Seventy percent of Americans belong to one association. Twenty five percent belong to four or more associations.

Our professional existence is held together by the network of people with whom we share common interests, even common goals.

As technology gives us new ways to link up, communicate and share ideas, our need to identify with a collective presence reflects our need to become more significant.

Today, this need is being fulfilled by privately organized, managed and funded trade associations.

For-Profit

If there is anything that drives any venture to succeed, the principal motivation is profit - the commercial purpose for which any trade activity exists.

Because we still maintain a mindset that associations should not be a money-making venture, it is difficult to imagine a trade association as a for-profit representative body of a particular trade.

However, as the efficiency, agility and productiveness of for-profit trade associations become evident, members become more confident that operating a for-profit trade association is the only way to guarantee that the association will remain productive and beneficial to its members.

Objectives

Unless your primary reason for creating a trade association is to lobby issues in Washington, your association’s principal objective should more or less focus on information sharing.

If you are creating a trade association as a forum for its members to share ideas about their trade, it is essential that you provide your members this vehicle by which they can communicate, maybe even interact.

Beyond Membership

Since most associations get started with low membership dues, usually in the $20 to $30 bracket. Many associations are lucky to break even on membership dues alone. To guarantee its healthy existence, its financial foundations should expand beyond being exclusively dependent on membership dues.

Although most trade associations start off with a newsletter, it is in an ideal position to organize conventions (that provide members a forum to network, meet suppliers, and hear experts) which can be a prime money-maker for the association.

Although the national obsession for group exercise has begun to level off, estimates claim 23 million Americans participate in aerobics in health clubs and exercise gyms.

This includes people enrolled in programs run from community facilities, YMCAs, and gyms, to dance studios in shopping malls.

This figure represents 10% of the US population who exercise occasionally, definitely a fraction of what it used to be 10 years ago when the craze was at its peak and America was waking up to the urgent message of the importance of exercise.

NEW MARKETS

The decline of enrollment-based fitness programs has forced many studios to expand their services.

For example, some jazz exercise studios now offer skin care and nutritional counseling. Some offer shiatsu classes.

The biggest problem for any stationary fitness program is being able to organize classes that work around the schedule of its potential clients.

The interest in fitness remains. The market did not dwindle as the figures suggest. The biggest challenge in this industry is identifying new ways to deliver its services to the market.

BUNS OF STEEL

If you are an aspiring exercise entrepreneur, here are three avenues by which you can deliver and sell your services to your market:

1 - CORPORATE CONTRACTS

Many businesses recognize that healthy employees are productive employees, something the Japanese realized decades ago.

You can send instructors to a business location to conduct exercise classes that are subsidized by the employer.

2 - SATELLITE CLASSES

You can lease community or church facilities, recreational centers or school gymnasiums and hold classes for people in that community. Some very large apartment complexes have halls, or function areas, where classes can be held.

3 - VIDEOS

Students who attend your class once can continue the routine on their own time. That’s the convenience video can offer.

Instead of coming to an organized exercise class, people will attend an exercise class in front of their VCRs.

In fact, a video tape can be an excellent add-on product to corporate contracts, satellite classes, or studio classes.

Giving away a prize as an incentive to sell a product or solicit a donation is a time-tested marketing ploy that never fails. The only problem is that the market has become oblivious to sweepstakes.

Promoters are giving away the same old prizes time and time again. Without adding anything exciting to the sweepstakes, you might as well offer $10 million or your efforts (or your product or charitable cause) are likely to be ignored.

In this age of mega-million lotteries, the type or value of prizes offered speak the language of the market. If your product is just as good as that of your competition, or if your charity is just as worthy as any other that seeks donations, then you’d better spike your campaign with a sweepstakes that is unique as can be.

THE PRIZE

A few years ago, a church in Daly City, a bedroom community west of San Francisco was planning a fund raising campaign that involved selling “raffle” tickets to the congregation.

The plan was to sell the tickets for around $5 each, and for which one lucky ticket holder could win the grand prize of a brand new Toyota Tercel.

To say the least, the idea was worn out and unimaginative. A friend coordinating the project decided the raffle could be improved, and consulted me on what the fund raising committee can do to make the sweepstakes more attractive.

