Are you Interested in Generating Some Extra Cash?


Selling information is one of the most established and powerful businesses.

With the continuing growth of the computer revolution, selling information in elec- tronic form offers you out- standing profit opportunities. You can provide people with valuable information and earn yourself 1000's of dollars in the process.

The objective of this material is to provide you a collection of carefully selected money-making information that can help you start and succeed in your business, whatever it may be.

If you are planning to start your own information marketing business, this software will show you how to set up your business, show you which types of information sell the best, how to prepare or obtain the information you'll be marketing, how to promote your products, and how to fill your orders.

Most important of all, this material will take you one step ahead of the conventional info-by-mail business. This material will show you how to sell information in "ELECTRONIC FORM" - using computer floppy disks - which are the most efficient and most profitable means by which information is now being packaged, sold, and delivered.

For example, you can order a DUPLICATOR DISK from the company whose name and address you see on this screen. You can make copies of this Disk and sell the copies for as much as you want.

Information in electronic form has quickly become one of the hottest selling products of the nineties. Recent figures indicate that over a billion dollars worth of books are sold by mail every year. The easiest way to profit from this expanding market is to provide customers with valuable information they can put to immediate use. Many publishers are pulling in a fortune by selling useful publications right out of their own homes. People get involved in this business for many different reasons.

There are few businesses left that have all the above benefits. Selling information, either in printed form or in electronic form, allows you to start on a shoestring and quickly reinvest your earnings. Some information marketers have been known to start with less than $100 and have quickly gone on to build million dollar businesses.

If you buy information from wholesalers and resell it, you can make a profit from the same information material over and over. If you write and print your own informative publication, profit margins will even be better. While a publication may only cost a couple of dollars to professionally produce, it can contain thousands of dollars worth of information. It is usually NOT the size or length of a publication customers are interested in, it is the valuable information contained inside that they will gladly pay for.

Likewise, the manner by which you package and deliver the information to your customers will determine your profit margins and how big you can build your business.

You can start your business all by yourself. Not having to hire any employees will save you time, effort, money, and bureaucratic government regulation. As you will soon see, no special education or skills are required. In fact, by using this software, you will probably know more about the industry than most of the people out there.

SETTING UP YOUR BUSINESS

One of the best features of owning your own information-by-mail business is that it is fun and easy to start and operate. You probably already own much of what you will need to begin operations. Whether you live in an apartment or house, you will need to set aside some space that you can designate as your office. While there is no reason why you can't start from your kitchen table, you should try to dedicate some space where you can set up a desk and chair that you can operate your business from.

1. Business Name And Organization

Choosing a name for your new business should be your first step. This is an important step because a well-chosen name can help you generate more sales for your business. It is important to choose a business name that accurately represents your business and gives an impression of trust and confidence.

For example, would you feel comfortable ordering a financial guide from a business called "Wallace Book Company" or "Wallace Financials" ?

Simply pick a name that you would feel comfortable ordering a publication from. If the business name is anything other than your own name, you will need to file for a Fictituous Business Name (also known as DBA) registeration.

Choosing a form of legal entity or structure for your business should be your next step. You can organize your business three ways:

PROPRIETORSHIP.... A proprietorship is the least expensive to form and usually requires nothing more than a "D.B.A." (doing business as) name and possibly a local business license.

This type of ownership allows you to have the maximum control over the operations of the business, but also creates maximum liability. You will be personally liable for all debts incurred by your business. Since Proprietorship is the least expensive and easiest to form, it is recommended for anyone going into the information marketing business for the first time. You will make all final decisions and be responsible for all aspects of your business. This is a popular choice for a one-person operation.

PARTNERSHIPS.... If you need a business partner, either for financial or expertise reasons, the best way to outline your business relationship, from a legal standpoint, is to form your business as a Partnership.

CORPORATION..... A corporation is the most formal form of business that one may consider. You can have a coporation whether you are the sole owner of the business or you have partners.

This form of ownership is more expensive, but offers the least liability. You must consider this form of business after your business has successfully begun and reached consistent profitability. It is also advisable to consider forming a corporation before applying for expansion capital through a bank or other lending institution. The services of an attorney are recommended when forming a corporation. The attorney can assist you in filling out the proper forms and submitting them to the correct government agencies.

