BIG MONEY FROM YOUR PERSONAL COMPUTER
by
Avril Harper
INTRODUCTION
The computer age descended upon us, gathered momentum, and within but a
few decades had all but decimated the long rows of clerks, typists,
accountants and analysts that had typified the offices of yesterday.
Hoards of highly trained staff, once considered essential if the cogs of
the industrial world were to continue turning smoothly, had come to find
themselves not quite so indispensable.
today, accounts programmes, statistical analysis packages, and word
processing units, cope admirably with the wide ranging duties once allotted
to accounts clerks, statisticians and secretaries.
The take-over though, was not so all-encompassing as might have been expected,
often for reasons of cost, sometimes because of the time which must be
devoted to mastering the use of one's chosen model. And even in this day
and age, old fashioned attitudes still account for the steadfast reluctance
of many to allow computers into their lives.
Whatever the reason for staying true to the values of yesterday, here lies
a great opportunity for those interested in computers, and the possibility
of entering into business providing services based upon the capabilities of
computers and word processors.
Your potential custom will come from those who see the benefit of
computerisation to their businesses and lives in general, but who lack
time, money, or the inclination to put their ideas into action. We may find
students wishing to have their theses word processed or notes committed to
disk, small shopkeepers with insufficient cash to invest,
businessmen, even potential high fliers, whose work demands their physical
presence to an extent that leaves little or no time for learning computer
techniques, and job hunters whose needs for a professionally produced
curriculum vitae or application form, do not obviously warrant the expense
of purchasing a computer.
Also among your potential clients, are those who readily recognise the
benefits of computerisation, both to themselves and their own organisations,
but whose needs are insufficient to warrant the expense involved;
again we may see the small shopkeeper or small businessman as an example
of someone who might see the benefits, but lack the work load to justify
such an investment.
Your level of proficiency and ambition will determine what you can, or wish
to, offer your potential clients, and in the many options available for
starting a business with your personal computer, we will discover a whole
range of possibilities. At one end of the scale you might opt for providing
a simple service, collating information such as customer records, mailing
lists or customers orders; the whole thing very much akin to an upmarket
secretarial or typing agency.
Alternatively, you may decide to offer services requiring the talents of
one highly proficient in all aspects of computers, such as one would expect
from a consultant called in to single-handedly set up a computing system
on the customer's premises, and subsequently to bear responsibility for
training staff, and for the provision of an ongoing back-up facility.
In deciding to enter this business, it is you and you alone who decide at
what level you feel sufficiently comfortable, and there i no reason on earth
why you should not expand your range of services at a future date. Because
success depends as always upon satisfying the client, and in so doing,
guaranteeing his future custom - hardly something you will accomplish if
in the early days you attempt to provide facilities you find yourself unable
to deliver.
Whether to provide a wide range of services both simple and highly
specialised, is something only you can decide. Working exclusively for local
firms, offering a wide range of services, may have distinct benefits in terms
of the loyalty you may attract from your customers. You may even, at some
time in the future, consider employing someone else to take over the more
mundane tasks, leaving you to carry out those which require a greater
level of expertise.
FORMING THE RIGHT IMPRESSION
In business, whatever your speciality, image is of paramount importance.
First impressions are lasting impressions, and more so in respect of
businessmen such as yourself who will be offering services primarily by
means of advertisements, including direct mail. Yours is not one to survive
from the custom passing trade might provide. It is highly unlikely, at least
in the early days, that you will have self-contained business premises into
which your prospective clients can pop, to discuss their requirements.
More likely, you will be one to approach potential clients, either
individually, or collectively, as a result of advertisements placed in the
press or trade magazines. In such cases, the impression you convey to those
whose custom you seek, must be one to instil confidence sufficient to have
them reaching for the telephone, or at least to cutting out your
advertisement to retain for future consideration.
It's vitally important to take time in designing your business stationery,
perhaps even considering having it professionally designed for you, and
certainly to have it typeset and produced on quality paper - photocopying
might be tempting in view of the very many mailshots you will need to send
out - tempting to you, not to the recipient! Your business cards should also
be professionally designed and reproduced; the cost might be relatively
higher than for 'run of the mill' cards, but you, remember, are not offering
a run of the mill service, and as such there is no room for cutting corners,
unless of course that is exactly the impression you wish to convey in respect
of your services too.