My suggestion was to give a different prize. Why not give away a business - a store!!!

VIDEO STORE PRIZE

We went to a new strip mall that was being constructed and leased a storefront for $1,100 a month.

Next we ordered signs and shelves and an initial inventory of 1,200 used video tapes for which we spent a total of $15,000.

For under $20,000, we were able to put together the basic framework of an operational video store. We hanged a banner outside that says “You can win this store. Call for info”.

$200 A TICKET

Because the church wanted to raise $25,000, we decided to sell 250 tickets at $200 each - for a total of $50.000.

Out of this amount, $20,000 will pay for the grand prize, $25,000 goes to the church and $5,000 for my friend for organizing the project which lasted for 6 weeks.

To achieve the same results, and using instead an $8,000 car as a prize, it would require the church to 8,000 tickets at $5 each, a much more difficult fund-raiser by comparison.

This would be a typical response of someone who does Auto Detailing when asked what they can do for your car and how much they would charge you for it.

The age of upscale carwash is here. As we keep our cars longer (average length is 7.5 years) we take better care of them.

This is why the carwash business is booming with $8 billion in revenue, and so is auto detailing.

EXECTUIVE PARKING

Many auto detail services nest their business in executive parking lots. They get a permit from the city and from the business whose lot they use.

This is convenient for employees who otherwise may not have time to bring their cars to a shop that would take 3 hours to get detailing done.

In a mobile operation such as this, you will need a van or pickup truck and access to running water and preferably AC power.

In some cities, there are companies that convert and customize pickup trucks into mobile detail shops with its own reservoir and portable power generator.

140 MILLION CARS

Although many auto detailers will swear that a bulk of their business comes from car dealers, in reality the car dealer market is small and extremely competitive.

Most car dealers need cars detailed before a used car is offered in an auction or is displayed in the lot.

However, the biggest market of all is still on the road, individual car owners, representing all of 140 million passenger cars plus another 30 million pickup trucks on the road.

This market, with an average age of 7.5 years, is ripe for a detail job at least twice a year.

BUDGET DETAIL

The best way to build up a base in this business is to introduce a mid-priced service that offers extras that carwashes do not offer.

Detail jobs in the range of #30 to #49 will open up a new market that can provide a stream of customers. You can provide a written list of what you do and how you build up your rates from the basic price of $30 to the premium rate $49.

With 5 customers a day, at 1 hour each, you can average $200 a day.

No - the Party Planning business we’re talking about has very little to do with Goof-Doop The Clown or serving cake and ice cream to 6-year old kids.

CORPORATE SCENE

For a Party Planner, this is where the money is. And if you have the knack for organizing fun things for grown ups, you’re in for a big - $100 Million - surprise. And it’s a business worth celebrating.

BROKER MENTALITY

This is a business you can virtually start with little or no capital. All you need is a great idea and a client who wants to have fun.

The best way to implement this business is to act as the broker for all services entailed in any given event.

You do not prepare the food, you hire a caterer. You do not sing or dance, you hire entertainers. In fact, in some real big parties, you can negotiate with talent agencies to have celebrities attend your party.

For example, you can have named stars “drop by” your party for around $10,000 or better. If your budget cannot afford the real celebs at $10,000 a piece, then you can hire look-alikes for $200 a night. Do not introduce them in the party, just let them roam around and mingle with the guests.

THEME PARTIES

You can also plan an event around a theme, depending on the reason for the party and the number of people attending.

You can build festivals around parties. If the party is an extension of a convention, work around ideas that are conducive to people in that trade or industry.

START-UP

To get started, line up businesses that are involved in parties: florists, videographers, caterers, hotel managers, equipment rental companies, and others.

Set your rates based on the price lists of these related businesses. These tie-in companies will dictate the way you structure your prices.

Once ready, compile a mailing list of potential corporate accounts in your area. If you live in a city with a convention center, it would be ideal to do some networking and get referral business.

A FUN PRODUCT

Gourmet gift baskets have become popular in recent years. They are a collection of desirable items and in such a variety that they appeal to all. By determining the markets you want to target and the type of baskets you want to produce, you can set your income goals for as little or as much as you like.

CORPORATE ACCOUNTS

From the very large and the very small, businesses have needs for gift giving on a pretty constant basis.

