PLAN No. 564. PUBLIC SCHOOL DIRECTORY
An experienced ad. solicitor in a California city, who wished to go into business for himself, conceived the idea of publishing a complete school directory, which would be without cost to the school board, and would net him a good profit.
He therefore interviewed the members of the board, and said to them: “If you will furnish me with the school calendar for the coming year, the names and addresses, with telephone numbers, of the board of directors, the standing committees of the same, dates of regular meetings, personnel and location of the superintendent’s office, supervisors, attendance officer, health supervision, superintendent of buildings and journals, manual training department, department of household arts, high schools, evening schools, and graded schools, with names, addresses and telephone numbers of principals, assistants and teachers, and an alphabetical list of all the latter, I will print it in the best directory form, absolutely at my own expense, provided I shall receive all the proceeds of whatever advertising of an approved nature I can secure for the same.”
The board accepted the offer, placed all the required data at his disposal, and he then began to secure ads. for the directory. Advertisers were so favorably impressed with the value of his directory as a medium of publicity, that he contracted for enough to bring him in over $1,800. The directory, when printed, cost him less than $400.