Particularly if offering your service by direct mail, or else if asking
interested parties to send for further details of your services, you may find
it beneficial to have a resume produced. Your resume need consist of only one
sheet, again on quality stationery, on which are outlined the details of your
experience, qualifications, references and any other details which will serve
to convince the reader of your competence.
It's not though, just your letters, business cards, and advertisements which
must convey an image of professionalism if you are to succeed in a business
which does, after all, require clients to place a fair degree of trust in
you. You too will personally need to testify as to your worth, not by
shouting it out loud, but by looking tidy, speaking well, being organised,
punctual and, most of all, businesslike.
You are, in bringing your attention to the business world, attempting to
sell yourself, no less than does the grocer, butcher, or writer attempt to
sell his wares. But we all need foodstuffs; we all need clothes, homes, and
many of us need those items still thought of by many as luxuries - holidays,
cars, dishwashers, and so on.
Computers though, for those not familiar with them, or still not enlightened
to the massive benefits computerisation has to offer them and their
businesses, are not thought of as an essential, not when one still has the
use of pen amid paper, midnight oil, and overworked grey matter.
Potential customers may need 'educating' as to what you call offer them;
you must therefore tell the of the benefits that will be forthcoming, how
they will sell more, enjoy greater profits, and plan for the future, instead
of working every daylight hour, hoping merely to make ends meet.
You will meet many barriers in promoting your service, particularly in
respect of the older generation, who not having enjoyed computer studies
within their school curriculum, still, in many instances, distrust computers,
word processors, and all things similarly 'high tech'. A 'softly softly'
approach is best adopted in these cases, coupled with stressing to the
individual concerned that not only will they save money by introducing high
technology into there lives - they are likely to make more too, simply as a
result of the extra time they will have to devote to their everyday tasks,
as well as planning for the future.
Distrust of you, and your services, is another hurdle you may have to
overcome, particularly if you operate in a locality in which you are a
stranger. Are you, for instance, the type of person to whom they can divulge
their trade secrets without fear that they will be spread to all and sundry
over pints in the local pub?
Problems of distrust are hard to overcome, and in general they will tend to
disappear of their own accord as word-of-mouth speaks for the
confidentiality, reliability and security of your services. There are,
of course, many things you do to help promote that image you wish to
accompany your every business dealing, such as never, but never, speak to
one client about the business of another.
But trust and commitment to what you propose will come as nothing if the
public is unaware of your existence, and so an ongoing and effective
advertising policy is essential if you are to develop and maintain an
adequate level of business.
In the early days you may consider servicing only local clients, often
people who already know you and your capabilities, in which case a well
produced leaflet with resume popped through their letterboxes may constitute
all the advertising you need.
Your services may also be promoted in the local press, either as a result of
placing advertisements yourself, or by having a reporter produce one of the
new business features many local papers are so keen to include.
Have a leaflet professionally typeset for distribution to all enquiries from
your advertisement, and include some means by which further contact can be
made. Can you, for instance, call in on them, by appointment, at some future
date, to inform them personally of what you can offer, and to answer any
questions they may have? Try also telephoning a week or so after sending
your brochure with its all - important accompanying personal letter,
ostensibly to ask whether the person making the enquiry has in fact received
your correspondence. Your intention, in truth however, is to jog the memory
of those who might have forgotten about your advertisement, as well as to
ask if you can provide more information by means of a personal visit.
PROFITS FROM YOUR COMPUTER
Introduction
In a money-oriented world, almost every adult is required to maintain
financial records of some kind, for a great many reasons. Some of them
purely for the individual's own use; others for the use of outside agencies
such as accountants, Inland Revenue and V.A.T. inspectors.
Though most people can quite adequately compile such data as is required by
themselves and for submission to outside agencies, not all of us relish the
task - often one which requires us to devote small amounts of time each
day to making minor entries into our records books. For many the whole
task is one guaranteed to spell frustration. It's a job most people hate,
and because of this, a high degree of inaccuracy will inevitably creep into
even the most straightforward of record keeping systems. And because the
exercise is not one we welcome, there is a strong tendency to delay
updating our records, a sure-fire recipe for the missing of deadlines,
and even loss of essential information.
So what can you offer by which to make the lives of your potential clients
just a little easier and infinitely more organised?
