Books:

Discovered! 505
Odd Enterprises

Hidden Dollars

How to Make
Money at Home

Small Business
of Your Own

You Can Own
a Business

Razor Blade Service

The Plan
"Ouch!" He cut himself with a razor blade while shaving; it was dull and he had neglected to buy new ones that day. But it was a lucky cut, for it stimulated a clever plan of how he could build up a lucrative part-time business. He launched a razor-blades-by-mail service.

How It Works
He reasoned that many people, like himself, were constantly forgetting to get new blades, causing scars and sundry annoyances. But what if they could secure a weekly supply of blades through the mails, regularly, much like receiving milk at the door each day, or books through the mail each month! This would solve their problems, constitute a great convenience to them, and a substantial source of profit to himself. He typed out explanatory postcards offering such a service at a specified monthly rate, securing names from his local city directory. The idea fascinated men, and he secured a large percentage of responses. He purchased blades through various wholesale sources at minimum prices. Organizing a card-filing system of his customers, he supplies them with a quantity of razor blades each week.

Possible Profits
He averages some 40 per cent profits after deducting wholesale cost of razor blades, cost of postage, etc. The charges are $1.00 a month for twenty blades each month and he now has some 165 customers.

Party Stunts

The Plan
She was the life of the party, and adept at planning clever stunts that would guarantee the enjoyment and success of all affairs. This talent led to the profitable money-earning side line of selling party stunts.

How It Works
The party stunts she created were novel and called for the participation of all present. For example, one such "stunt" consisted of a "Newspaper Party" complete with 12 invitations, four novel games and stunts, and unusual place cards—all prepared in journalistic style. Another party plan was entitled "Ye Merrie Olde England," and the invitations were illuminated scrolls, conveyed by a boy dressed as an English page. She secured customers by typing letters to a select list of prospects, and subsequently, by placing an advertisement in her local papers. A printer co-operated with her in printing the invitations, etc., which were included with these party stunts.

Possible Profits
She sold each of these party stunts for $5.00 for the complete set. After deducting printing expenses, she netted $3.00 on each, and since she now has about 50 steady customers, is earning a sizable income. Occasionally she is asked by her customers to work up individual ideas, adapted to their particular parties, which she does for proportionately higher rates, depending on the amount of work required.

Barter And Exchange Circular

The Plan
"It is human to swap things," states an enterprising young Texas housewife. "Then again, practically all of us would like to dispose of 'white elephants.' With these thoughts in mind, I organized a 'Barter and Exchange Bureau' and issued a weekly typewritten circular describing the many articles that people in and around my town wanted to exchange, and for what.

How It Works
"I secured my first listings through personal contact among my friends. One man wanted to trade a banjo for a rug; a woman offered 20 jars of homemade jam—for what?—And so on. I then sent sample copies of the circular to a general list of prospective customers, and it wasn't long before I had many subscribers and listings. Everyone seems to be fascinated by the opportunity of bartering things. My expense consisted of paper and postage only, since my typewriter produced the circular.

Possible Profits
"The circular sold on a subscription basis $1.00 a year. A fee, based on the value of articles, was set on all sales and exchanges made through its columns. I thus profited in two ways. It is also possible, as your circular grows, to charge nominal rate for each listing."

Church News Pamphlet

The Plan
"There were always many events and activities taking place in my church, and I felt that church-goers would like to be kept posted on them. This inspired the idea of a weekly church magazine which has increased my regular income, and requires only a few hours work each week.

How It Works
"I approached the minister of my church with this plan and he shared my enthusiasm. He agreed that the magazine would weld the interests of his congregation. He also offered me the use of the church mimeograph machine. I then secured from him a report of future activities and news of past events, including a description of these affairs and the names of the persons in charge of them. I typed up this material preparatory to the mimeographing, and subsequently issued an eight-page magazine. It was distributed free to the church members each Sunday, as they left the church. I then proceeded to interest several local merchants in advertising opportunities of the magazine. These efforts were rewarded by two full pages of advertisements.

Possible Profits
"My advertising rates were $10.00 a full page, $6.00 a half page, and $4.00 a quarter page for each issue. Where they contracted for several successive issues, the rates were proportionately reduced. I averaged $15 an issue, above the cost of materials."

