partnering <> yes or no ?

Hi all,

My third post, wohoo . LOL

I am so glad this forum exists. Thank you all for that.

I've been reading for quite some time now, and I saw in some posts by respected members of the forum, that they would never partner up with a friend, family members and that it always ends badly.
Can you please give us an example to understand what happened and to learn from your experiences?

Here comes a question . I would like to partner with some friend, who is not web mastering or SEO savvy, and I would like to work with him on the website that he knows allot on the topic, and writes pretty good. So he would be main content contributor and editor, and I would be responsible for all web stuff. The question is, if you were me, would you partner with him, and what kind of business model would you suggest to him that would be fair. Is it good idea to split revenue 50%-50%, is it good to manage a project and give less percentage, even if he is essential for the site to grow, and deliver fresh content?

That’s the question!

Thank you all for taking time to read this post, and very much looking forward to see what you guys think about this. I know partnership, especially with friends or family, in any sphere of business is not so good, but I hope it can be different if everything is straight forward,(like it can be on the web, and sharing reports), and everyone is happy doing what they do best, and get paid for it.

Cheers,

B.

 

I would go for it... Just make sure allllll the details are ironed out well before any money is made or lost.

 

if you can, set up a (limited) company and split the shares 50 / 50. Then get your accountant to create a trust, make you a trustee, and put your shares in that. That way you don't own the company, but have control of it. This means that you can not held liabale for any debts that your friend may run up.

Also get everything you agree written down, and plan a lot before you start on any actual work.

 

Thanks allot guys. I put this thread on purpose in adsense forum, because the revenue I would make would be mostly out of ADSENSE. So I wanted to hear experiences from people running adsense with partners, in any kind of cooperation.

You answers are appreciated. The deal should be ironed out for sure, but legally I don’t know how to formulate the deal. Should I just make a list and say that we are doing stuff according to that. Cause I don’t want to make it official, and make contracts, involve lawyers etc. This should be easier setup, but still trustful and obligationary in some ways.
That’s why this question came up?

@moderators: please if this whole thread could be considered to be taken back to adsense forum, I would really appreciate it.

Cheers,

D.

 

unless it's a big venture with lots of money invested, then probably the best way to go is to write down who does what, what's expected of them, how the proceeds are to be reinvested / split, and the aim of the project. Include the sentance that you both agree to what is written down, and then both sign and date it, if you can have a witness (who also signs to say they witnessed it so much the better. It will (i think) in most countries be leagle. If everything is going well, 6 -> 12 months down the road, then think about getting it formalised in leagalise by a lawyer.

 

An old Chinese saying...

"Be a mean guy first, then be a nice guy."

Make sure you have all the revenue sharing policies and rules written in contract and get him/her to sign it before you do anything else. It is good to partner with friends because you clearly understand the strength and weakness of the person who you partner with, which is vital for successful partnership.

However, I will always use 'limited liability company' instead of 'partnership' because with company you won't be liable for the your partner's debt

 

One tip:

Dont go 50/50 always go 49/49. Give the remaining 2% to an independent person you both trust. That way if you ever have any disagreement the business doesnt stall and if you and your partner agree then there is no problem anyway.

When there is a disagreement the 'trusted party' with 2% has the final decision

I doubt this thread will be moved as it is not about adsense.

 

depends how power crazy you are.....
someone should be in charge..even if you go 50-50

if they dont like what you are doing designwise...they will stop contributing...
if you don't like what they contribute, you will have to cut them out and look elsewhere..

its a rock and a hard place situation.

the person with the website capabilities should take the upper hand...

as i say ...you can always make your own content.... they can't make a website...(as easily)

 

I agree that friends and business usually don't mix.

Personally, I would never go into a true business partnership with anyone. I know it works sometimes but I feel it's a destiny for disaster at least at some point in the future. People rarely agree on everything all of the time.

Aaron

 

I would not recommend making him a partner. Someone really needs to be in charge, and in this situation it should be you. You can make him a partial owner and give him a substantial part of the company, and compensate him for his work on the site, but you really should maintain control.

Splitting things 50/50 is just a very bad idea, it leads to potentially some very bad situations.

 

If you read threads in this forum where where website designers contribute you would think the colors/logo/layout etc. are what really matter in the success of a site. If you read threads posted by programmers you would think database design and fast response was key. If you read posts by SEO types you would think that was most important.

What are the chances your design partner will really understand and appreciate the time effort and cleverness you brought to the back end of the site?

I have been down the partner road twice now and it didn't work either time.