By targeting corporate accounts, you protect yourself from potential sales fluctuations common to what are generally considered seasonal items. Business love gift baskets because they are “safe” compared to other gifts like chocolate (many people now carefully watch their fat intake) or wine & spirits (many people don’t drink). Of course, other possible clients for your gift baskets include associations, retail outlets, fund raisers, and individual customers who purchase for themselves or as a gift.

CREATIVE DESIGNS

Gourmet gift baskets are fundamentally a few nice items placed in a unique arrangement and presented to look extravagant. Use your imagination and keep an eye for unusual and appealing products.

To keep unit price low, inventory most commonly used items by purchasing direct from the manufacturer or main distributor. Look for large pretty items; they will give your product “size”.

THEME MARKETING

Focus on a theme and build around it. From a corporate perspective, create presentations that communicate the corporate perspective, create presentations that communicate the corporate or marketing slogan.

Do not limit yourself by just using baskets as your main vehicle. For example, a basket with an Italian theme can use (as its basket) a large pasta bowl to hold a small bottle of vinegar, olive oil, sun-dried tomatoes and kitchen utensils.

Raffia or “grass” can be used to cushion the items, sealed together with shrink wrap.

Finish your basket with a bow or medal, and you’ve got a product that can be retailed for around $39. Your cost: as low as $12.

NO! It’s not what you think. Although the title of this material may appear quite gimmicky, it is really about one of the best information products on the market.

CONTENTS

What you have in your hands is called PowerGuide, an all-inclusive how-to business system that include an audio cassette seminar, a computer software, an information guide sheet, and Gift Certificate redeemable for over $50 worth of promotional merchandise offered by participating sponsors.

THE $10 HOTCAKE

If you sell a PowerGuide for $10, plus $3 shipping & handling you’ll make a profit of $10 because it costs around $3 to produce, package and ship a single PowerGuide.

R.A.P. PUBLICATION

Aside from the information it offers, the freebies and its attractive packaging, Power Guide has a feature that is unlike any other publication or how-to product offered in the market. PowerkGuide is an RAP (Rights Acquired Purchase) publication. This means that anyone who buys a PowerGuide also acquires the non-exclusive rights to reproduce and sell that PowerGuide title. The more PowerGuide titles you buy, the more variety you can sell.

LICENSEE PACKAGE

A Licensee Package, usually referred to as Distributor Kit, is an all-inclusive package which contains the designs, material, and the rights to 24 PowerGuide titles. Each Licensee Package contains all the tools and master designs needed to produce the 24 different PowerGuide titles included in the package.

Licensee Packages sell anywhere between $49 and $179. If you sell Licensee Packages, you have to determine your own selling price, depending on where and how you intend to market PowerGuide Licenses.

DROPSHIP

You can sell Licensee Packages on a dropship basis. Instead of making copies of materials and producing your own packages, it would be easier for you to send Brandel $12 along with the name and address of the customer to whom Brandel would send its most current License Package.

If you sell a Licensee Package for $49, you keep the $37 profit for yourself.

A California-based research company has been extensively doing studies on U.S. ZIP (Zone Improvement Program) Codes, they can now predict, with certain percentage of accuracy, what you ate for breakfast based on your zip code.

Zip Code is the smallest, most organized accumulation of information by which we can evaluate the demographic flavor of a given area.

From a marketing standpoint, most retail businesses use zip code along with the Pareto Principle that 80% of your customers reside within the zip codes that connect to your location. In theory, they live no more than 7 miles from where you are.

A CHANGING MARKETPLACE

The phonebook we have grown accustomed to was developed over 30 years ago. Only it has grown in terms of thickness, weight, and aesthetic design.

From a marketing perspective, except for its dominance and near monopoly, it has been rendered useless by a more mobile and more efficient market.

When the Yellow Pages was first introduced, the world “malls”, “strip malls”, “executive centers”, and “postal & mail box centers” were unknown to American consumers.

Today, it is easier for us to dial directory assistance or look online than it is to use the phonebook.

USE OLD PATTERNS

To make it easy for advertisers and consumers to swallow something new, make it look like it’s old. So, use simple patterns and designs borrowed from old phonebooks, including rates charged for your territory.