Office-Building Magazine

The Plan
"I am a stenographer in a concern within a large Chicago office building, in which about 1,000 persons are employed. It struck me as odd that few were acquainted with those working outside their own office. On the other hand, I was sure that they'd like to know about each other—that they'd be interested in information about the girl working in the lawyer's office down the corridor, about the genial chap employed with the engineering concern on the floor above, and many others. Thus did I get the idea for a monthly office-building magazine which has yielded me a very nice extra income.

How It Works
"I told my plans to the building manager, and he enthusiastically added that the magazine would be splendid advertising for the building. He also suggested that restaurants, cigar stores and other stores within and near the building and catering to its tenants would be glad to place advertisements in the magazine. We then arranged that I should gather news material and type up articles for the magazine, and that he would solicit the advertisements and have the magazine printed on the building printing press. We would share fifty-fifty on the proceeds. During noon hours I secured social and business information and names of office workers in the building by interviewing the office managers of the various concerns. I then neatly typed the information on my typewriter in readiness for printing. Meanwhile the building manager had sold three all pages of advertisements.

Possible Profits
"I had no large expense, since printing was provided free. The advertisements were sold for $25 per page, so that we averaged $30 each month from the proceeds of the magazine, Not bad—considering it was work done in spare time and required only a few hours of pleasant work each month."

Public Relations Counsel

The Plan
A flair for promotion . . . a typewriter . . . and a nose for news . . . have enabled one Ohio bookkeeper to augment his income in his spare time, by representing merchants, politicians, inventors, and others in his community as their public relations counsel.

How It Works
His duties consist of planning and composing desirable publicity articles for release to newspapers and magazines. Glossy photographs are included wherever possible. He secures clients through explanatory typewritten form letters, and then studies their personal and professional characteristics for proper publicity angles. No matter how commonplace their work seems, it often has publicity value. For example, your neighborhood shoe cobbler, established 20 years, has interesting recollections on changing shoe styles, may have cobbled his 100,000th pair of shoes (equal to the population of Rockford, Ill.), or has a customer who wears size 15 shoes. These are all interesting news "tips" which most newspapers are glad to print, and which will bring good publicity to your client.

Possible Profits
The young man writes: "Some of my clients pay me a retainer fee, normally $40 a month, which covers all the publicity items composed around them. Others pay by the column inch, usually around $2.00 for each inch of publicity secured."

Rural Products Sales

The Plan
Residing in a rural community, a farmer's wife has capitalized upon her typing ability by writing sales letters for the many farmers in her town, offering the sale of their farm produce to nearby city people interested in the purchase of these "fresh off the farm" commodities.

How It Works
The kinds of farm products salable to city people include maple syrup, hickory nuts, preserved and fresh fruits, eggs, honey, apple cider, etc. She lists these items and works up a persuasive sales letter, which is typed up and sent to a selected list of prospects, purchased from name-list companies. Small advertisements within the city newspapers constitute another means of securing customers. These products, received direct from the farm, constitute a rare treat to city people, and many orders are consequently received.

Possible Profits
Her compensation is derived first from payment for her sales letters and general typing, and second, from a 5 per cent commission from the proceeds on all products sold. She nets some $18 weekly from this work, and has built up a permanent local business.

Personal Conduct Counsel

The Plan
We know that advertising concerns will plan programs designed to stimulate business and assure the success of business firms. An aggressive California woman has varied this procedure; she "campaigns" for individuals, helping the unsuccessful or dissatisfied person to become a success.

How It Works
She operates the same as any advertising agency, but instead of studying the products or organization of a business concern she studies an individual's character and personality. She makes complete notes about that person, the reason for past failures, his basic abilities; she subsequently works up a "campaign" of recommended future conduct. Knowledge of psychology is helpful in this work; however, one may secure much of the necessary information by a study of psychology books in the library. The "campaign" is submitted to the applicant in neat, typewritten form. Customers for this service are secured through a short advertisement in the classified section of the local newspaper.

Possible Profits
Rates vary according to the character and extent of the work. Some consultations pay a minimum of $5.00, while more extensive ones will net her from $15 to $25. She is averaging about $30 weekly from this work.

Peanut-Bag Advertising

The Plan
"$875 clear profits every football season cannot exactly be called 'peanuts,' yet it is through peanuts that I have been able to clean up this sum and establish a profitable business for myself.

