Income Opportunity

Income Opportunity

FAQS

How does THE LUTHERAN DIGEST agent program present income opportunities for individuals?

Most LUTHERAN DIGEST copies are shipped in bulk to participating Lutheran churches in the Upper Midwest, Great Lakes and Great Plain States (see map). These copies have inserts stapled in their centers featuring advertisements from businesses local to those participating churches. It is the proceeds from those advertisements that pay the DIGEST's print bills and make free copy distribution to the churches possible. Obviously, someone needs to obtain those advertisements...and that's what LUTHERAN DIGEST agent work is all about: public relations and fundraising through advertising sales.

Agents are independent contractors (their own small business operators) compensated by commissions and bonuses for the advertising they procure.
(Click here for income potential.)

Just what does LUTHERAN DIGEST sales agent work involve?

In simplest terms, it means traveling town to town, assuming the role of church emissary and raising the funds necessary for participating churches to receive their free DIGEST copies. These activities are conducted with the knowledge and continued permission of the participating pastors of course, so contact with them is first requested. Response to inquiries from other interested pastors and the occasional solicitation of new churches to participate in the program are other aspects of the work.

What's required to do this work?

A strong determination to succeed. Good people and organizational skills. Good health and energy for walking. A dependable vehicle and a small cash reserve to fund initial personal travel expenses. A willingness to operate away from familiar surroundings. A high school diploma or GED is desirable, but not mandatory. No previous sales experience is required, as informal, in-field orientation is available. Lutheran church affiliation is not necessary, though knowledge of the faith is helpful.

Honestly, there's no previous experience required?

That's right. Homemakers, farmers, office and factory workers, retirees...most with no previous public relations or sales experience....have successfully done (and are doing) this work. Many have become our top performers. Determination to succeed, energy, organization, a pleasant personality and a willingness to travel are the traits of successful sales agents.

Is the work full-time or part-time?

It can be either. However, part-time work depends on the definition of part-time. If the intended approach is to pick at this work...that is, work a morning here and two days later an afternoon there...then, no, this work is not suitable for part-time. If on the other hand, the intended approach is to set aside a 1-2 week block of time, work diligently to complete as quickly as possible and rest in between "jobs"...then, yes, part-time work can be accommodated.

As a regularly scheduled periodical, THE LUTHERAN DIGEST has production deadlines. Once work is started, it must be given priority; it must progress consistently and rapidly to completion...not dawdled over. Nearly five decades of experience has shown that successful sales agents get on the work and stay on it until it's done. They build up a "momentum" that a piecemeal (morning here, afternoon there) approach to the work does not allow.

Is the work "year round"?

Again, it can be. It all depends on what sales areas are available at any particular time and the sales agent's willingness to travel to those areas. Though most sales areas are located in the northern and central tier United States, a limited number are located in Arizona, Texas and Florida. It is possible for some sales agents to follow the sun south in the winter and north in the summer.

Is it possible to experience the work before actually becoming a LUTHERAN DIGEST sales agent?

Yes. In fact, that's the way most sales agents start. Arrangements are made for serious candidates to tag along with an experienced LUTHERAN DIGEST sales agent or agent couple where fundamentals of the work can be demonstrated. (Candidates are not allowed to actually sell advertising, however, until after signing a non-binding sales agent agreement. THE LUTHERAN DIGEST cannot compensate candidates unless they are "under contract.") Should the candidate decide to become a full-fledged agent at that point, work involvement and exposure intensifies so that by the end of several days, the candidate should be ready to go out on his or her own.

"Agent couple" was just mentioned. Are husband-and-wife teams common?

Yes. That's part of the appeal of this work: spouses can "travel the States" together...and get paid in the process.

How each couple shares the work is as unique as each couple. With some couples, both sell; with others, one sells and the other does the paper work, drives, navigates, etc. What's important is the companionship/support each provides the other while on extended road trips. Also important, from an economics standpoint, is the double deduction couples are able to claim on their taxes. For more information, click on expenses.

What's provided to new people when they start work as sales agents?

