design.

      You can form this arrangement with printers, copywriters, public relations companies, or marketing firms. In fact, it can work anywhere you have an opportunity to make your service offering stronger. The great thing about these relationships is that there is no legal mumbo jumbo or contracts if you don’t want them. It can be based purely on the merits of your relationship to each other. You can agree to exchange specific services or recommend each other’s businesses exclusively; whatever represents a mutual advantage to you both.

      I have been keeping these types of relationships in my business for many years. I have “partners” whose services I exclusively recommend and they do the same for me. In fact, this one strategy alone brought me one of my biggest clients. It was a marketplace I wasn’t able to break into, but my strategic partner was! He positioned my services as an extension of his own, and he got me the work. We work as a team on all projects that require both content and design for this client. I, in turn, bring him new work from all my other client projects.

      These relationships can be as rigid or as flexible as you like. The key to making them work is finding mutual benefits. Talk things through in detail. Look at the pros and cons of aligning your businesses. What do you want out of the relationship? What does the other person want? You will need to be open and honest with each other. For your alliance to be successful, the person has to trust you, and you have to trust him or her. Don’t be afraid to test the relationship first. Start with small commitments and work your way up as you see evidence of the benefits.

      6.2 Talk to other design business owners

      One of the things people like about partnerships is the feedback and access to knowledge СКАЧАТЬ