ACCOUNTS AND FINANCE PACKAGE
Life experience tells us that all adults need to maintain records of some
type if they are to keep their financial houses in order. Some don't keep
records however, which might go a long way to explaining the inability of
many to live within their means, with all the resultant drains on their
resources what will ensue from bank overdraft charges and loan interest
repayments.
For the private individual and his or her family, you may provide a more
than welcome service in simply collating and analysing their income and
expenditure. Alternatively, you may find yourself called on each and every
April, simply to take that awesome annual missive from the Taxman off their
hands.
Businesses, particularly those with very few staff, might find little time
for the albeit important task of stock control, and subsequent ordering and
re-ordering of appropriate items. Computers of course, can undertake the
job in far less time, offering a greater degree of accuracy, whilst also
availing the businessperson of that extra time with which to concentrate
on selling the actual service or goods for which his or her business exists.
DATABASE PACKAGES
In deciding what to offer your customer now that you have effectively
sold them the benefits of you accounts package, the database package is
invariably the most logical step to take.
Basically little more than a computerised filing system, the database
package has much to offer in maintaining those records and details which
do not necessarily fall within the realms of finance. So we find many
services here to offer the business client, whatever size his organisation.
Suppliers of goods and sources of raw materials can be committed to disk,
along with product numbers, current prices, specifications, and many other
details of importance to your client. The office administrator and personnel
manager can find themselves all but redundant if you take over
responsibility for maintaining staff records. labour turnover details
and subsequent analysis of trends, sickness records, and training records
too.
Not just the personnel department would find itself depleted in numbers
should you also find yourself being asked to computerise the stock control
system, the filing, the customer record sheets, invoices, regular accounts
and reminders to those whose payments are less than punctual.
Workers, whatever their calling, can benefit from what your up-market
filing system offers. For the writer, you may record on disk the notes
he will one day require, providing him with a 'cutting bureau' that requires
far less in the way of space than did the shabby disorganised system of
stacked cardboard boxes.
The salesman, insurance agent, collector, scout leader.... they all, though
they don't know it, have some part of their lives which could be made that
much easier, less repetitive and boring, more accurate, and less
time-consuming, if only they knew of your existence.
SPREADSHEET PACKAGES
This package is essentially a statistical correlation system, involving the
constant shuffling and juggling of large numbers of variable factors,
consisting usually of suppliers' details, tax points, information relating
to costs, employees and stock, to name but a few.
The spreadsheet emulates the familiar accounting system of rows and columns,
but as is not often the case with the human statistician, the spreadsheet
is capable of establishing where relationships occur between the rows and
columns, thereby facilitating long term planning decisions, projections
for the future, even to ascertain with a remarkable degree of accuracy
just what effect any change in the variables might have upon the future.
PROFITS FROM YOUR WORD PROCESSOR
Introduction
Word processing bears an obvious similarity to typing, both essentially
being concerned with document preparation. But this is almost all they
have in common. Whether the word processor is part of a personal computer
system or a word processor in its own right, it is different in several
ways from a typewriter, and offers the operator various distinct and very
important advantages.
Word processors, unlike typewriters, have memory banks, wherein can be
stored a great deal of information, ready for retrieval when the situation
demands. They do not however act upon such information stored in their
memory banks; they simply repeat the information as a result of commands
given by the operator.
For many operators the biggest advantage of the word processor is the
ability to amend and correct information, before that information is
printed out. Many of the newer models also offer a spell-check facility,
by means of an in-built dictionary in the word processor's memory banks.
To all intents and purposes, but still obviously dependent to some extent
on the skills of the operator, documents emanating from the word processor
should be free from typing and spelling mistakes. Documents once typed
into the memory, can have minor and major amendments made, large sections
inserted, deleted, even moved to another section, and all by means of just
a few keys being pressed.
Once information is stored into the machine's memory, the operator is able
to call upon the machine to copy the same document many times without any
need to re-type the information contained. Each copy will be identical to
the next, assuming of course that steps are taken to ensure the ribbon
strength remains up to par.
The person offering word processing need not of course content him or
herself with providing facilities a typing agency might offer.
For those skilled at composing letters there is the added possibility of
providing full service bureau facilities to those regularly sending out
mailshots, a service which might extend from producing the words,
to creating the mainsheet, compiling the mailing list, and even to posting
the finished articles.
