Readers talk business

Home Office Computing, Dec, 1990 by James Rask, Kelly Kavanaugh, Linda Fuller

INCOME THROUGH INDEXING

Q. I have started putting my monthly magazine indexes on computer so I can find and reference articles when I want them. Would I be infringing on the magazines' rights or breaking any laws by advertising and selling disk copies of these indexes? If not, would I be violating any copyright or other laws by including helpful hints and tips printed in the magazine? What about just an index of the hints and tips?

JAMES RASK

Riverdale, North Dakota

A. There's no reason you can't create a personalized index of stories and publications, as long as you don't copy and already existing index, which would be a copyright infringement. You cannot reproduce or use anything from any magazine unless you get permission from the publisher and, often, the author of the article. Publications and writers don't often let you sell their work unless you pay them for it.

Though many magazines publish their own indexes, some are just beginning to discover the advantages of providing readers with indexed information. You may want to promote your indexing abilities to these publications to generate extra income.

CPA MARKETING SAVVY

Q. I am a certified public accountant who operates out of my home. I also do some contract consulting for a large law firm where I was previously employed. This entails making a 40-mile round-trip, three times a week, to its offices. I'd like to procure some additional tax and bookkeeping clients so I can terminate my contract work and operate entirely from home. Right now, I don't have the client base to allow me this luxury. Marketing professional services is difficult, as many conventional methods of marketing do not work for accountants, attorneys, or other professionals.

My target market is small home-operated businesses. Could you please give me more information on the availability of mailing lists of home-based businesses or some feedback about marketing approaches for people in my profession?

I live in Houston, Texas, and would also like to know if there are any groups specifically for home-based business owners.

KELLY KAVANAUGH

Houston, Texas

A. Many home-based accountants are turning to traditional marketing stategies to attract clients. One way to reach small and home-based businesses is to establish good relations with local bankers. Many small-business owners go to banks to get capital. But to fund a business, some banks ask to see financial records that have been kept by a certified public accountant. If a business owner lacks such records, the banks will often refer him or her to a CPA.

Another marketing tool many CPAs use is the CPA Client Letter Editorial Service. For an annual $500 fee, members of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants receive a 7- to 10-page monthly newsletter with business articles and tax tips, which they can reproduce on their company letterhead and send to potential clients. The edited publication comes in hard copy with artwork, or can be ordered on IBM-compatible disks. For newsletter and membership information, write to the American Institute of CPAs, 1211 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10036.

One organization created especially for home-based business people is the National Association for the Cottage Industry (NACI). NACI (P.O. Box 14850, Chicago, IL 60614; [312] 472-8116; $45 membership fee) publishes a newsletter and a resource guide, and answers members' business questions. For more information call the association's director, Coralee Smith Kern. Other organizations you might want to look into are the National Association for the Self-Employed (2328 Gravel Road, Fort Worth, TX 76118; [800] 232-6273) and the Association of Women Entrepreneurs in Dallas, Texas (P.O. Box 835232, Richardson, TX 75083; [214] 980-1007), which was formed in the early 1980s as a forum for women to network, attend workshops, and trade professional advice.

If you want to find other people who are home-based, you should get a modem and go on-line. On-line services are becoming the locker rooms of the home-business world. These electronic home-business forums will allow you to pick the brains of other people who work from home. On CompuServe, you'll find the Working from Home Forum, hosted by HOME-OFFICE COMPUTING contributing editors Paul and Sarah Edwards. Your Own Business, a topic in the Money Talk bulletin board on Prodigy, is frequented by many home-business owners as well as the editors of HOME-OFFICE COMPUTING. And GEnie, another on-line service, offers the Home-Office RoundTable, rune by home-based writer Janet Attard.

Or, you can rent part of HOME-OFFICE COMPUTING's mailing list by contacting the American List Council, 88 Orchard Road, CN-5219, Princeton, New Jersey 08543; (800) 822-LIST. Request names of subscribers in Houston, Texas, to reach business owners near you.

READERS GIVE ADVICE

HIRING HELP

When I first started my small PR firm three years ago, the greatest challenge I faced was finding capable and reliable subconsultants. Many headaches and a lot of money later (one artist skipped town with a $200 printing bill outstanding), I can offer this advice to small-business owners who are shopping for hired help.