> "Diamonds in your back yard!"

> Here's what I did to discover a couple
> recent "money-making" GEMS;

> Last summer (2002)I decided to see what
> ideas I could come up with for the
> "Tourist" market so I went over to
> the lobby of our 100 room Holiday Inn
> Express and SAT....FOR 3 HOURS!....drinking
> coffee...reading newspapers
> AND...observing....seeing and listening to
> what was going on.

> I saw tourists come in...walk to the front
> desk to check in. When they were finished
> and were handed their keys some of them
> asked if there was a MAP of the
> area....others asked where the GIFT SHOPS
> were and real estate guides and attractions
> and the most common question was, "Are
> there any RESTAURANT GUIDES or
> DIRECTORIES?"

> So...as I was sitting there I started
> writing on my yellow pad, "MAP!....GIFT
> SHOPS...
> REALTORS...ATTRACTIONS....RESTAURANTS!"

> Each tourist entered thru the front lobby
> doorway and passed a BLANK WALL to enter the
> main door. I thought, "Great place for
> a BOARD...with a MAP on it and some Ads
> around the sides!"

> So...I went home and did some measuring and
> designing and came up with a BOARD where I
> could fit a MAP and 18 ads around the edges.
> Here's what it looks like;
> http://www.pjbux.com/lobbyboards I made up
> a sample Board and showed it to the Holiday
> Inn Manager and he gave me the OK to install
> it.

> I then went to 9 other motels and got the
> manager's OK and proceeded to sell 18
> businesses on having a full color ad on my
> "Lobby Boards" for $800 a year.

> One of the other "promotion ideas"
> I got that day I sat in the lobby was...what
> about making up a Book of MENUS and having
> this Book available for tourists to get a
> PREVIEW of what kind of food is served and
> the prices. I also thought it would be a
> GREAT IDEA to include PHOTOS of the
> INTERIORS of restaurants to help tourists
> SEE what the INSIDE of restaurants look
> like.

> Thus....my "RESTAURANT GUIDE" was
> created!
> Here's what it looks like;

> http://www.pjbux.com/menuguides I made up
> a Sample Menu book and proceeded to get 18
> restaurants in my little town of 20,000 to
> pay $800 to be included.

> The Motels LOVED IT...the Restaurants LOVED
> IT...and I LOVED IT!

> Just yesterday I finished my 2nd town
> (Eugene, Oregon)with 32 Restaurants paying
> $800 ea for a year exposure in 10 Hotels.

> I'm now planning to go South to Medford and
> Ashland next.

> And....BOTH of these programs came from me
> sitting around a hotel lobby and IMAGINING
> what IF!

> So...KEEP AN EVER WATCHFUL EYE...you never
> know WHEN you will find a
> "money-making" idea.

> Don Alm
> Some of my Home-Based businesses
> http://www.pjbux.com P.S. I just had
> breakfast with a group of business people,
> including 3 realtors who gave me another
> "Diamond" of a money-making Idea.
> One realtor started talking
> about"GIFTS" for his home-buying
> clients.

> He was wondering if anyone had any
> suggestions for GIFTS other than the
> "standard" gifts being a bottle of
> wine or house plant. He was wondering if
> anyone had a Gift Idea which could help him
> get REFERRALS.

> I perused my "promtion-minded"
> brain archives and IT HIT!.....

> What about a WALL CLOCK....not just any
> "Wall Clock"... a "Wall
> Clock" with a PHOTO OF THE HOUSE on the
> face...and...to help the realtor get
> REFERRALS...his NAME on the face also?

> WOW! When he heard this he practically
> "went ape". He thought it was a
> GREAT IDEA!....Give them something with a
> REASON for placing it on their kitchen wall;
> A "PHOTO Wall Clock" has TWO
> REASONS for placing it on the Kitchen wall
> of the new home;
> 1) It's a WALL clock designed to be hung on
> a wall
> and
> 2) The PHOTO of the house

> Now...when friends, relatives and neighbors
> come into the kitchen....they will NOTICE
> THE WALL CLOCK...and, they will also see the
> realtor's NAME....for a possible REFERRAL!

> So....his reaction caused me to do a Google
> Search and WHALA...I found exactly what I
> was looking for...a "nice-looking"
> wall clock with a place for a PHOTO and
> NAME...in fact the company will put these on
> for me for $15 per clock. I think I can sell
> them to realtors for $75 per clock
> so...another "back yard"
> money-maker is born.

> Yup! "Diamonds" are all around.

Don, is it $800.per biz for one hotel? Or do you sell 18 biz ads per hotel? Sounds like a lot of income from these boards then.