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QUESTION: Ben, I heard you got your start in copywriting by doing joint ventures so you would not be paid a fee but on the sales. I am a new copywriter and would like to know how you set that up?
BEN: That’s a great question.
It’s an extremely important one, too.
Because while copywriting joint ventures can be VERY profitable if you find the right product and partner, they can drive you to the brink of insanity if you don’t.
Which is why, if I could do it over again, I would not just do joint ventures.
Instead, I would do what I do today… which is have three projects going at all times:
A fee-based project, a joint venture project, and one of my own projects.
So far, this has proven to be WAY more profitable than just doing joint ventures or just fee-based work.
Now, I will give you one piece of advice that, if you really follow it, will save you a whole bunch of aggravation.
And my advice is to ONLY do copywriting JV deals with people who:
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1. Are as motivated (or more motivated) to make money as you are.
2. Have a list of at LEAST 5,000 people — many of which are actual buyers.
3. Have a history of mailing their lists regularly and often.
4. Have a product that is proven to sell.
There’s actually more to it than that.
But in my humble (but accurate) opinion, these four things are mandatory.
Otherwise you are setting yourself up for a potentially nasty fall.
What you want is to write an ad for a product that you already know sells, to a list of people that you already know are capable of buying, for a client who you already know will run your ad.
This doesn’t guarantee you success, obviously.
But it does dramatically beef up your odds.
On that note, let me say one more thing.
Probably the best person to ask about copywriting JV deals is not me… but my buddy John Anghelache.
These are actually John’s specialty and he has done far more of them than me.
In fact, last time I spoke with him, he was doing one with marketing giant Ron LeGrand.
Had I learned John’s method of doing these JV’s in the beginning, I would have saved myself from making a pile of dumb mistakes that cost me a small fortune in time and money.
And here’s the good news:
For the first time ever, John is going to reveal his exact method of setting up profitable copywriting JV deals in a special coaching program he and Ryan Healy are soon launching.
If you’re serious about making it as a freelancer, I highly suggest checking it out at:
{ 3 comments }
Hi Ben,
Great post. There’s some wise words there.
I can see this is where I’ve been going wrong and getting frustrated with my copywriting attempts.
I suppose it all comes back to only working with people who understand and value what a copywriter actually does.
To my mind, the toughest part is finding these people and selling yourself to them so they give you a break.
Frank
Hey Frank, believe me, they are out there.
There’s so much opportunity out there for these kinds of deal, it’s crazy.
Gary Halbert wrote about this once:
http://www.thegaryhalbertletter.com/Newsletters/zdla_multi_level_marketing.htm
But it’s even easier now, with people online.
Ben
Hey Ben, great post. I discuss it in a new post on my blog.
Darrel
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