Establish your advertising rates based on the number of homes and businesses your Zip Code phonebook is going into.

You can cover as many Zip Codes as you want, just make sure you do not pile up a marketplace so large you are practically competing with the phone company. The best rule of thumb is to break the phone company’s general distribution area into 7 phonebooks.

GTE used to have what they called “The Neighborhood Phonebook”. I think the reason it died is that it broke down its neighborhood either very conceptually or too similar to the way all other phonebooks do. Advertisers want solid numbers. Zip Codes are solid. Just ask the postal service.

Maps serve a purpose. People use it for directions. They trust it and depend on it to get them where they want to go. It tells them where the local attractions are, and other places if interest, particularly among tourists - the people who use maps the most.

Considering the credibility and the power of maps as a printed medium, it takes an entrepreneur 2 seconds to realize that there’s money in maps… as an advertising vehicle.

You can design your city map to be as large as 28″ x 40″ which can be printed by commercial print houses with large format presses. Or you can use the 11″ x 17″ format and bring it to your neighborhood quick printer.

The Map

What you’re going to make a map of is as critical as deciding about how you’re going to do it. These are the two questions that will make the foundation of your business.

Big cities are very seldom a great market for City Maps. However, if you break them apart and make maps for selected business districts, even down to selected neighborhoods, the taking is plenty.

Focus on dense retail districts. Target those with neighboring restaurant row, historical spots or other tourist attractions.

Purchase reprint rights of already existing maps as this would prove significantly easier and more cost efficient than producing one yourself.

Cartoon styled maps may be visually entertaining, but they are seldom useful. You will probably attract more advertisers if you can equate your advertising rates with potential use.

Advertisers

Position advertising blocks on the outer edge of the map area. Depending of the size of your map and the paper you plan to print it in, you can have as many or as few “blocks” to offer for advertising. Encourage your advertisers to buy more than one block of advertising. This will not only make your map look more exclusive, it will also make your selling ad spaces get done a lot sooner.

The CD is entitled: “This CD Can Make You Filthy Rich”, and It’s about producing how-to CDs - a concept whose time has come. At $15 each, plus $3 shipping & handling, the producer of CD will gross $18,000 selling 1,000 CDs.

Minimum Start-Up: $2,500
Average Start-Up: $5,000
Revenue: $12,000
One Person Business: Yes

The production cost is quite small. The audio program was written by the producer who brought the script to a “Narration House” where a professional announcer does the voice recording using a professional studio.

NARRATION HOUSES

You can order radio commercials as well as other “voice” recorded programs to be produced by so-called “narration houses”.

This business is usually run by a professional announcer who owns or has access to a professional recording studio.

Just send your script to a narration house and have thim record it for you. The amount you are charged depends on the length of your material and the type of tape on which you want your “master copy” recorded. A 30-minute material may cost you $450.

THE INTERVIEW FORMAT

Another popular format for a How-To CD is what we call the “Interview” format.

This is where the author or producer of the CD is interviewed on a subject in which he or she is an expert.

Since this format is prepared on a “question and answer” basis, it is relatively easy to structure, allowing for a more logical presentation of the ideas the author wants to cover.

With this format, the author can prepare 30 to 50 questions which, together with the answers, can be edited down to a 30 to 40 minute program.

Depending on where the interview is produced, this format may cost less than a straight presentation where the bulk of the work uses the voice of a professional narrator.

YOUR MARKET

In a “How-To” project, it is always recommended that you select your topics based on your expertise or access to information.

From a marketing standpoint, it is equally beneficial for you to be familiar with the market to which you expect to market your How-To CD.

If your topic is very selective, use direct mail to market your CDs. If it is an extremely popular topic that can be promoted on TV, use 60-second TV spots or print ads.

The primary reason businesses start at home, or with a meager P.O. Box is because, renting an office can be very expensive.

On top of your basic rental you will have to worry about buying and setting up some tables and chairs and bother yourself with a lot of moving-in blues when you should actually be concentrating on one thing: making money.

Therefore, for many start-ups, the kitchen table offers a “ready-to-go” alternative which is also rent-free. But what if there’s an office “Cube” with a desk, a phone, access to a copy machine and a fax machine? What if it has a common secretary receptionist who can type your letter and charge you only based on the amount of work done? What if this office were to rent out at $200 a month? Would you take it?