Mainsheet Facilities
Wherever there is a need to contact people by post, whether for buying,
selling, or for any of many different reasons, there will be business for
you in producing mailshots, particularly if personalised in the manner the
word processor allows. A mainsheet is that piece of documentation sent out
to often thousands of individuals, by which to inform them of services,
products and facilities available. Such information might also relate to
other business matters - for instance, change of address or partners
within the organisation.
The word processor offers one distinct advantage over the typewriter to
those involved in mailing items to many individuals, this being the ability
to personalise each of many thousands of similar pieces of documentation
in such a manner that the recipient believes the letter has been prepared
or him - and him alone! There is still a place in today's high flying
business world for that element of personal service which once set the
small corner shopkeeper high above the supermarket owner in terms of the
esteem in which his custom held him.
The majority of word processors allow the operator to enter that text
which will form the body of all mailing pieces, and subsequently to add
the addressees' personal data, such as names, addresses, details relating
to recent purchases, relevant dates, and so on.
Updating System
One of the greatest advantages of the word processor, is the ability to
update and amend documentation without the need for new documentation to
be created. Once inside the computer's memory banks, the details can be
added to, have parts deleted, and have changes made, without any need for
the item to be typed or re-processed in its entirety. The word processor,
of course, allows the operator to bring the original document onto the
screen and to make such changes as are necessary before the document is
subsequently committed to print.
Customer price lists can therefore be amended, whether it be in respect
of price changes, or to items added or deleted from the list.
Other changes, such as to product number, specification,
change of supplier, and any number of other factors can be taken
into account; all changes being made before the first printed version
of the revised document ever appears.
Storage of Standard Correspondence Details
'Canned ' data is that which can be committed to the memory banks of the
computer or everyday filing system, ready for retrieval and subsequent
incorporation into the letter or document being processed.
The mainsheet user obviously benefits to a great extent, since he or she
can produce the main body of letters, before calling upon such data as is
stored, to be inserted, unchanged, at set points within the text.
It follows therefore, that a great many people may be sent what they
consider personalised letters, albeit in fact the body of all letters
may be identical, with changes made only to the name and address section,
and such as comments referring to past purchases, by the customers being
approached via the mainsheet.
DOING SOMETHING A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT
Typesetting
Typesetting often involves producing text on a page by means of a font.
The end result is usually highly professional, can include graphics,
many different styles of printing, and various layouts, all of which are
extremely difficult, if at all possible, to create with just a typewriter.
But for the word processor, many design packages have been created which
allow the operator to enjoy those facilities normally reserved for much
costlier design machinery, and desk top publishing packages.
Stationery design might be one small service you could incorporate into
your business plan, and certainly one to fit into those odd spare ours
you will no doubt find between larger assignments.
You may also offer a service whereby you will typeset magazines,
books and newsletters, or create master forms for businesses and
individuals to photocopy in unlimited quantities. There is also a great
demand, particularly in the field of home publishing, for manuals and
business guides to be typeset, for a much more professional image than
the typewritten originals you will be supplied with.
Mailing List Broker
Mailing lists are big business in the field of direct marketing.
Businesses, for a great many reasons, not all of them concerned with
actual selling, post mailshots to tens of thousands of individuals.
The company concerned may of course have its own list of names, as do
a great many specialist mail order companies.
Sometimes the dealer may wish to address his offers to fresh clients,
such as those appearing on the mailing lists of fellow mail order
specialists. Lists though are guarded jealously, and if sold or rented
to others, the fee requested will necessarily be high - no-one passes on
essential information for insignificant returns!
This is another business you can operate quite easily alongside your
other activities. Basically you will be keeping suitable addresses on file,
ready for distribution to interested organisations, and usually printed on
sticky labels ready for use. Obviously your computer will greatly assist
here, not only in storing the names concerned, but also allowing them to
be subsequently reproduced on labels.
Let us take another look at what the work of a list broker involves.
This is one big business proposition to require an absolute minimum of
capital, but nevertheless offer extremely high rewards in return.
'It's not what you know, but who you know that counts'. In the field of
mail order this is particularly true. Not depending upon passing trade,
the mail order operator must send out his mailshots to suitable targets,
and in the course of a week or so he may make many thousands of identical
mailings.
Once the names and addresses on his own custom-made mailing list have been
exhausted, he is therefore required to obtain more names, hopefully from a
reputable and professional organisation. That professional organisation
will be one to ensure the names are 'fresh', meaning that disinterested
parties have been deleted, and 'gone-aways' too have had their addresses
removed from the list.