Aside from the usual identification documents, sales aids and supplies, each sales area comes with a "renewal packet." In this packet is a computer-generated list giving pertinent information concerning the previous cycle's advertising sponsors and their account history. Also included are copies of any correspondence generated between the sponsors/churches and the LUTHERAN DIGEST office during the previous cycle for that area. Agents are as informed as THE LUTHERAN DIGEST can make them when they enter a sales area to begin work.

Do advertisers typically renew their ads, or are all sales new each cycle?

Most renew. The number varies from sales area to sales area, but, on national average, nearly 2/3 of the advertisers renew. The agent's work is simplified because only about 1/3 of the advertisers usually need to be replaced in each area. Agents are not "starting from scratch" each time.

Travel's constantly being mentioned. Why can't agents stay at home and get advertising by telephone or mail?

Quite simply because nothing beats face-to-face contact for sales effectiveness. Besides, in-person contact is what differentiates THE LUTHERAN DIGEST from most other periodicals serving the Lutheran church. It sets our agents apart and makes them unique...and better assures their sales success.

Alright, so travel is necessary. How long are agents typically away from home?

That depends on several factors. How big (money-wise and geography-wise) is the sales area? How far away is it from the agent's home? How fast, organized and effective is the agent in his/her sales work?

On average, excluding to-and-from travel time, a sales area should take 5 to 10 days to complete. If travel is required to and from the sales area, agents can be away from home upwards of 2-3 weeks.

How often are agents typically away from home?

That all depends on how much income the agents want to make. If they are just looking for pocket money or want to supplement retirement income...a few times a year. If, on the other hand, they plan this work as their primary livelihood, they will need to be away from home much of the time.

Why do agents who want to derive their primary livelihood from this work have to be on the road so much?

Each LUTHERAN DIGEST sales area is worked once a year for the year...there are no ongoing year-round sales activities. If agents are fortunate enough to work their hometown area, they do so for just a short time during the year. If they wish to derive more income from LUTHERAN DIGEST work, they must move into other areas. Depending on where the agents live, that can be across the county, across the state, or, sometimes, out of state.

How are agents assigned territories?

THE LUTHERAN DIGEST doesn't deal in conventional geographic territories but, rather, with clusters of Lutheran churches in relative close proximity to one another. These church clusters...or "Keys" as we call them...are the sales areas.

New agents select from a list of available, non-committed Keys. If a selected Key is worked to satisfactory completion (that is, to the assigned sales dollar goal and within the allotted 30-day time frame), the agent is given the opportunity to work it again the next year. Successful work two years in a row (unless there are mitigating circumstances) entitles the agent to work that Key year to year thereafter provided the required sales performance is maintained. "Territory," then, is built by progressively selecting and successfully working Keys over time...much like a trapper builds a "trapline."

How much income can a LUTHERAN DIGEST sales agent make?

As independent "business" operators, agents' income (commission and bonus) potential reflects their own desire/need for income, their effectiveness in performing the work, and their willingness to travel to the available work. Top performers earn in the eighty-thousand-dollar range annually; others typically earn in the thirty-and forty-thousand-dollar ranges.

Who pays expenses?

As independent contractors, agents are responsible for their own FICA, Medicare, travel, subsistence, vehicle, insurance and other sundry taxes and expenses. They are, after all, operating their own "mini-businesses." The plus side is that expenses related to performing LUTHERAN DIGEST sales agent work are tax-deductible. Agents do the work...many times seeing the sights or visiting family and friends along the way. (NOTE: Tax-deductibility varies with individual circumstances. THE LUTHERAN DIGEST is not a tax advisory service, and interested parties are directed to their own tax professionals for advice on their specific circumstances.)

When are agents paid?

Commissions on sales that are paid for at the time the ad is sold are usually paid the same week that they are reported to THE LUTHERAN DIGEST office. Commissions on sales that must be billed to the customer by the THE LUTHERAN DIGEST office for later payment are paid at the beginning of each month for ad payments that came in from customers the month previous.

Bonuses, when awarded for having done a good job on a sales area, are paid at the beginning of each calendar quarter for sales areas completed the quarter previous.

The foregoing questions are those most frequently asked by prospective sales agents. You may have others. If so, please ask. Just click on contact us. If you are interested in becoming a LUTHERAN DIGEST sales agent, please complete the information blank.