CAN YOU REALLY MAKE IT IN MAIL ORDER

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One of the most persistent dreams of the great majority of would-be self-employed entrepreneurs is "have a nice little mail-order business that I can run all by myself entirely from the kitchen table".

There's also no doubt, though, that there's an awful lot of downright false and untruthful information being circulated about the mail-order business (especially the "kitchen table" variety) today . . . usually spread by rather shady people who have something to sell to the folks they lure into believing in The Dream.

Which is one of the main reasons why MOTHER is pleased to present the following "unvarnished truth" about the small-scale mail-order game as explained by home-business authority Lillian Borgeson.

Well, MOTHER (which has always been almost entirely a mail-order business) was started eight and a half years ago on a kitchen table (even though she outgrew that original kitchen within weeks of her launching) and she's getting stronger every year. So there's no question such an operation can grow and prosper.

"Make a million in mail order," says the ad. "Easy ... fast ... start on a shoestring, work at home in your spare time . . . GET RICH QUICK!"

"Wow," you say. "That sounds too good to be true." And you're right.

It is a fact that you can start a mailorder business working part time at home. Furthermore, home can be anywhere with mail service, including a sun-powered homestead in Far Boondocks, New Mexico. But it's also a fact that hardly anyone makes a million in mail order, and nobody does it overnight.

The process of building a mail-order business is slow, demanding, and relatively risky, especially at first. In fact, the failure rate for beginners is probably higher than in any other type of home business. One reason, no doubt, is that the misinformation rate for beginners is equally high . . . especially for those who read and believe the get-rich-quick come-ons. So here, for a change, are some unvarnished truths. Listed below are the ten questions most often asked by mail-order beginners. The answers will let you know what it really takes to get started in the business with some reasonable hope of success. They should also help you to predict whether you can or can't make it in mail order.