How It Works
"In attending the various college football games—with their umpteen thousand attendance—I noticed that almost half the people would buy peanuts in neatly-wrapped white bags. 25,000 or more people at one game or 150,000 during the five home games—what a splendid 'circulation' for an advertiser to reach. An idea! I interviewed the business department of the university concerning the purchase of the 'concession' on the peanut bags for advertising purposes; the novelty of the idea appealed to them, and they quoted me a very low price. Then I went to prospective advertisers—such as taxi companies, movies, night clubs, and others. Since people attending football games are usually in a mood for entertainment and to spend money, their ads reached a splendid customer class. It didn't take long to get two advertisers, one for each side of the peanut bag.

Possible Profits
"I pay $15 each game to each stadium for the privilege of leasing the concession on the peanut bags. I sell each advertisement for $50 for the game."

Travel Bureau

The Plan
An enterprising stenographer is enjoying a nice supplementary income by bringing together prospective travelers and car owners who travel. They share expenses, and thus reduce traveling expenses by half.

How It Works
Many car owners—such as salesmen—are constantly traveling along specific itineraries. She secured their names, and the approximate dates and routes of their travels, by explaining her service in a newspaper advertisement. Another advertisement in the "travel opportunities" column of her local paper brought her in contact with prospective travelers desiring rides on a share-the-expense basis. Gradually, as she became well-known, she was constantly phoned by car owners or travelers for arrangements, and has thus built up a flourishing business.

Possible Profits
She secures payment on a brokerage basis—10 per cent of whatever charge is made by the car owner Her earnings exceed $25 weekly.

Children's Library

The Plan
She loves children, she is fond of books, and she is a good organizer. These constituted the personal ingredients that add up to substantial part-time profits for one small-town woman in Indiana. She has organized a juvenile library and playroom in her home for local children.

How It Works
By consulting her local librarians, she was informed as to what books were most favored by children, and then equipped herself with a supply of books at a small cost from a second-hand book store. She also equipped this 'library' with children's games, such as erector sets, sculpturing materials, chemical sets, jig-saw puzzles and similar games so endearing to the child. The place has become an ideal rendezvous for the tots when their mothers attend their bridge clubs and is a social meeting place for all the local children.

Possible Profits
She charges $3.00 a month for each child and with 30 members, nets about $75 a month for pleasant, interesting, part-time work.

Theatrical Programs

The Plan
"Tell your local theater owner that you will supply him his weekly programs free of charge—in most cases he'll jump at the idea. It's saving money for him, and likewise will make substantial part-time money for you.

How It Works
"Let us say some 2,000 programs are distributed weekly by the theater. I secured a sheet of paper 10" by 15" and folded it, each page measuring 10" by 7½". I ruled each page lengthwise in three columns, which made each column 10" long and 2½" wide. I then allotted half this space for his theater program, and the other half for advertisements which I intended to secure from neighboring merchants. Getting the ads was easy, since most merchants realized that they were buying tremendous advertising value. I secured most of my customers by sending persuasive sales letters in typewritten form. The complete four-page folder now contains 60 column inches of advertising space.

Possible Profits
"Selling the space at $1.50 a column inch brings me a gross of $90 for each program or $360 a month, and more than half of this is profit. In many cases, advertisers have signed up for annual contracts, so that I can run their ad steadily for a full year."

Visitors' Bulletin

The Plan
"Living in a large city with many hotels which are visited daily by buyers from large concerns throughout the country, it occurred to me that I could profitably put out a 'visitors' bulletin' announcing the arrival of these buyers, which would be useful information to manufacturing concerns interested in selling their products.

How It Works
"I compiled my information, listing the name of the concern each buyer represented, the products he commonly purchased, and the hotel where he was stopping. This data was secured through the clerks at the hotel; they were glad to supply the facts, since it meant publicity for the hotel. Most buyers reserve their hotel rooms in the name of their concern, and the hotels thus become familiar with the companies they represent.

Possible Profits
"I sell some 50 of these visitors' bulletins weekly. They sell for 25 cents each, while my expenses for mimeographing them was 5 cents each. I thus earned some $10 weekly for this part-time work."

Town Directory

The Plan
One young man, residing in a city of 250,000 population has established a splendid part-time business publishing a regular "town directory," giving names and addresses of important institutions, locations of various streets, description of transportation facilities, and other important facts.