The better broker will similarly ensure that his lists consist only of
names suitable for inclusion, and so a list of opportunity seekers will
indeed consist of those who have expressed an interest in being informed
of appropriate opportunities, as opposed to names selected at random from
any telephone directory readily at hand.
It isn't though, just in the field of mail order that lists are required.
Addresses can be required in respect of:
Private individuals requiring certain services and
products
Specific businesses, e.g. undertakers, grocers, hotels,
engineering firms, and so on
Persons involved in particular sports or hobbies
Those of a particular profession
The beginning list broker may begin compiling names and addresses
from scratch, in the case of opportunity seekers sometimes placing
advertisements offering such opportunities and retaining details of
all responses received. He may instead buy suitable lists from small
mail order dealers, expecting to pay a higher fee if those names are of
actual buyers instead of mere enquirers.
Alternatively, the broker may act as a middle man, buying or hiring the
list in at one price, then offering it whole or split to interested parties,
at a price that will obviously yield a profit.
One point to note here is that anyone keeping data on disk may need to
register with the Data Protection Registrar, based at: Springfield House,
Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AX.
A Curriculum Vitae Service with a Difference
'25 POUNDS for every two pages typed', or so the advertising blurb goes,
for those business manuals which inform us exactly how to set up a
consultancy preparing the awesomely named 'Curriculum Vitae'.
Ten years or so ago, those seeking employment were required simply to
commit a few personal details to forms the prospective employer provided
for the purpose. In an uncomplicated world, with numbers seeking work
roughly equal to the number of vacancies existing, the form fulfilled
its intended purpose of matching workers to jobs.
But conditions in the real world are far less Utopian, and with heavy
unemployment we find vast numbers chasing such few jobs and positions as
actually become vacant. Given the odds against securing any particular
position, job hunting has become almost an art in itself, with applicants
now needing to practice 'hard sell' tactics if they are to avail themselves
of that coveted interview.
Consequently, the job hunter is no longer satisfied with providing only
what the application form requires of him; no longer can he confidently
commit his form to the tender mercies of the postal service, if there
remains a nagging doubt that details he considers appropriate were simply
not provided for on the application form. To this aid comes the
curriculum vitae, a type of self - made application form which allows
for all relevant information to be provided.
The curriculum vitae, despite its rather ominous sounding name, is little
more than a biographical account of the applicant's personal and career
related details, presented in a logical and easy to read format.
It communicates everything the application form did, and more.
Giving the numbers chasing so few jobs, it is essential that the
curriculum vitae is well produced, accurate, neat, and creates an overall
good impression. Very any agencies will take your personal details and
have the necessary documentation prepared on your behalf, and they will
charge seemingly high fees for what essentially amounts to producing
two to three typed sheets. Typing agencies across the country have come
to recognise the benefits that offering so essential a service can provide.
one big problem remains for the job hunter, in that the details typed
onto the form, though indeed accurate and up - to - date
when presented to him, can quickly become outdated. We need to consider
this possibility no further than the next birthday of the intended job
hunter, whose age on that curriculum vitae is no longer accurate.
Changes of address and examination passes similarly render his
all - important curriculum vitae hopelessly out of date.
The solution usually is to have new documents prepared for each and
every change that transpires - very costly, and very unnecessary too,
except perhaps for those who only have the facilities of the everyday
typing agency. But someone like you, who having committed the clients
details to disk, could also offer him an updating service, at a fraction
of the fee documentation would cost, will find a more than ready market
for their services, and a profitable sideline to other services you may
also have to offer.
Creating Computer Games and Educational Programmes
Certainly those blessed with a gift for lateral thinking, may find
themselves cosy and very profitable niche within the world of games
creation, for a market ever hungry to discover new and more captivating
ways by which t test its imagination and ability.
Take a look inside any computer accessories shop, and you'll be amazed at
the almost impossible choice of games designed for users of all ages,
from pre-school child to teenager, businessmen, war games enthusiasts,
hobbyists, students, and many, many others.
Educational programmes often masquerade as games, to make the learning
process all that much more interesting.
And so we find programmes aimed
at developing the number skills, dexterity, colour and shape recognition
for very young children, as well as programmes designed to make higher
level mathematics much more stimulating than those staid, uninviting text
books can ever hope to do.