2. Mailing Address And Phone Number

Your mailing address can be either a P.O. Box or a street address. It is recommended that you use a street address for your business. Studies have shown that customers are more likely to order from an information-by-mail business with a street address than from one with a P.O. Box. Customers feel more confident about sending their hard earned money to someone they feel is at a relatively permanent address. This is probably because of the few "fly by night" con artists that have historically used P.O. Boxes as their storefronts. If you must use a P.O. Box it is recommended that you at least list a phone number in your advertisements. If you work out of an apartment, using the word "suite" before your apartment number will make it sound more professional.

If you prefer not to use your own street address, there are companies that will rent you the use of their street address for mailing purposes. Some companies can provide more than just mailbox rentals. These extra services may include, sending and receiving faxes, voice mail, pagers, copying, notary, packaging services and supplies and authorized shipping outlets for some national shippers. Check your local yellow pages under "Mail Receiving & Forwarding Services."

You should also consider getting a separate phone number for your new business. It will help you keep in touch with the people who can make your new business grow.

3. Bank Account & Merchant Account

After you have chosen a name for your business, properly formed and registered your business, and decided on a business address and phone number, you will need to open a business checking account at your local bank. You will need to bring in a copy of your fictitious business name application that you received from the county clerk.

Shop around to see which local bank offers the most services with the least service fees. An important service feature that you should inquire about from all the banks is how soon you can set up a credit card merchant account and what the requirements will be. As your business grows, you will want to be able to offer your customers flexible payment terms, including accepting credit card orders. Most banks do not like to offer this service to businesses that obtain the majority of their sales by mail or phone.

If you can't get a credit card merchant account, don't worry about it. Once your business is more established and profitable, the banks are more likely to work with you. Most banks should allow you to set up this kind of service a year or two after opening the account -- the sooner the better.

WHAT INFORMATION TO SELL

Veteran informatiom marketers know that information on just about every conceivable subject can be successfully marketed, specially if sold in electronic form. Look at most direct-response magazines and you will probably find companies offering valuable information on numerous topics.

The most profitable by far are How-To information, particularly those financial in scope. These types of information products provide information based on people's natural wants, desires and needs.

One type of information product is specialized knowledge of a particular subject. This knowledge may be obtained through personal experience or detailed research of a certain subject. The most practical strategy is to write about something that you have personal experience with. It may be a hobby, job, sport, vacation, recipe, or whatever you are knowledgeable about.

If you want to provide information about a particular field you have little or no personal experience in, you will need to do some research. When doing research, look for information in magazine and newspaper articles and books on your chosen subject. Read as much information as you can until it begins to sound repetitive. This is a good indication that you have read all that there is to know about that subject. Take excellent notes and organize them accordingly.

The second type of information that can be successfully sold through the mail are self-improvement products. These products help by providing timely and valuable information on a variety of subjects.

Marketers have found the subject of financial wealth and physical health to be the most sought after topics in the mail order industry. Everyone has an interest in excellent health and wants to learn how to increase his/her financial status.

Practically any national publication with classified advertisements will have offers selling information on these subjects. This type of information is best provided by those who have professional experience in the respective fields. However, if you do enough research, you will be able to write your own informative publication.

Many of the most successful financial topics sold by mail relate to starting one's own business. Global competition has caused many major companies to downsize their workforce. This has resulted in many unemployed individuals in search of new ways to earn a living. By providing information on how to start one's own business, you can help these people get their lives back in gear and make a profit in the process.

One particularly popular health related topic is how to lose weight and stay physically and mentally fit. With health costs going through the roof with no end in sight, many health minded individuals are in search of ways to become healthier. By becoming healthier, expensive visits to your doctors can be avoided. By providing accurate and timely information on how the health minded individual can improve their lives, you can earn a healthy profit.

Promoting Your Publication

Once you have obtained a software product that you can sell, you are ready to tell the world about it. No matter how valuable your information is, you will not make a penny from it unless you tell the people who want your information how they can get it. This is the most critical and most often misunderstood step in running your information marketing business.

