This is a very lucrative business, and it's growing in demand and popularity. There are thousands of people in all parts of the world who are making hundreds of dollars each week, just reading and clipping news item in the privacy of their own homes!
The press-clipping
business is very much misunderstood by most people, and therefor there are a
lot of people who are very skeptical about it as a way for ordinary people to
make extra money at home. If you explain to friends or neighbors that you
operate a press clipping business, most of them will think you pore through the
obituaries, funeral notices, ad wedding announcements. Clipping these out and
sending them to people or relatives of the people being written about.
In reality, this is but
a very small part of the home-based newspaper clipping service. The really
successful press clipping services have contracts with companies and
organizations that want to keep current on any number of matters reported in
the papers.
Some companies hire
clipping services in order to keep track of what their competitors are doing.
Other companies, including businesses of all kinds, use clipping services as a
means of locating sales leads and new customers. National magazines and
newspapers are a;ways in ned of different or interesting material, and
frequently employ home-based clipping services.
To set yourself up in
this kind of business, you'll need only a pair of scissors and as many
different newspapers and magazines as you can subscribe to. A visit to your
local public library should be most informative relative to newspapers and
magazines available to subscribers.
You should also visit
your local wholesale paper house, or make a deal with te local stationery store
to buy labels at a discount price. You'll want to attach these labels to
the top of each clipping you send to your clients. On these labels, you'll want
to print the name of the publication th clipping came from, and the date it
appeared, as well as your on name and address.
The next step is simply
to start clipping articles that mention or talk about specific companies or
people. File you clippings in envelopes or boxes according to industries or
types of businesses, by company name, ad according to the names of the people
mentioned.
Once you have ten or
more clippings that talk about a particular company or person, put them in a
envelope and send them to that company's owner or public relations director.
You should include a short note with the
clippings, explaining your service and your fees.
Your should try to get
your clients to agree to pay you a monthly "reader's fe," for which
you agree to look for anything in the newspaper about him or his company or
industry. Every time you spot such an article, you of course clip it, and send
it to him.
A minimum monthly
"reader's fee" is usually $25,but it can vary according to the number
of publications you read, and thee number of clippings found.
Generally, a clipping
service that scans statewide publications charge about $50 per client, or $100
per client for those wanting clippings from national publications. These fees,
of course, are monthly fees, and you
can easily see how you could make very good money with just 20 or 25 clients.
To promote and build
your business, you can scan your local business services directory and send out
a solicitation letter to each of those listed. A couple days after you've
posted your sales letter, you should follow up with a phone call.
A short, to-the-point ad
under "Business Personals" in your daily newspaper will also bring in
new clients for you. And as soon you can afford it, go with at least a small
display ad in the yellow pages of your telephone
directory.
You should definitely
contact relations firms, advertising agencies,and civic organizations in your
area. Explain your services and ask them if they have any special clients or
needs you can help them with. You'll find many of your local political and
"cause" groups very interested in receiving clippings about their
opponents.
Clipping services in one
form or another have been around since the advent of the printing press, and as
stated earlier, they're becoming more in demand. It's definitely the kid of
business anyone who knows how to read can set up ad operate with an absolute
minimum investment.
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