Becoming a business owner is a great endeavor for many entrepreneurs. They get to sort through all the data, have presentations made to them, and they get to make the final decisions on all aspects of their business. But when they enter a joint venture, decisions need to be made on a joint basis between partners. What does one do when a course of action seems like a good idea for the venture but the JV partner needs convincing?

Knowing a bit about the psychology of persuasion can help in swaying a JV partner to your ideas. First you need to know what kind of decision maker your JV partner is. Here are the main types of decision maker types that are found in executive positions around the world.

* Controllers - This type of decision maker is the pushy, take-control type who wants it their way. Usually it's because of insecurity that they are less easily persuaded. They need cold, hard facts, logic, and an analytical style in order to persuade them. Don't be ambiguous with this type. Keep your persuasions clear and to the point.

* Thinkers - This type may be tougher than Controllers to persuade. They, too, need cold, hard facts, and lots of them. They like to think and analyze each decision, and they may take a while to do so. Give plenty of information for this type to chew on if you want to persuade them to your thinking.

* Charismatics - Charismatic businesspeople are the enthusiastic type who makes a decision and carries through with it whole-heartedly. They like balance and enjoy choosing the course of action that is familiar with past experience. Give plenty of information to this type as well, but also lean arguments toward their past successes to get a positive persuasion.

* Followers - This type of decision maker is adverse to risk. They like to know that something has worked in the past before they try it themselves. Facts aren't so important as examples of previous success. Give them a good, sturdy platform to jump onto if you want them to follow you.

Now that we are familiar with decision making types, how do you actually create an argument for your JV partner? Here are some helpful techniques in building your argument:

* Display the need - Each decision maker type needs to know that a decision has to be made. Create a need for your course of action, such as more income, reduction of expenses, bigger market-base, etc. Include the facts and previous success of your plan as needed to help

* Choose the right words - Remember, you need to use the proper words according to your JV partner type. Charismatics like enthusiastic and positive words. Thinkers like intelligent and logical words. Followers need to hear words like responsible, cautious, and proven.

* Call to action - Once you've made your presentation or argument, you need to get them into a frame of mind that requires decision. Tell them your beliefs and why you are convinced of a course of action, and ask for their support.

Persuasion is like an art form. Good salespeople know the art of persuasion well. If you are in a position that requires persuading a JV partner in a course of action, take heed to how you will formulate your action based on the decision-type he or she is. Good luck!

Christian Fea is CEO of Synertegic, Inc. A Joint Venture Marketing firm. He exemplifies how to profit from Joint Venture relationships by creating profit centers with minimal risk and maximum profitability.

To discover more Joint Venture Marketing Strategies join his free Joint Venture Wealth Report.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009 at 9:30 pm and is filed under Partnerships. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.