Even your life experiences can be turned into games destined to captivate
audiences young and old alike. An example of such is "Life and Death",
the rather ominously titled game in which the player takes on the role of
surgeon, making decisions which, in reality, are best left to the
professionals.
The player discovers just what effect his decisions will have upon
the patients, and scoring takes the form of, such as, refresher courses
being recommended, appraisals being given by one's seniors, and at a
more sordid level, the patient's life blood and all manner of essential
bits and pieces flash nauseatingly across the screen - definitely not
for the squeamish!
The medical world, despite its obvious attributes in terms of the
colourful display it can add to the computer monitor, is not the only
profession to find its way into game. The player can choose the status
of chess master, teacher, driver, and many others no doubt you could name
yourself. It isn't the profession that matters, but rather the skills,
challenges and play points that can be brought to bear.
Support Services to Current and Intending Computer Users
A great many services exist which you might consider incorporating into
your overall business plan, one being the hiring of computer time,
that is, allowing your computer to be used, on your premises if need be,
by those whose own computers have broken down, or else by individuals
considering investing in a computer but as yet uncertain as to what
benefits they offer the user. You may also, in the latter case,
offer your services as a tutor to first time buyers, or to those
purchasing a machine significantly different to that with which they
are familiar.
FREELANCE WRITING
From that very day the novice writer batters his first words into the
manual or electric typewriter, with obligatory typing errors and subsequent
changes to wording, the word processor becomes an almost impossible dream,
one which will provide him with the ability to make all of those amendments
without even one piece of paper bearing testament to the manuscript's
earlier form.
The word processor, of course, allows all such changes as are deemed
necessary, to be made whilst the words are still visible only on the
computer screen - no re-types, no typist's correction fluid, no hassle,
and no more wasted time and effort!
Your skills with computers may in fact be all that you need to incorporate
freelance writing into your overall business portfolio, since many
computers magazines depend heavily upon the work of freelance writers,
many of whom have no in-depth knowledge of computers. Your more
specialised knowledge, in fact, places you at a distinct advantage
over 'roving' freelance writers who, though they will produce work on
any topic, for any source willing to pay for the privilege, would consider
the research required for an article on computer methods and techniques
all but prohibitive, even to the point of rendering the effort involved
not worth the fees they receive.
Computer Tuition and Advisory Service
Many first time users of personal computers, myself most definitely included,
find the whole experience of ownership anything but a pleasure. For some,
that keyboard is the only piece of equipment to offer any degree of
familiarity; the rest is alien - and frightening.
Imagine then the relief to such as myself, who finds computer user manuals
to be written in all but foreign terminology, to feel able to call upon
someone to aid familiarisation with a new machine, as well as someone to
guide us through the more complicated stages that invariably we will one
day want to master - them, not me, for I am a lost cause, unless of
course you just happen to live nearby!
And as a useful adjunct to teaching basic or higher computer and word
processor techniques, you could offer a troubleshooting service, one
which might have saved me from throwing out all those disks I once
thought were damaged beyond repair, but which I now find, via the services
promoted in an advertisement placed in a writers' magazine, could have
had their data retrieved - if only there had been someone then for me to
turn to!
Consultancy Service
If you feel destined for only the big time in the computer world,
then perhaps you should consider your future role as one of consultant;
a trouble-shooter called in to analyse and solve problems as exist with
the client's own computer system.
You may be called upon to install new computer systems, update old ones,
and train or re-train staff in new techniques and newly introduced hardware.
Obviously, those seeking to work in the upper echelons of the computer world,
will find themselves with relatively little competition compared to those
who remain content with providing basic services.
Analysing Biorhythms
A few years ago, anyone offering a service whereby the individual's
biorhythms are charted and analysed, would no doubt have been thought
of as little more than mad. Yet today this service is one taken very
seriously indeed, and not just be those individuals who place great store
in such as astrology and fortune telling. Politicians, sportsmen and
women, students and businessmen are but a few of the very many people
who simply would not start their working day without at least knowing
how well they are likely to perform, and how well their relationships
with other people are likely to be affected on any particular day.
Biorhythms are cycles that rule our minds, bodies and emotions, and life,
it is said, goes through a series of rhythms, with patterns of ups and downs,
all based essentially upon one's date of birth. By charting an
individual's biorhythm pattern, the analyst is able to select those
times at which the person concerned is likely to be most efficient,
more romantically inclined, perhaps a little moody, even under the weather,
and a whole host of other factors which will influence that person at any
particular point in time.