Information sellers have tried to reach their target markets with many different techniques. No matter what technique is used, information sellers all try to cost effectively reach those people most likely to buy their publications. Some of the most popular ways are listed below:

  • Selling through magazine or newspaper advertisements
  • Getting free publicity from magazines and newspapers
  • Selling through book distributors, dealers and resellers
  • Selling through radio and television advertisements
  • Selling over the phone through telemarketing
  • Selling through book stores or libraries
  • Selling through direct mail packages
  • Selling through computer bulletin board systems (BBSs) and online services

The above techniques have consistently shown cost effective results. Dollar for dollar the best methods for selling your publication are by advertising in magazines, sending direct mail packages, getting free publicity, and using On-line services.

Direct Mail

The subject of direct mail cannot be ignored when discussing how to make a profit in mail order. A properly designed and implemented direct mail campaign can often outperform a classified advertising approach. The main advantage of direct mail is that it is less expensive than classified advertising to generate qualified leads. Whether you do a two-step, combination, or telemarketing approach to generate inquiries for your publication, it is important to remember that your only objective is to obtain a name and address of a potential customer. The time, cost, and effort in placing the advertisements and possibly setting up an 800 number are often questioned when the only objective is to get a name and address to put on your direct mail package. This is why many publishers rent mailing lists of prospective customers to lower their costs and spend less time and effort in getting orders.

In its simplest form, direct mail involves mailing the direct mail packages, explained in the two-step advertising approach, to a mailing list of names and addresses of prospective customers. Many mailing list brokers are willing to rent you names and addresses of prospective customers, usually grouped by their field of interest. These lists are usually rented for one time use. Most brokers will put a few secret names and addresses in their list that actually end up at one of the broker's addresses. By doing this they can check to see if you have used the list more than one time.

Mailing list rates usually run between $40 to $75 per 1000 names. The names and addresses usually are on peel and stick labels that you attach to your direct mail envelopes. Some mailing list companies may offer their names on computer disk for those who have a computer. If your mailing is small and you have the time, you may want to hand address your envelopes. Hand addressing is more personal and has been proven to increase the chance of having your mail opened. Since the main cost in direct mail is the postage, many direct mailers obtain a third class bulk rate permit from their local post office that will allow them to save significantly on their postage costs. This permit currently costs $75. If you get a bulk rate permit, make sure to buy the lists that are sorted by consecutive zip code. This will help you organize your mailing to comply with the bulk rate mailing requirements.

Mailing lists are usually created in one of three ways. They can be compiled, built, or purchased. Compiled lists contain names that have been obtained from published sources such as telephone books, directories, and newspapers. These lists are good for reaching easy to categorize professionals such as attorneys, accountants, and doctors. Built lists contain names that have been obtained from exclusive sources such as a company's list of repeat customers. These lists are good for reaching buyers of products that are similar to your own line. Purchased lists contain names that have been obtained based on their buying habits such as mail order buyers. These lists are good for reaching people whose buying habits are similar to those of your customers.

Usually, the more specific the list, the better the response rate will be. Let's say you want to sell a directory of golf courses in the United States. A mailing list containing names and addresses of golfers over the age of 55, who make over $100,000 a year, travel, or are retired, will be a better list to send your direct mail piece to than a generic list of sports enthusiasts. The more specific the mailing list the more it will cost. It is also important to specify that the lists have names and addresses less than 90 days old. This will insure fresh prospects who have not seen many other book offers. It is even better if you can get a list less than 30 days old.

The day on which your direct mail offer arrives is important. You do not want your mailing to arrive during the weekend or at the end of the month. People usually plan activities during the weekend and may not have time to read your entire direct mail package. At the end of the month, people usually have to pay bills and thus may not have enough money for your offer. One other time of the year to avoid are the holidays. If possible, try to have your mailing arrive Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday.

Let's take a quick look at the advantages and disadvantages of a direct mail and classified advertising campaign. Particular attention should be paid to the cost, time, and effort required to obtain the inquiries. This is because once the inquiries are obtained, the cost to mail your direct mail packages is the same. The only exception to this is if you have obtained a third class bulk rate permit to reduce your postage costs. Since mailers are currently required to mail no less than 200 pieces at one time or 50 dollars to qualify for bulk rates, those who use mailing lists can easily qualify. If you are using classified advertisements to generate your names and addresses, you will need to receive 200 inquiries every few days to successfully utilize a third class bulk rate permit. This is only possible in a major classified advertising campaign. An example of the costs of a direct mail approach and a classified advertising approach follows:

Using BBSs And Online Services To Promote Your Publication

Using a computer bulletin board system (BBS) and online service to promote your publication is the newest and most exciting method to get sales for your business. The best part about it is that you don't have to own a computer or even know anything about computers to take advantage of this explosive method. Before the method is explained, you need to first understand what BBSs and online services are and how they operate. Let's first take a look at BBSs.

