Marketing is the process of emotionally pushing a buyer towards making a purchase.

A form of marketing that I have had a lot of success with is one I like to call "Piggyback". Some people call these Joint Ventures, but because I'm a finance guy, I'll stick with piggyback.

Piggybacking on another company gives you an opportunity to cut costs by marketing to an already acquired customer. Remember, marketing is the process of emotionally pushing a buyer towards a purchase. Emotionally, how much better can it get than having an endorsement from the referring company? Although sometimes there might not be an official stamp of recommendation, the customer automatically assumes that the referring company is okay with the product or service you sell. This will give the customer a little more comfort when he gives you his money.

If your product or service complements the referrer's product or service, most of the time, it will be a good fit. As long as it doesn't tarnish the brand that the referring company has worked so hard to build, this could be a welcomed additional stream of income. I mention a stream of income because most of the time you will pay the referring company a fee for letting you have access to its customers. It's a win-win relationship.

Here's a word of advice from someone who has both won and lost customers. If you don't sell to them, someone else will. Be creative with your marketing and remember to be ethical. Getting in front of your potential customers is challenging but could be a lot of fun.

Go out and have some fun....maybe you could get a "piggyback" from someone!