How It Works
The book lists all public institutions, such as police and fire departments, hospitals, railroad and bus stations, etc. It includes, in addition, names of streets and their location; further information describes local transportation facilities and how they may be used most efficiently. After compiling and classifying this information, he then got in touch with merchants with the plan of selling them advertising within the proposed book. Such advertising has definite value, since the reader interest is constant, and the directory is thumbed regularly. A local printer agreed to finance the printing, pending receipt of proceeds through sale of the booklet and payment for the ads.

Possible Profits
The books sell for 15 cents each, and cost only 5 cents each to print up in large quantities. In addition, advertising yields a substantial revenue, selling for $25 a page because of its year-round value. His proceeds amount to $500 a year on the book, which is revised regularly.

Community Showroom

The Plan
A farmer's wife is contributing to the household income by reserving a portion of her home as showroom, exhibiting and selling home-made produce, such as canned and bakery goods, prepared by her neighbors.

How It Works
She reached prospective exhibitors by personal visits and typewritten letters. Upon receiving products offered for sale, she arranged them attractively in a well-lighted space in her home, usually the parlor. Subsequently she sent out sales letters to a prospect list, advising the prospects of the products to be purchased within her home exhibit. Townspeople became accustomed to bringing their commodities to her home for sale, and she has established a permanent business.

Possible Profits
She secures a commission of 15 per cent of the proceeds on all articles sold through her home, and is netting $8.00 weekly in her spare time.

Planographing Service

The Plan
"Planography" is an offset printing process similar to mimeographing, enabling the reproduction of photographs and copy without the preparation of costly cuts. The copy in a planograph job is done on a typewriter, thereby eliminating the expense of setting type. These facts inspired one enterprising housewife to earn part-time money doing planography typing.

How It Works
She solicited the substantial merchants in town for their planography work, which includes circulars, catalogs, bulletins, letters, and many other types of advertising literature. She performs all the necessary typing for this work, consisting of price lists, tabulations, letters, etc. The typing must be clean and careful (through a carbon or silk ribbon). A local planograph concern informed her as to the more technical phases of the planographic work, such as presswork, composition, reproduction of pictures, etc. Additional work that she secures consists of pasting, some hand lettering, and simple drawings.

Possible Profits
Rates vary from $2.00 to $10.00 each for typing on different jobs, plus miscellaneous charges for general work. In addition, the planograph shop paid her a commission for giving them the work which she created.

Newlyweds Journal

The Plan
$525 in two months! That's what an enterprising Washington housewife earned through writing up a premium booklet of interest to "just married" people, and selling advertising space to various concerns.

How It Works
"First I wrote up my editorial matter. This consisted of recipes, household hints, notes on home decorating, etc., which would interest such newlyweds. Armed with a 'dummy copy' showing this material in an attractive book layout, I visited prospective advertisers, such as dairy companies, furniture concerns, laundries, real-estate firms, etc., and secured ads. My next step was to get names of newlyweds by searching court records and checking newspaper columns. Over a period of two months I compiled a list of 1,500 such names. Upon the printing of this book, it was sent free to all these newlyweds. A printer agreed to finance the printing, because of my advertising contracts. Some 20,000 of these books were printed and distributed."

Possible Profits
"The advertisements sold for $50 each page. Merchants were glad to pay this amount because of its large circulation, and the fact that it reached people in the market to purchase their products or services; in addition, the book had permanent readability. I netted some $525 after paying the printer."

Town Fair Pamphlet

The Plan
"I wrote up and published pamphlets in connection with the frequent affairs, celebrations, and jubilees held within my city, county, and state, and have, as a result, netted good part-time earnings.

How It Works
"Almost every town has its regular fair or other celebration, attracting townspeople and outsiders. An historical pamphlet concerning the town is therefore appropriate and possesses definite souvenir value. I included full information concerning the growth of the town, its residents, its business people, its outstanding politicians, and its industries. I found little difficulty in persuading local merchants to insert advertisements within the pamphlet, since it had permanent reader interest. The booklet was distributed at the Fair through a special booth.

Possible Profits
"I first typed up the material, then rented a mimeograph machine to publish it in the form of pamphlets. The advertisements brought a price of $15 per page, while the pamphlet itself sold for 25 cents."

Friendship Club

The Plan
Organizing a friendship club, and promoting pleasant inspirational associations among cultured persons of similar inclinations, has provided a splendid part-time income for a young Chattanooga stenographer.