What Are BBSes

BBSs are computer systems that are accessible through the phone lines by those who have a computer and modem. There are over 50,000 BBSs in the United States. Most BBSs are owned and operated by individuals and small companies. While many are free to access, other than the cost of the call, others charge small yearly subscription fees in order to have unlimited access. These subscription fees are usually $10 to $20 a year. Users who have a computer and modem connected to a telephone line can connect to these BBSs to perform a variety of actions.

The main reason people connect to a BBS is to download and upload computer files between their computer and the BBS. Downloading means copying a computer file from the BBS to your computer while uploading means copying files from your computer to the BBS. Some information on the BBS can be read while connected online. Usually BBSs have computer files that are related to a certain field of interest. Some of the larger and more advanced BBSs allow users to send electronic messages to each other, known as "e-mail." Other BBSs allow users to communicate in real time with others who are connected. This communication is done by typing messages on the screen that other users can see and respond to. These additional features are what begins to separate BBSs from online services. Check your local library for a directory of BBSs.

What are Online Services?

Most online services contain all the features of traditional BBSs. Some online services actually began as small BBSs. For one reason or another they developed into major operations, many with over 500,000 subscribers. Currently there are fewer than 10 major online services in the United States. The appendix contains a list of some of them. Some of the most popular ones, include American Online, Prodigy, CompuServe, GEnie, and Delphi. Many offer free trial periods to let you test their service, so call them for details.

Besides transferring files, sending e-mail, and "chatting" in real time with others, online services offer users access to more information than traditional BBSs. Many major newspapers and magazines have recognized the power of online services and thus have made their articles electronically accessible on some of the major online services. Some online services offer users the ability to access stock quotes, make travel arrangements, purchase products, and read the day's news, sports, and weather. Some companies offer technical assistance through online services. Most of the online services offer users forums in which users with similar interests can "chat" online and transfer relevant computer files. These forums, also known as Special Interest Groups (SIGs), are a proven way of targeting your market. Most online services charge about $10 a month for a limited amount of connect time. Online services are one of the first usable services to evolve from the much talked about "Information Superhighway." Now that you understand what BBSs and online services are and how they work, let's see how you can use them to help sell your publications.

First of all, while BBSs can be used to help promote your publication, it is recommended that you concentrate your marketing efforts on the online services. The reason is the quality of the customers. Many of the users of free BBSs don't have credit cards, are young, and are only interested in free information. There are three advantages to online service subscribers:

  1. Since credit cards are usually required for service, most subscribers own a credit card.
  2. Most subscribers are professional people with annual incomes above $30,000.
  3. By being a subscriber, they've proven their wiliness to pay for access to information.

There are a couple of different ways to use online services for your publishing business. The most popular involves the placement of electronic classified advertisements on one or more of the online services. While some may charge, others include this feature in your monthly fee. Let's take a look at one of the ways you can use this technology to your advantage. It is assumed that you own or have access to a computer and modem. If you don't own or have access to a computer and modem, there are individuals and companies that can do everything for you.

You sign up as a subscriber to the online service, paying about $10 per month. This will allow you to use the online service for about five hours of connect time a month. Although more time is available for an extra fee, five hours is more than enough. First, you take a few minutes and simply write a classified advertisement online. Although the online services call them classified advertisements, there is often no rule as to how long they can be. Thus you can type your entire sales letter in as your classified advertisement. When you are done writing your advertisement, you post it under an appropriate category. The categories are similar to those in newspaper's and magazine's classified sections. Within hours, possibly minutes, millions of people can access your advertisement! It is that simple!

The majority of electronic marketers use the two-step approach to getting orders for their publications. Their classified advertisement generates inquiries, and then these inquiries are sent additional information to generate an order. Some publishers report getting 100's of inquiries a day using this approach. Other publishers have successfully used the one-step and combination-approaches.

