Need Opinions On Offline Buiness

Hi Bill,

I would definitely "crunch the numbers".... If the numbers are too small, it's probably not viable as a business. But if the church is large enough, then it could be a good business idea.... Numbers are important, though.

I would consider the idea of charging on both sides, both from people being in the directory, and also from selling the directory. (Even if you only charge a nominal amount to sell the directory, it will still help cover costs.) Of course, you should give the church a portion, I think, even if it is just as a good will gesture. (Maybe a percentage of every sale can go to the church.)

I once read (and wrote about) how a guy named Leon Ashjian put together a special directory of Armenian businesses in his city, aimed at the Armenian community there. I think your idea is essentially the same thing, except grouped by a church instead of by a particular immigrant background.... You can read my post about Leon's business here -

http://www.sowpub.com/cgi-bin/forum/webbbs_config.pl?read=1327

I hope it gives you some good ideas! :)

I would definitely check the numbers, though, first - your potential profits from advertisers, from sales, and your costs of printing, your estimated marketing costs, the amount you give to the church, and the time it will take you to put it together.... It's all critical! You want to be sure that in the end, you've made a profit for all your time, and not a loss....

I think the main factor is the number of people involved with the church.... This idea is probably easier to make work with a larger church than a smaller one, I would think...

I hope that helps.... :)

- Dien Rice