Your business really is my business.

Or, overcoming the "I want a professional logo and marketing materials but don't have money right now because I'm a small business" excuse.

I have a friend who will be entering the heat and air contracting business within the next few months. He is starting from zero except for the fact that he will inherit a book of business from his former employer.

He is committed to moving forward with his business debt-free which is awesome. He has asked me to coach him and help him market his business effectively. As of right now today, he has zero dollars for design and marketing.

So, I came up with an idea which may end up serving us both very well.

First of all, I only do business under contract with folks who have a positive track record of integrity in their business dealings. That way, I'm more comfortable and creative when helping them out.

Knowing this, we'll plan out his design/marketing needs for the next year. For my services I will charge him a percentage of his monthly income for that year.

Let's say his project minimum is $1000 per job and he does an average of 3 to 5 jobs a month. If we agree that 10% of his gross income for the year will go to me for my services, I'll received $300 to $500 per month for my design/marketing/coaching services for a full year (3-5k).

This takes the burden off him to come up with half of the cash up front for me to get started and allows his new business to start benefiting from my work. He works hard at booking work for himself while I work hard creating the design that helps him book the work.

Another example: Let's say you know a wedding photographer who has a full year of gigs booked. She wants a new logo but does not have a lump sum of cash on hand. You both agree to the above system of doing business. As the year progresses, she get's the use of a great new identity system (which helps her book even more business for the next year) and you get an ongoing stream of revenue for the whole year.

Again, all under contract with folks who have a proven track record of doing business with integrity.

So, what do you think? Am I nuts? Or could this work? Please leave your comments and I'll be sure to post more info about this as it plays out. Thanks for stopping by.

Posted via email from Eye Say • The Web Log