Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1888-01-05
POOR ADVERTISING
Philadelphia Times.

Philadelphia Times.
This is the season of the year when the
grandson of his grandfather, and fogy
business men generally, waste thousands
/ of dollars by waste-basket advertising
They seldom advertise in newspapers,
which now go into every family, and are
accepted by all as the legitimate medium
for trade to reach the people. They do
not advertise because their grandfathers
did MT do it, obviously forgetful of the
fact that those grandfathers had no news
papers of general circulation through
which to reach the public a few of
them now and then venture in newspa-
per advertising, and true to their grand
fathers ideas, they hunt for what they
suppose to be cheap advertising, and they
end in paying half as much for an ad-
vertisement that reaches a few thousands
as it would cost to reach ten times as
many of much more thrifty class.
The strong hold of the grandson of his
grandfather in advertising, or what he
supposes to be advertising, is for the
waste basket. He gets up 5000 or 1O,-
600 or 10000 circulars, such as his grand
father got up when circulars were a ne
cessity, in the absence of generally cir
culating newspapers; he gets them print
ed according to his fancy; he puts them
in envelopes; he stamps them with sim
gle stamp, which requires them to go out
unsealed; he sends them to the post-office,
whence they are delivered from house to
house, only to be thrown into the waste
basket by the servants. The open cir
cular is known to be an advertisement,
and from fogy dealer, and it goes its
way into the waste basket in nineteen
houses out of twenty, without even at
tracing the curiosity of the servant
These circulars, if the cheapest kind,
cost, including postage, printing, and
envelopes, SIS for 1000, $3.50 for TO-
600, or $500 for 10000, and not one in
| fifty is read or even seen by the custom
ers they are expected to reach. The
grandson of his grandfather does MT
seem to know that for $50, the cost of
10000 of the cheapest circulars, which.
are seldom opened and never read, would
place nearly column advertisement in
the three most widely read newspapers
in Philadelphia, where it would reach
more than a quarter million of bona fide
subscribers or purchasers, and where it
would be likely to be seen by full mil
lion readers. 1t Is thus that the grand
son of his grandfather wastes his money
| in waste-basket advertising.
Then there is another class of the bu-
siness grandsons of their grandfathers.
They are progressive; they mean to ad
vertise by circulars to attract attention;
they understand that unsealed circulars
go into the waste basket, and they get
up pretty circular, seal it in the envel-
Ope, mail it, and congratulate themselves
that they have made good stroke of
business progress. And how does their
account stand? Their circulars, inclu-
ding postage, printing and envelopes,
cost three cents each; SO 90 for 100; $50
for 1000; $500 for 10000, and 5000 for
10000. The $500 paid for 10000 seal
ed circulars, most of which are pitched
into the waste basket as soon as opened,
would pay for column advertisement
in every morning paper published in
Philadelphia, whereby over 100000 sub
scribers and purchasers would be reach
ed, and nearly million and a half of
readers secured; and taking 5000, the
cost of 10000 sealed circulars, which
seek the waste basket, column adver-
tisement could be put in every newspa-
per in Philadelphia, morning and eve
ming, at the highest rate and in the best
position, which would practically reach
every home in Philadelphia and in most
of the surrounding country from which
trade is drawn to our city, and two,
| tl--e-S- - 1890 rf these papers would of
ten go into the same family. Such is
the practical business sagacity of thc
more liberal grandson of his grandfather
We leave out of the calculation the
yet more liberal and progressive grand
son of his grandfather who gets up costly
circulars, costing from S5 to SO per 100;
$50 to 800 per 1000; $500 to s1,000p
10000, which go to limited circles, and
usually share the fate of their cheaper
brethren by landing in the waste basket.
They expend as much to reach 1000
people, who are not reached at all, eX-
cept to accumulate their waste paper, as
would bring their business prominently
before every customer of every class
within the range of Philadelphia trade;
but the grandson of his grandfather will
be the grandson of his grandfather to
| the end, and he will waste hundreds and
| thousands in waste basket advertising
and wonder why others thrive in bust
ness while his trade is dying out of the
dry rot. The genuine fogy who doesn't
advertise at all is wiseS than the grand
son of his grandfather who thinks that
because circulars had to take the place
of newspapers half century or more ago,
they must be so still; but the intelligent,
practical, progressive business man who
didn't happen to have grandfather to
narrow and crib his ideas of business,
takes the vastly cheaper and better col
umns of the generally circulated news
paper to confer with the public, and he
grows in business and prosperity because
he shuns waSte-b basket advertising as the |
most idiotic waste Of money. Stop waste
basket advertising; it doesn't pay.
COAL FAMINE IN CALIFORNIA.
The San Francisco Call
The great scarcity of coal in this mar
ket at present, and the likelihood of but
little of the commodity coming in for
some time to come, is the cause Of con-
siderable apprehension throughout the
city. Frequently there has been as
much as $4,000 tons on hand at one
time, but just now it would be difficult
to find 5000 tons in first hands. San
Francisco's consumption is about 1885,
900 tons monthly. The prospects for
the next four or five weeks are decided
" favorable for a coal famine. This
state of affairs is owing principally to
the recent wheat deal, and to the fact
that two Of the domestic mines in Wash
ington Territory are on fire. The wheat
ebins heretofore have brought in a great