How to Use Fusion Marketing: Collaborative Marketing Techniques

A few years ago, when I was still practicing law, I got a call from a local mediator who was requesting an urgent interview with me. I'd met this man several times previously, and he'd seemed like a nice enough guy, so I agreed to have lunch with him the following Monday. I was expecting him to ask me legal questions about a problem he was having, but his reasons for wanting to meet with me were much different. He actually wanted to propose a way for us to work collaboratively to gain more clients - in a word: fusion marketing.

At first, I was skeptical because (1) I'd never advertised or marketed my legal services in my entire career; and (2) I saw us as competitors rather than collaborators. I was wrong. Whenever he had clients who couldn't solve their disputes in mediation, he referred them to me, and when I saw clients who could benefit from mediation rather than court, I sent them to him. As it turned out, I even got the better end of the deal, and we each more than doubled our clientele.

Fusion marketing is one of the most effective marketing tactics in the world, mostly because it is mutually beneficial and therefore more likely to work for extended periods of time. The concept of fusion marketing involves teaming up with another business in order to refer clients from one to the other. You can choose a partner for fusion marketing based on location, services, products or any number of other common denominators.

For example, let's say that you own a donut shop in a shopping center. Two doors down is a record store, the owner of which you have developed a casual friendship with. To implement fusion marketing tacts, you would approach the record store owner about collaborating on marketing techniques. In exchange for keeping coupons for the record store on your donut counter, he will keep coupons for your donuts on his. Then, whenever people patronize your stores, they will receive an incentive to go to the other. Simple, inexpensive and very effective.

Most of the marketing tactics you will read about on the Internet are complicated and often all but pointless. As a business owner, you probably don't have time to learn complicated marketing strategies that may or may not work, and you certainly don't want to purchase a book by some guy you've never heard of who claims to have the secret to multi-million dollar marketing tactics. It's all fluff. However, fusion marketing isn't something for which you have to shell out hundreds of dollars, and its simplicity is why it works so well.

The only problem that you might experience with fusion marketing is that which results from a lack of communication. Even if you are collaborating with a business right down the street from yours, you might find it difficult to find time to discuss future tactics. My advice is to form a business alliance by writing it all down and to set up a time to meet once a month (or once a week, if your situation requires it). Your meetings can be spent brainstorming, exchanging new promotional materials and discussing the success (or failure) of your efforts thus far.