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ASSEMBLE THE PRODUCT

Set on a specific deadline and stick to it, even if it means not getting in touch with everyone on your prospects list. If you delay publishing the directory, your clients will be disappointed and your credibility will be damaged. In our experience, the entire project requires a four month timetable. It takes about three months to form the prospects list, collect the ads, and prepare the final copy for the printer. During the fourth month, the publication is actually printed and distributed. So if you plan to release a directory on May 1, you'd better start by January 1.

After Paula and I have gathered all the ads we plan to sell, we organize the order blanks alphabetically by categories. Then I type up the "proof copy". The pages of the proofs should look exactly the way you want the finished product to appear. I make mine -one at a time-by inserting a standard she et of typing paper sideways into my typewriter, and then neatly typing up the entries. I keep my line of type 4 inches long, maintaining 3-1/2inch margins on either side, and leaving 1inch gaps at the top and bottom of the sheet.

I never start an ad on a page unless it can be completed on the same sheet. If that's not possible, but there's still extra room at the bottom of my paper, I type in a filler blurb (plugging the directory, naturally) to take up the leftover space.

The proof copy will indicate how many pages your book will have. Four of your pages will fit on one of the printer's sheets (the sheet will include two pages-a front one and a back one-in both halves of the book), so you'll have to give the printer a number of pages that's divisible by four. For example, if your typed proof sheets total 49, you'll have to go to the next multiple of four, which is 52 pages, or 13 large printer's sheets. (You can take up the slack by leaving a few blank sheets at the beginning and end of the directory.)

And believe me, you'd be economically prudent to take a little extra time and shop around for a printer. Paula and I called a great many in our area, and found a lot of difference in quoted prices. We finally selected a man who charged a full 2007o less than anyone else we had looked into, and he was the tenth printer we'd talked to!

Naturally, you'll want to strive for the greatest possible accuracy, so you'll have to proofread each ad carefully. We double check the spelling of names and the numbers in addresses and telephone listings, and usually find it useful to compile an index of advertisers.

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