HOW TO MAKE BIG MONEY WITH YOUR OWN
NEWSPAPER CLIPPING SERVICE
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 items in the
privacy of their own homes!
The press-clipping business is very much misunderstood by most people, and
therefore 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, and wedding
announcements. Clipping these out and sending them to the 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
matter 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 always in need 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 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
your 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 the clipping came
from, and the date it appeared, as well as your own name and address.
The next step is simply to start clipping articles that mention or talk about
specific companies or people. File your clippings in envelopes or boxes
according to industries or types of businesses, by company name, and
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 an 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 fee.
You should try to get your clients to agree to pay you a monthly "reader's fee,"
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 about $25,
but it can vary according to the number of publications you read, and the
number of clipping found.
Generally, a clipping service that scans statewide publications will 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 some very good money with just 20 to 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 of 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 as you can afford it, go with
at least a small display ad in the yellow pages of your telephone directory.
You should definitely contact the public 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 kind of business anyone who knows how to read can set up
and operate with an absolute minimum investment.
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