How It Works
"I reflected on how nice it would be if I could correspond with some congenial, responsible men and women living in other parts of the country—sharing thoughts, viewpoints, and ambitions; that's what first inspired me to found this friendship club. It grew on its own momentum, it seems. I first organized some of my friends, who secured some of their friends, and within a short time had a thriving list of members. And everyone voiced his enthusiasm about the great advantages conveyed by this 'club.' Soon I advertised in local and out-of-town newspapers, gaining more and more members.

Possible Profits
"Each member pays an initial fee of $1.00, which entitles him to the name of two members of similar occupation and interests with whom he or she might correspond. Since there are now some 800 members in the club, the profits are indeed substantial. Earnings may exceed $35 weekly."

Travel Letters

The Plan
"While reading the travel section of my local newspaper, I thought how thrilling it would be to receive letters from world travelers describing places visited, and the highlights of their trips. My friends agreed, and this gave me the idea of a Travel Letter Bureau, which is bringing me excellent part-time earnings.

How It Works
"Scanning the newspapers, I secured names of persons planning extensive trips, and upon interviewing them, secured their promise to send weekly letters describing the details of their trip. Among my friends, and through an advertisement in the newspaper, I received 12 subscribers, all wanting to receive original weekly letters postmarked with a foreign stamp! Each subscriber was put in touch with a different traveler, thus individualizing the service. When I travel myself, I send detailed letters of my experiences to all the subscribers.

Possible Profits
"My charge to members is 50 cents a letter, and with some 50 members now in my bureau, I average about $10 weekly through this fascinating venture. Travelers are compensated at the rate of 25 cents for each letter."

Local Handicraft Exchange

The Plan
Observing that many local hobbyists in her town produced a variety of fascinating items in weaving, sewing, sculpture, ceramics, etc., a college girl in Madison, Wisconsin, organized a local handicraft exchange and sales bureau, which yielded her exceptionally good returns.

How It Works
She got in touch with all those who made such objects, obtaining full information concerning the items they made. She then listed descriptions of the various handicraft products, typing them out neatly and sending these bulletins to townspeople whom she believed would be interested in the purchase of these items. The handicraft objects were all fascinating and useful, and constituted a valuable asset to the home or person—either as wearing apparel or home furnishings. She sent out a new, currently revised handicraft bulletin each month.

Possible Profits
She receives her profits in the capacity of broker, collecting 15 per cent profits on the proceeds from all sales. Her earnings reach as high as $200 monthly.

Entertainment Bureau

The Plan
Residing in a town of some 50,000 population, a young woman talented in music and promotion has established a lucrative business through organizing and selling the services of a local entertainment group.

How It Works
She got in touch with local people talented in various forms of entertainment, such as musicians playing orchestra and band instruments, ventriloquists, dancers, etc. Organizing a group of these entertainers, and identifying them with a snappy name, she had letterheads printed and sent typewritten letters to prospects, offering the services of this group for various social affairs. She specializes in co-operating with clubs, churches, and charitable organizations, and offers them a share in the proceeds of the entertainment in connection with their fund-raising programs. As a result every member of these clubs became a salesman in her behalf, seeking to sell the tickets around town.

Possible Profits
She received a commission of 15 per cent for her services in securing engagements, and has been netting some $25 weekly, part time.

Newspaper Promotion Page

The Plan
Earn $300 and upwards by promoting special feature pages in co-operation with small town newspapers, or with neighborhood newspapers if you reside in a larger city. Here's how one alert Chicago woman "cashed in" on a Mystery Woman page idea.

How It Works
"It was my plan to have an unknown woman, described as a 'Mystery Woman,' appear at stores of local merchants (advertising on that page) and give valuable awards to shoppers then in the store and carrying a copy of that paper. Visiting my local newspaper, I reserved the purchase of a full page in their paper, for advertising purposes, to cover a period of four issues. Obtaining blank pages of their paper, I ruled it off as a 'dummy' copy, allowing one fifth for editorial material in explanation of the Mystery Woman, and apportioning the balance for advertisements of varying sizes. Equipped with this material, I solicited local merchants for their advertisements. Their advertisement on this page meant that the 'Mystery Woman' would include their store in her itinerary . . . which was a strong incentive for shoppers to appear at their store. I secured substantial advertising as a result. Promotional pages, such as the above, may also apply to such topics as community events, historical celebrations, entertainments, and other timely events. Most newspapers everywhere are glad to co-operate.