The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1889-08-15
HABITS OF The ADVERTISERS.
Few Who Spend JudiciOusly-The New
Paper-Should Be No Canvaaser.

Few Who Spend JudlciOusly-The New
Paper-Should Be No CanvaSser.
National Review.l
Most projectors when they contemplate
starting paper roll their tongues in their
mouths at the delicious prospect of wealth
in the shape of advertisements, and they
say: "We must have good canvasser,
and get plenty of them. The habit of
the genus advertiser is sadly against the
realization of these hopes. The adver.
tiser is a stupid being, with only one &C
curate idea ruling him, and that is that
the spending of money in advertising
pays Given good thing well adver-
tised in a judicious way and the profits
are sure. but there are very few adver-
tisers who spend udiciously. Some have
passion for the backs of monthly peri
odicals, and will advertise nowhere else;
some like time tables; some believe in
hoardings.
Assuming the selection good, the
course is wide one; but 'the meu who
work on systems such as this ale very
few. Most advertisers persist in advertis-
ing where every one else does. and seem
70 think they will be seen in the crowd.
1t is this common error that forms the
stumbling block to new papers. Pro
jectors will succeed very well with the
announce by circular that the
first number Of a new periodical is about
to appear and the inveterate advertiser
crowds Ia. The knowing ones seek to
make long contracts and cheap prices, and
bargain for specific places of great prorAi
nence.
The first number over all is changed.
The advertisement revenue drops in q
week to third and the period of dreary
dependency sets in. The managers diff
ficulties now begin in earnest. He knows,
if he understands his business, that his
duty is to go on issuing a first-rate paper
full of news. with special editions, and
congratulate himself that the space his
competitors devote to advertisements can
be given by him to the reader The pro
jectors, however. draw a long face, and
the advertiser offers low prices In nine
cases out Of ten the manager succumbS,
and sends a caovaSser out 20 make the best
terms he can.
This is wrong There should be no
canvasser begging for advertisements 1t
is proper TO have a man in the office to
wait on those advertisers who want to
see him, but he should not 60 round for
orders Why? Because the moment you
ask for an order the advertiser feels he is
comforting favor by granting it, and
that you are not worth your price The
manager should go on issuing good pa
per that the public will run after, and
then advertisers will run after him /
know of a case in which paper had been
struggling for eighteen years. Half the
paper was occupied with advertisements,
but the advertisers despised it, and
screwed the price down.
A new system was adopted The man
ager said: L shall allow only one fourth
of the paper to be occupied with adver-
tisements, and the price shall be adhered
to- F." He revised his editorial arrange
ments, and in six months the circulation
had trebled, and the fewer advertisements
yielded so per cent. more money with
out canvassing. | know this is heretical
doctrine, and have no expectation that
any one will follow the advice, but the
law is Ineligible First make the paper
good, and place it where it can be bought
The rest will follow The public will
buy; the advertisers will follow the public
and come oyou with gold in their hands