In
eight minutes, you can meet that special someone. Tom Jaffee,
the mastermind behind Boston-based 8minuteDating.com, found even more than that
at one of his matchmaking parties.
At a typical 8minuteDating event, single men and women
gather at a restaurant, chat one-on-one for eight minutes, and
then move on to the next table. After the event, couples who
like each other can meet again. Last January, Adam Segel, an executive
with Tele-Publishing International
(TPI), happened to be having dinner with his mother at a
restaurant that was hosting an 8minuteDating event at the same
time. TPI runs the personal ad pages for 550 newspapers in the
United States.
Never one to pass up an opportunity, Jaffee, 40, introduced
himself and sat down at Segel's table for about eight minutes.
Each quickly described what they did, their needs and what
they could offer the other. So, like many singles at the
event, they exchanged e-mail messages and eventually met again
in person to see if they were right for each other. It wasn't
the typical way to form a business alliance, but it worked.
No matter how it is formed, a smart business alliance can
help you enter a new market, reach more customers, freeze out
a competitor or fill a gap in your company's abilities. These
partnerships take many forms, from joint sales calls or
distributing each other's wares to developing new products or
services. And this newfound competitive advantage can happen
without a major cash infusion.
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