Give me just about any piece of carpet and I can install or repair it, I've been doing it for over 21 years, but trying to find out if there is a market for the 50 page Report or Booklet that I wrote on Carpet Rip-Offs and Scams and how to get the word out is a whole other ball game. I'd rather ask and get advise from someone who is more knowledgeable in this area. I emailed the following paragraph to newspaper Editors and Consumer Awareness groups, but never got a reply back from anyone. Maybe it's because they feel that Consumers really don't want to know if they will or have been ripped off. I thought that they would want to know if they got what they paid for or that the money they could save may be enough to also buy a VCR, 27 inch TV or even a computer, but that's just my opinion, who knows. So if you can tell me if you think the majority of consumers would be interested in this and if so what would be the best way to market it. Like many of the others that have posted here, especially with 6 children, funds are a little tight.

*********
Dear Editor

I GUARANTEE you if you read this Report your first thought may be that you'll never buy carpet again. Eventually you will, but now you will know what to look out for and what to expect. The Report was read by Mary McGeever, reporter for Consumer Affairs/Assistant to Arnold Diaz from 20/20, she said it was great, fantastic and something consumers should be aware of. The Report explains the most popular Rip-Offs from Retailers to Installers, what you can do to protect yourself and also tells how you can save hundreds or even thousands of dollars. This Report is so full of the real truth that even the Carpet Industry's leaders, experts and others that have read it are a scared of it. See for yourself, visit my site at http://members.aol.com/carpetpros and if are interested I'll send you a copy.

**********

If I posted this in the wrong area then I apologize, I thank you in advance for your time and opinions and all advise will be deeply appreciated. Email CarpetPros@aol.com

Thank you
Norman L Graves Jr
Certified Carpet Installer
Certified Carpet Inspector

Why don't you do some targeted searches of sites
where this would apply and ask the webmaster if
his/her visitors would be interested.

I have found the best way to find out is to ask people who fit the demographics of what you're
proposing to market.

Be prepared to give some details about your
report, maybe even a sample of the report.

http://www.enlowcircle.com/go/join

I was watching investigating reports the other day about this very thing. Carpet cleaners "bait and switch"... they advertise one thing to get you to pay for more.. and if you don't then you get a pretty ugly job done...

Try looking into news channels or the channel I was watching was the Discovery channel... you could say that I am an info junkie... :) I hope this helps and every home that has a carpet is a potential client... if you would like to talk further please feel free to email me at klent337@sgi.net... good luck and take care... Lee

Hi Norman,

I'm not trying to be too critical but it should help.

If the example you posted was your press release then there are a few things you should know.

Editors are very busy, when they look at press releases they use the ones that jump out at them and need very little editing.

Your release sounded like you were trying to sell the editor on your report. Try writing as you were the editor writing for your readers. The better you do the editors job the better your chances of getting publicity from it.

Headlines will make or break your release, it is the first thing the editor will look at, if it doesn't cause them to want more info then your release is doomed.

You mentioned that the savings could possibly result in the same amount as it would cost for a TV, VCR or Computer? That would make a great headline.

Example:

"Carpet Scams Revealed - Save Enough to Buy Your Next Computer"

The editors want something that will catch their readers attention too. If you do a search on the Internet for "sample press release" you will find some very good information on creating a great release.

If you are looking to market on the web then you need to learn all you can about Internet marketing. I promote a book that I think is the best book out there when it comes to creating a website that gets results. Info products such as yours are an excellent match for the Internet.

The book is called "Make Your Site Sell" written by Ken Evoy. He speaks from his experience selling a high dollar software package to a very small target market. He did this on the Internet and sold out of his software before the date he set to sell out by.

You can download this book right from the Internet and review the first couple of chapters free. To learn more about this book here is the URL:

http://www.sitesell.com/cyberguide.html

I hope this has helped . . . Scott
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snazzy title
put ad in classified section
sell at a minimum
market the benefits of saving money not negatives of baiting and switching
valueable info not negative junk
will make few dollars

or

create excellant customer service company that does the opposite and expand nationally.

Hi, Norman!

Wanted to let you know that your question was so darned delicious we served it up as one of our featured questions in our savvy "Coffee Talk with Experts" section.

Mark Bower, one of Idea Cafe's guest biz experts, took on your carpet booklet question and forked over some beefy bites of info for you (and others).

You all can see Mark's expert answer at
https://www.businessownersideacafe.com/RR/RRcof.html

under "This Week's Chewy Biz Question"; or if it isn't the featured answer, just click on Mark's photo, and it'll be forever listed there!

Wanted you all to know! He lists some great marketing options for this booklet.

Thanks for stopping by Idea Cafe and asking such a great biz question. Hope we all can help you out!

Best of Biz!

Idea Cafe's BizHostess
Maintaining a
"Fun Approach to Serious Business"