What should I look for in a business partner?

I am in need of a business partner for 2 reasons: Financial input and Assistance in Business Development.

My question is, aside from these two things I desire in a partner, What should I be looking for? What should I ask them? How can I trust them?

Thanks

 

I will first searching for reputable partner that accept a start up business. Ask to people you really met and you really see their business to avoid troubles in the future.

 

Make sure he's persistant & honest and above all, make sure he doesn't try to cut corners with things that need done exactly right. You could have more knowledge than a NASA scientist, but it won't do you any good if you have no common sense. Always keep that in mind when looking for a partner or employee.

 

You can look for partner via online and offline.
If via offline,you can directly meet and sort out the deal with your partner.
And your partner must be have same interested with you and can dedicate some time for the biz.
Of course,you must sign a contract that let say your partner will team up with you for a certain period of time.
If one of you breach the rules,then he will need to pay the penalty

 

Qualities to look in a Business Partner:
1. Find hard work ethic that is consistent and not full of a lot of flash.

2. Same future goals with the business you are involved in and this is why a business plan and mission statement is vital.

3. Someone that values moral and ethics above the dollar bill. This will serve customers eventually and build a trusted brand that will bring re-occuring customers back.

4. Realizes the importance of input from you and any other voice in the company.

5. Finds humor in the business and doesn’t take the process too seriously.

6. Can throw out criticism and take it at the same time.

7. Has to be someone that will not crumble in moments of adversity. These moments will come, but you have to fight through the storm.

8. Constantly looking for new creative ideas with his/her responsibilities as how to enhance the systems of the company to make it more productive for everyone involved.

9. Great communication skills with employees, shareholders, business relationships, etc.

10. Someone that can smile and appreciate what value you bring to the community.

All the best

 

Vice verse, how if someone said he will pay me *** dollars to hire me to work html/css for him full time ? (we know each other on internet and collaborate online due to long distances.)
I am not sure if I should quit my job and take the chance . I really want to be a full time webmaster .

 

Can I used your post in my description for my search of a business partner?

 

Its hard to find people on here.

Usually i look for good itrader, look through past posts and threads - this shows more tha you will learn from speaking to them.

Other things to do is chech whois on domain names to see if they match with what theyre telling you - where they live etc.

 

If you are ever going to find a business partner online that can invest make sure they can show past earnings from business and personal over the course of a year. Always meet in person. A lot of people talk a good game but can't follow through.

Also if your looking for someone to throw down money on an idea get ready to give up 51% or more of your own company. No one invests large sums for an idea for chump change. There are a lot more people with ideas then business investors with funds to turn ideas into something real.

 

Nobody will invest for low equity, but anything over 50% counts as a controlling stake and I would not advise offering that if you can avoid it.

 

Well I'm offering an equal share of the business which means 50% to both parties. Both with need to put in equal financial input unless agreed otherwise as well as equal effort in work.

Does that sound right?

 

it is difficult to find a good partner.

I have tried to avoid partnerships because of bad situations with partnerships

 

Well if you can give me some alternatives to not having enough money to get the things done then...

 

You're going to find it difficult to bring a partner on board without an established business making some money.

You need to bring something to the partnership that somebody else cannot just create on their own, keeping 100% of the profit.

Can you build the business yourself to the point where the business model can be seen in action? It will most likely mean keeping your day job and working late at night, but will greatly improve your chances of gaining a partner and the finances / expertise to grow your business.

 

What i have done is attempt to just do it all myself, even if it takes a little longer to get done.

if it is money your concerned about, the first question is how much money? if it is $100? then you really just need to go cut some grass or find a part time job? maybe sell some stuff on ebay?

if it is $10,000 your short? maybe you should itemize your estimated cost and decide what parts of the project can wait until later? and what parts could you complete now that would cost very little.

even google had to start somewhere and i'm sure it wasn't with a million dollar budget.

If it is a website, maybe you should start by doing a basic layout, getting some content on it and start seoing it. It is a lot easier to attract money with a site ranked #1 that maybe doesn't have the features you want than it is to attract money with just an idea you have.

you can have the greatest idea in the world, but if you are not willing to take the initial steps to make it a reality, then it is probably a waste of time.

The internet is so easy to start and forget about a business until I have really tried to avoid things with huge startup costs.

 

partnership is good , all depends on trust ..give time to your partners you will get to knw soon who they are ..

 

This post was really helpful. The estimated startup cost is going to be about $350.00 and that will give me a decent site with an online store (mainstream of my business), and 14 products to start selling, along with 1 designer semi-contracted into the company for 3 added products per week for $45 a week.

I'm going to sell my Ipod Touch to get around $200 then try to cover the rest. I have a job averaging $140 a week right now. It would be nice if i could be earning that from a website instead. lol

 

Make sure you have a partner that will put up as much effort as you and knows what he's doing.

 

True, in every way if I were to turn to a partnership these are the key factors I would be looking for.