Associations and non-profits are a powerful resource for building and expanding networking and business opportunities. Associations hold conventions, print reports and literature, promote their cause, and use your services!

The Directory of Associations is a comprehensive source of information on associations and professional societies including business and trade associations, 501c non-profit organizations, chambers of commerce, and other charity and community associations.

Available on CD-ROM, in print, and on mailing labels -- or search online and download results using our powerful search interface.

For more information or to order, call 800-575-5369 or go to http://www.marketingsource.com/associations.

In the graphic design profession, baking fresh postcard designs from scratch is the only way to go. After all, we designers are sending cards to show people what we can do.

But many business people are selling something that isn't as easy to put on a postcard as, say, that nifty logo that Danny Designer just created for his new client.

That's where specialty postcards come in. These are cards that are produced for specific types of businesses.

For example, if you were in the dry cleaning business, you'd probably be interested in what Bill Bishop and The Golomb Group can offer. They create and implement postcard marketing campaigns for dry cleaners. It's a complete service that includes card design, printing, mailing list development, and mailing.

Why does The Golumb Group offer this service?

Bill Bishop says, "Most drycleaners have a serious weakness. They're passive. They don't promote. They never advertise. They wait for business to come to them. And an active, aggressive hungry cleaner looking for a good opportunity to grow can exploit this weakness and dominate a market. Believe me, it doesn't take much."

He recounts the story of a Chicago area cleaner who reported that "[h]is sales were down more than 20%. He's been in business almost 8 years but, until recently, has never seen the need to promote. We put together a very simple direct response mail program for him which got immediate and measureable results. At the end of last year, not only were his sales up 17%, but he was also getting between 30% and 50% market penetration in the prime carrier routes surrounding his plant. In short, it pays to ask for business."

TIP: When Bill says "carrier routes," he means the routes that the mail delivery people follow during their daily appointed rounds. "Prime carrier routes" are the ones that would have the greatest number of good dry cleaning customers.

Bill continues, "[If] asking for business is simple and profitable, why don't more cleaners do it? Who knows? I talk to cleaners every day who say 'We're a quality cleaner.We don't advertise. We rely on word of mouth.' Don't get me wrong, a good reputation is fine, but how do you make people tell others about your service. Word of mouth is passive. And right now, in a weakened economy, you've got to be active, not passive. If you want more business...you have to ask for it."

Thank you, Bill Bishop. If you'd like to learn more about The Golumb Group's specialty postcards for dry cleaners, here's the contact information:

Bill Bishop
The Golomb Group
7664 Plaza Court
Willowbrook,IL 60527
Phone: (630) 887-7339
Toll Free: (800) 679-5856
Fax: (630) 887-7347

What Bill says holds true for a lot of businesses. A lot of people cut back on marketing during times like these. But this decision can prove fatal to your business.

So, I implore you: Please, please, PLEASE don't reduce your marketing now. Instead, do what the crowd isn't doing—increase your marketing. You don't have to spend a fortune, and you may find yourself laughing all the way to bank.

If you'd like some guidance on how to use your marketing funds wisely, check out the Postcard Marketing Secrets manual. It's in the Adobe Acrobat PDF format, which means that you can download it and put it to work right away.

--------------------------------
Martha Retallick, "The Passionate Postcarder," hails from Tucson, Arizona, USA. She is the author of Postcard Marketing Secrets, a downloadable PDF manual will show you how to put postcards to work for your business—profitably. Learn more about it at: http://www.PostcardMarketingSecrets.com

Concept Marketing Group, Inc. introduces a postcard product offer that, unlike any other in the market, allows your business to conduct direct mail promotions as easy as 1-2-3 (Designed - Printed - Mailed). Reach 5,000 prospects or customers today for as little as $0.33 each, including postage costs!

Our services include:
• Business and Consumer Mailing and Phone Lists
• Postcard and Brochure Design
• Print Services, including postcards, brochures, business cards, and more
• Mailing services so you aren't stuck licking stamps

Call 800.575.5369 to learn more about our services and plan your direct mail campaign!

1. Sell Your Content.

See any specialist magazines who's interested in publishing your story and sell it to them for a minimum price.

2. Sponsorship.

Be on the look-out for big corporations who will buy part of your website and make them your sponsor.

3. Sell Banner Ads.

You can either sell click-thru ads or pay per display banner ad.

4. Sell Directly On Your Website.

You can sell the following: books, music cd's, car, software, gift certificates, etc. For more details, look for my Market Place and explore.

5. Offer Contra Deals.

You can also offer your service in exchange for goods/services rather than for direct payment.

6. Sell Consultancy.

Sell your services as a webmaster to help them set-up an online presence.

7. Sell Links.

Generate a very long list of links to other related or unrelated sites. This is also a good way of generating repeat traffic to your website. If the list became very long, number of expected visits to each participating websites will decrease. Now you can offer same participating site premium links page that they'll be interested to pay for.

8. Charge For Access.

You can password-protect some of the pages in your website and then charge them in exchange of content.

9. Host Other Sites At Your Domain.

Theoretically guarantees a minimum amount of traffic for customers.

10. Surveys or Market Reports.

You can make money two ways on this one. Charge third party companies for including them in surveys, or conduct your own survey and then sell results.

11. Advertorials.

This is similar to an ad feature in a newspaper. Offer website editorial space to your customers, design the page and write the HTML code for them.

12. Sell Souvenirs From Your Website.

This could be your last move if you happen to follow my advice.

-----------------------
William Nabaza
http://www.Nabaza.com specializes in building, designing, implementing, managing and maintaining corporate website to boost sales of your company. Email william@nabaza.com for information on functional, dynamic webpage designing with affordable packages. Subscribe for free! http://www.Listlord.com

Nabaza.com provides solutions to everyday webmastery task like search engine submissions, internet promotion, and sticking your visitors to your site. Become a member now for as low as U.S. $100.00 a year.