INCUBATOR

Many profitable businesses are born and raised in incubator situations. A mini office is just that - a slightly bigger mailbox where you can physically show up and do your work.

It’s an ideal breeding ground for start-ups with limited capital, yet need legitimate workspace that either the kitchen or a mailbox can offer. This is where you come in.

THE LAYOUT

Picture this mini office in a middle range commercial location. The ideal space for you to rent would be around 1,800 square feet.

You can build wall-to-wall cubicles that are about 5 x 5 each. Including common areas and a small corner for your secretary, fax and copy machines, you can have 30 Cubes that can each rent out for $200 a month.

If all your cubes are rented out, this will give $6,000 in gross rental revenues.

If you can lease your space for around $0.75 per square foot, your 1,800 sqft space will cost you $1,350 a month.

Add to this the salary of the secretary, and your margin can still be at around 50% of your gross rental revenue, or roughly $3000.

In addition to your rental revenues, you will also make money on copies, faxes and secretarial functions.

BIGGER SPACES

The “office cube” concept can be applied to nearly any combination of size and location and the extent of service you want to offer your tenants.

In this age of entrepreneurship, the one-person business is very common, so it will not be difficult to find start-ups looking for an office situation like yours.

The next money-maker in the long distance telephone business will be focused on the way we buy and pay for long distance service.

PAY PHONES & OTHER STUFF

In the past, technological advancement in telecommunications services has opened doors for entrepreneurs to make money selling services.

Private-Party owned Pay Phones spread like wildfire, and 25c Per-Minute Long Distance Flat Rate Billing was introduced and gobbled up by an excited marketplace.

PAY NOW, CALL LATER

Prepaid Long Distance service is nothing more than a marketing person’s dream of being able to charge for something that need not be delivered right away.

Here’s how it works:

1. You walk into a convenience store and buy a Phone Card for $10, or any denomination it is being sold.
2. When the time comes for you to use the card, simply edial the toll-free 800 number and enter the 14-digit code printed on the card.
3. An automated operator’s voice comes on the line and announces that you have $10 worth of long distance calling available to you.
4. A dial tone comes on and you enter the area code and phone number you want to call.

PLUS & MINUS

Prepaid Long Distance and collecting Phone Cards are now a big craze in Japan. Phone Cards are now being traded like baseball cards, with values in excess of $1,000

Companies giveaway free long distance service as premiums and incentives, and then print their names on the Cards that they giveaway.

But in spite of all thes fads, Prepaid Long Distance has some built-in disadvantages that need to be corrected to guarantee its success.

Here are a few:

• We are a credit-based society. We are not accustomed to paying in advance for services we are not using at the time of purchase.
• The rates marketing companies are charging are relatively higher than basic phone company rates.
• As a business, long distance resellers and marketers will be competing for the same consumer “penny”.

Mixed with something novel or commercially accepted, prepaid phone cards may just make it big in the U.S.

The high cost of maintaining a full-time employee contributes to the growth of the temp-help business.

Minimum Start-Up: $10,000
Average Start-Up: $100,000
Revenue; $100,000 - $2.5Mil
Profits; $25,000 - $250,000
One Person Business: Yes

Advancement in computer hardware and software enables companies to staff mean and lean, preferring to hire temps during peak seasons rather than lay off workers during slower times.

On any given day, over 1 million people work on temporary assignments. By 1995, trade statistics estimate that 1.25 million jobs will go by way of “temps”, creating an aggregate annual payroll of about $10 billion.

These figures suggest that the temporary help business is here to stay.

Unlike the temp boom of the late 70s, today’s temp-help has gone beyond clerical help, with 37% of placements involving professionals.

JOB MATCHMAKER

A temporary-help service acts as a matchmaker between businesses seeking temporary help and individuals who want a job.

The temporary agency pays the employee on a weekly basis a set rate, and in turn bills the business/client a predetermined rate, usually 10% to 15% more than was paid the employee.

START-UP HURDLE

If there is a single hurdle that makes starting a temporary-help agency “difficult”, it has to do with your ability to cover the payroll up front.

As a temp agency, the demand for cash flow presents a two-sided problem.