As mentioned earlier, most online services give users the ability to send and receive e-mail to other users of the online service. Thus if you want to get inquiries, you can request readers of your classified advertisement to send an e-mail to you with their name and mailing address. You can then either mail them more information or respond by sending an e-mail back to them with more information. You can send and receive your e-mail anytime you log on to the online service with your computer. You can also list your mailing address and phone number in your classified advertisement for customers who prefer not to use e-mail. If they want to place an order, they can e-mail you their credit card information, if you accept credit cards, or they can mail in their payment. Once paid, you can mail them your publication.

Advertising on an online service is advantageous for a number of reasons. The most obvious is that you can write and post your advertisement in minutes, not weeks or months as with conventional magazines. It is also often free or inexpensive to place electronic classified advertisements. Finally, it can be instantly accessed by millions of buyers, often 24 hours a day.

Although some online services do not allow advertising, the majority are beginning to offer advertising. For those that don't allow advertising, you can usually upload files containing informative free reports or articles. These files should contain newsworthy topics written like publicity releases. When properly written they can help generate names and addresses that you can mail advertising information to. Users of the online service can download these files to their computer and read them after logging off the online service. If they are interested in more information or in other related reports, they can respond by calling or writing the author of the report. These files can usually be any length. The longer it is, the longer it will take a user to download to their computer. A report of 5 pages or less is usually sufficient for most free reports.

These reports can be posted in what the online services call forums. Forums are areas of the online service where people with special interests meet to discuss relevant topics. These forums usually also have message and file areas where more information can be read and downloaded. The file areas are where you can upload free reports for others to download. These reports can include your name and address where people can get more information. Posting one free report may get you 100's of inquiries. Best of all, it will cost you only a few minutes of your time to create and post the report.

The real power of an online service is its ability to cut or eliminate your business expenses. Selling information by mail has three major expenses: advertising, postage, and printing. Placing classified advertisements on online services significantly reduces or eliminates your advertising costs. Online services may also help you almost eliminate postage and printing costs.

Your publication, if created on a computer, can usually be attached to an e-mail that you send to your customer. For example, no matter how your customers pay for your publication, if they have an e-mail address, you can send them an e-mail with your publication attached as a file. When the customers receive your e-mail, they simply download the attached file to their computer and read it after logging off the online service.

To show you how powerful this method can be, let's look at one example. This example assumes that you can accept credit cards for your publication orders. In less than 30 minutes, you can post an advertisement on the online service, receive an e-mail for more information from an interested reader, e-mail them back more information (maybe a four page sales letter), receive their credit card information back in an e-mail from them, and then send them an e-mail with the publication attached as a downloadable file. Other than your monthly fee of about $10, you have spent no money on the advertisement, postage, and printing. You eliminated all these costs! What other business can offer that!

Although it is recommended you begin with online services, these same methods can work for BBSs that offer posting of advertisements or free reports, e-mail, and the ability to attach files to e-mail. Your publication, if created on a computer, can also be uploaded to a BBS as a downloadable file. This assumes the BBS owner allows you to store your file on his/her computer. When BBS users place an order, they can simply download your entire publication through the BBS. Your only real cost is the original phone call to upload the file to the BBS. You are probably wondering what will stop an individual from downloading your publication without paying for it. There are two safeguards you can use.

First, you can encrypt the file with a password. Without the password, the user cannot open the file and read it. When the customer pays you, you give the customer the password. Software companies sell programs that will encrypt your file so that it requires a password to be read. Second, you can upload half of your publication that users can download for free. If they like it and want the rest, they can order it by mail. You simply send them a computer diskette that contains the rest of your publication.

-- Credit Card Services, Voice Providers, 800 Providers, & Online Services --

If you are unable to find a company that can secure you a merchant account, record your sales message, provide an 800 number, and provide access to an online service, there are some listed below that may be able to help. Make sure to compare rates between companies until you get the best combination of price and service.

-- Copy Stores & Book Printers --

The following companies can assist you in printing your publication. For information that can be published in short reports, your local copy store can probably provide all the services you will need. For more lengthy publications and professional looking books, contact any of the following book publishers. Most of them specialize in short runs, some as few as 50 copies. For a more complete list, visit your local library and request a directory of book printers.

-- Direct Mail --

Should you decide to promote you publication by direct mail, you will need to obtain some mailing lists to send your direct mail package to. There are 1000's of lists available and 100's of list brokers that can help you. following is a list of brokers that specialize in mailing lists for direct mail book offers. Also there are a couple of associations listed that you may want to contact for more information.