A ""HOME BUSINESS"" BUSINESS

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HOW MUCH DO WE CHARGE?

We've found that in a small community with a population of 35,000 to 75,000, a rate of $25 for a six-line ad is reasonable And $30 for a similar ad is a good price to charge in more populated areas. Of course, you may discover that an advertiser will want to publish ads under several different categories. So, by giving a price break for multiple entries, you may well encourage your clients to spend more money.

This is our rate schedule, which you may want to use as a guide:

Let's suppose your targeted market are a smaller community, and therefore each adcarries a $25 price tag. A minimum of 200 listings will yield a gross income of $5,000 and, subsequently, a net profit of about $2,500 (printing expenses and other costs will consume about half of the total revenue you take in).

DIRECTORY DESIGN

The end product can be as starkly functional or as elaborate as you like. We use 20pound, plain white bond paper, 8-1/2" X 11 ", folded in half, for the interior of the directory. We print our covers on 90-pound card stock, which is also "standard" size, folded in half. This produces a finished book of 8-1/2" X 51/2". To bind the pages together, we have the printer "saddle stitch" them. (This magazine uses saddle stitch binding. However, although THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS requires three staples in its center spread, your directory should need only two.)

My partner and I print the name of our directory, the area it covers, and the date of publication on the front cover. (By the way, our title, "Home Business Directory", is copyrighted . . . so you can't use it. There are a lot of other possibilities for names, however. Be sure to choose one that people will understand and that helps explain the book's contents.) We use a very simple format on the inside pages: no logos or graphics . . . just paragraphs set in six lines, with 40 spaces in each line. If a pica typewriter is used, this provides each advertiser with a 1 " X 4" ad.

Here's a sample ad displaying our usual format:

HENSLEY'S GLASS SERVICE Phone Address City For fast, economical service. Storm win dows, screens, doors, mirrors, desk tops,and plexiglass. Shop work only.

As you can see, the first line is the advertiser's name or business name and the telephone number. The second line carries the entrepreneur's address and city. You'll probably want to place each entry under an appropriate category (such as antiques, arts and crafts, carpentry, child care, etc.). The ads are listed alphabetically under suitable sections ... which are also arranged in alphabetical order.

We developed a form for our customers to use that has a block of space for each letter. This takes the work out of determining the length of the listing. We collect the money along with the form, either through the mail or in person. By maintaining a strict policy of no billing and no second calls, we cut down our costs considerably.

If you want your directory to look professional, you might want to have the ad listings typeset. That extra step will give the book an attractive appearance, but it isn't necessary. A good typewriter (and typist!) is effective and not nearly as expensive.

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