Biorhythms are usually hand produced on graph paper, before presentation
to the client, who incidentally will pay very handsomely indeed to know
what the day, month, or year ahead holds in store for him.
Imagine though, how much easier it will be to have your computer chart
the rhythms, and how much more professional the customer's presentation
pack will subsequently become.
Fortune Telling
Still on the subject of predicting the future, I recently made my way precariously past a huge crowd of people in a local indoor shopping centre. Huge crown indeed, and so quiet, obviously watching something so interesting that I also felt the urge to get in on the act. In the midst of this group stood a man and his computer, complete with printer from which churned several feet of printout, upon which were huge hand-shaped drawings.
Upon closer investigation, it turned out the man was reading the palms of
individual's willing to pay him several pounds for the privilege.
I tell a slight lie however, for he wasn't actually reading the
palm - the computer was - the printout came as a direct result of the
individual placing a flat hand on a king of photocopying device.
The printout showed the various lines said to be associated with one's
future fortunes, and the whole thing was nicely rounded off by the
stallholder briefly explaining the printout and what the individual
can hope for in the future.
A Name To Reckon With
Nostalgia is most definitely in! And with our new-found interest in
anything old, many of us will gladly spend long hours searching through
musty old books, desperately seeking to discover a little more about
the stock from which we came. Our ancestor's graves are combed for clues,
birth certificates are analysed, parish registers are scoured through for
details of weddings, births, baptisms and deaths.
Imagine then the interest which must have followed the emergence of a
new business now available in almost all bigger towns and cities,
whereby from huge volumes of surnames, the customer chooses that in
which he or she has a particular interest, and the adjacent computer
prints out, on parchment paper, the entire history of that surname.
I have seen suitable business equipment being offered in magazines,
and also complete business packages being offered on franchise.
Pen Pal Clubs
Many a successful Pen Pal Club has come about simply by means of a
co-ordinator who, for a fee, places your name on his books, and
subsequently searches through often hundreds of similar entries for
a suitable person with whom you can correspond. And 'books' here
is the operative word, for in the past such clubs existed purely
because the organiser was willing to place, on huge files, the details
of many people, perhaps from all countries of the world, from which
files he or she would then select appropriate partners, often after
many hours of searching.
Imagine how much easier the task must now be for those operators whose
customers' details are placed on disk, with all but a few keys to be
pressed to release the information customers have paid for, merely
names and addresses of like individuals.
Many co-ordinators don't even undertake this checking for suitability
themselves; they leave that to the individual customer to carry out for
him or herself, from a list of names, addresses and interests contained
in regular newsletters issued to all clients. Typing that list,
updating and amending it each month, would be a laborious exercise
indeed - but with a word processor, the sky's the limit!
The Lighter Side of Business
To end this range of business ideas on a light note, let me tell you
of two small firms which subsequently became big businesses,
all because of discovering a small gap in the market which they would
fill - with the aid of their computers and word processors.
One woman creates typewriter art portraits, once a very painstaking
procedure when working with the old portable or electric typewriter,
which even after hours of getting that picture just right, would still
offer nothing but one copy of the picture so produces. Mistakes during
the process of 'keyboard painting' meant that the entire operation had
to be re-started or else mistakes blotted out, thereby leaving a nasty
blob on the customer's copy. But with the word processor, that artist
now creates a perfect picture on her screen, ready for printing vast
quantities of first generation copies for selling to the tourist trade
in her home town. She also works to commission, creating portraits of
the client's chosen subject - miles removed from the charcoal, pen and ink,
and everyday photographic studies we are usually offered, whereby to commit
our loved ones to immortality.
Look out every Christmas time for the advertisements placed by the man who,
having word processed a story for his own child, incorporating into the
text personal details relating to the child's name, age, friends, pets
and hobbies, subsequently discovered his friends wanted such unique
presents for their children too. His clients now come from all countries
of the world. The basic story remains the same, although there is a
choice of titles, and into each he simply word processes the recipient's
personal details as provided by the customer. Brilliant!
With these two highly successful businesses, to have grown from the
humblest of beginnings, I'll leave you to ponder the direction your
own future will take. The choice of course is phenomenal, and you
can remain as small, or grow as large, as you yourself wish.