While you are expected to pay your workers on a weekly basis, you are also expected to extend your clients 30 to 60 days credit.

So while you’re waiting to get paid, you need to have enough cash to cover your payroll.

For example, if you place 10 workers at 40 hours each for the week, at a rate of $8 an hour, it would require $3,200 cash for the week. That’s $12,800 in 4 weeks!

To avoid this problem, it is advisable to hire your workers as independent contractors.

You can act as their agent, and collect your commission when they are paid.

Most Travel Clubs are organized on the premise of building a sizable membership capable of negotiating discounts with various ravel providers.

Minimum Start-Up: $500
Average Start-UP: 10,000
Revenue: $25,000 - $250K
Profits: $10,000/Month
One Person Business: Yes

The Travel Club makes money earning a commission every time a member purchases airline tickets, books a hotel room, or goes on a cruise.

Today, things have changed quite a bit.

SELLING MEMBERSHIPS

With a swelling membership basis it is difficult for travel clubs to ignore the profits of charging for membership, no matter how insignificant the amount.

With 10,000members, a travel club charging only $20 a year will earn $200,000 in membership dues. This revenue is over any commission the Club earns when a member travels.

SPLIT DISCOUNTS

A Travel Club normally acts as a travel agent for the exclusive use of its members. As an “agency”, it gets standard agent commissions from airlines, hotels and cruise lines.

This can range anywhere between 10% and 18% of the purchase price. What travel clubs usually do is offer its members a rebate equivalent to 50% of its commission (meaning 5% to 9% of their purchase price.

If the member spends $1,000, they will get back anywhere between $50 and $90. This is enough reason for people to join a travel club, especially if the membership dues are just $20 a year.

ALL-CRUISE

As todays market shifts from the “all-in-one” and “do-it-all” service companies to that of “specialized” services, so do travel clubs.

Based on industry statistics, the best area to specialize in is the Cruise business, the fastest-growing segment in Travel.

YOUR BUSINESS

Sell memberships to your All-Cruise Travel Club and offer rebates on all cruises and peripheral services the member books through the club.

Find products or services that you can give as bonus for signing up for a year’s membership.

You may even want to seek distributors who will purchase membership cards in advance, at 15% of the retail price.

This means that if the membership retails for $20, a distributor buys it from you for $3. If you sell 10,000 memberships this way, you’ve just earned $30,000. Then, add to this revenue from commissions when members take a cruise.

Although this money-making is continuously being marketed as “a way to make money with your answering machine”, new technology has actually rendered this idea obsolete.

With the proliferation of voice mail, fax-back service, and very inexpensive computerized voice processing systems, the answering machine, with its limited one-call-at-a-time capacity, is no longer ideal for making money.

With the advent of this new technology, the concept has also expanded to a variety of processes which you can use to make money.

PEOPLE MUST CALL

With answering machines, the only way you can make money is when people call you up. Since an answering machine is hooked up to a specific phone number, and since it does not advertise on its own, you will have to establish ways to attract people to call your phone number so that people can listen to the message recorded on your answering machine.

THE MESSAGE IS THE KEY

The message recorded on your answering machine is the key to your ability to make money.

The message can instruct people to send money for information about any subject matter, or instruct callers to leave their name and address so you can send them a sales brochure. The information you have recorded on your machine should be encouraging and convincing enough to motivate the caller to do what you have instructed.

THE 1-MINUTE SPIEL

Think of your recording as a radio commercial. Since callers have short attention span, used to hearing radio and TV spots that are not more than 1 minute long it is advisable that you limit the length of your message to about 1 minute, 2 minutes tops!

GETTING THE CALL & COLLECTING PAYMENT

Whatever it is you are selling, and by which you are using your answering machine or service, your primary challenge will be in two areas:

1. How you can advertise and make your telephone number known to as many people as possible.
2. How you are going to collect payment for whatever it is you are selling.

SELLING THE INFORMATION

One of the most popular topics sold on “answering machine schemes” is information about how people can make money with their answering machine.

This is worn out and very unimaginative. More than likely, your caller will feel insulted and not order whatever literature, report or booklet you want them to order.

Remember, if you want to have a recorded sales message over the telephone, use a voice mail service, which may cost you around $8 a month.