The right partnership can help you and your business thrive, especially if you’re willing to use these tips and work on improving the partnership over time.
Running a small business alone is hard, but as it turns out, running a business with a partner may be even harder. Statistics show that up to 70% of all business partnerships fail, leaving the owners in a difficult legal and financial spot.
Instead of having your business partnership fall apart, what can you do to help keep your small business and partnership going strong?
Look Long-Term
While it’s often difficult to visualize the future before you’ve even started, this can be key to a successful partnership. Where do you expect to be in a year? What about five? How does everyone involved in starting your business factor into your long-term plan?
Set clear expectations at the beginning and aim to stick to them for the long haul. You’ll decrease long-term frustrations while simultaneously keeping your goals realistic.
Have A Plan For Rough Spots
If something does go wrong, business partnerships can be incredibly risky. If your business or your business partner is sued for any reason, your own assets could also be put at risk. Because partnerships come with increased liability, you’ll want to have a plan in place for what happens if something doesn’t go as planned.
What do you and your partner do if you decide you no longer want to work together? Having a plan now helps you avoid heated discussions later on and will allow you to keep a level head in tough situations later.
Work With What You Know
When it comes to who handles what in a business, it can easy for things to quickly become a bit one-sided. Make sure you’re assigning responsibilities according to who has the relevant experience.
For example, if your business partner has more experience with digital marketing, it’s best to leave that area of the business mostly to them. A staggering 92% of online searchers choose first page local results, and 33% choose the first result. Because of how important online marketing is, it’s best to have someone who knows what they’re doing in charge of it. Don’t be afraid to admit when you don’t know something – partners can help you fill in your knowledge gaps. This is one of the benefits of working with a team, rather than alone.
Teamwork in entrepreneurship is often risky, but that risk can pay off significantly if you play your cards right. The right partnership can help you and your business thrive, especially if you’re willing to use these tips and work on improving the partnership over time.
