Confuse People For Fun And Cash

Confuse People for Fun and Cash


Scenario: You've just walked into the grocery store, your shopping list firmly in hand, and you grab a weekly flyer, ready to maneuver the crowded aisles. You glance down at the flyer and notice there is a word search on the front page. Hmm, you think. The headline says, “Find all the words in the puzzle and you'll learn all the weekly specials and get $5 off your order, if you spend $25 or more.”

Sounds pretty cool, huh? Ever seen such a promotion? If not, then why not start a business creating puzzles and word searches? Then, you can approach grocery stores with such a promotional idea.

Actually, this is a very simple business to start! All you need is software that will allow you to create search puzzles and word finds. A quick Google search should fetch you plenty of options. Here are two to get you started: Crossword Puzzle Maker and 1-2-3 Word Search Maker. (Both sites offer demos, so you can check them out to help you decide if you want to purchase or not.)

Okay, so once you have the software, you are ready to go. Let's take a look at some of the different clients you can attract and puzzles you can create:

* You can approach local school districts, offering puzzle books or word searches for each specific subject: history (World War II, Revolutionary War, etc.), English (perhaps a specific book the class is currently reading), science (biology, chemistry, etc.), and even a foreign language class like French or Spanish. You can give the clues in one language, English for example, and the students have to find the word in Spanish. A great selling point is the puzzles are both fun and educational.

* You can create puzzles for people with different hobbies: fishing, hunting, news addicts, history, etc.

* You might want to create greeting card booklets filled with puzzles for anniversaries, birthdays, graduations, and even holidays.

* Approach local churches and youth groups, you might team up and create puzzle books as part of a fundraiser. You can either split the profits or take a commission from each puzzle book sold.

* Approach local grocery stores (as in the above sample) and other retail stores and offer to team up in a promotion that somehow incorporates your puzzle books.

You may consider offering a personalized service. Let's say a client contacts you, and tells you he's throwing a 50th anniversary party for his parents. He would like you to create a personalized puzzle for all the guests. You might have him give you a list of words, phrases, and other information so you can make fun memorable puzzles.

At the end of each puzzle book, you might create an advertisement offering a weekly subscription to the puzzle books - every week, a brand new one will show up in your customers' mailboxes. You might have different genres: puzzle book groups for history buffs, football fanatics, nature lovers, and so on.

You have so many options, and all you really need to start is the proper software. A fun simple business could really be profitable with some creativity and determination.

Resources:

http://edhelper.com/wordfind.htm

http://edhelper.com/puzzles.htm

http://www.crosswordpuzzlegames.com/create.html