The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1892-09-23
TELL THE TRUTH ALWAYS.
Some Hints to Advertisers That May lie
Worth Needing.

Some hints to Advertisers That May lie
Worth Heeding.
OF two advertisers the one who tells
the whole truth concerning an article
will in time be more successful than he
who tells only portion of the truth.
This does not mean that advertisers or
statesmen shall talk simply for the pleas
ure of showing how much they know
concerning the goods Experience has
fully demonstrated the truth of the slang
phrase, Talks cheap" and it is well
known that the salesman who talks in
cessantly is not the man who sells the
largest quantity of goods, nor is the long
est advertisement the one that is most
frequently read. But if it becomes nee
essary to go into detail about an article
do not equivocate concerning it.
Some advertisers will deliberately go
out of their way to liza hard, but new
ertheless a true statement. "This cloak
So; worth Sl2." 'This beautiful cash
mere 80 cents; worth $780,"
The man on the ''inside" knows that
house would not, and indeed could not,
sell staple goods all the year at loss,
and consequently there must be a lie
somewhere The public may be taken
in for time, but there will surely be
reaction. merchant once said: "Of
course, if we were doing business in a
small town we could not play the public
with these constant bats, but we calcu-
| late that by the time one class of people
has become dissatisfied, another class of
the ever shifting population will step in
and take their places" This is a bad
principle upon which to do permanent
business, and Judging from the changein
the style of this same merchants adver-
tisements, he also has become convinced
that it is bad.
There is another style of advertising
which is practiced in some of our best
establishments. No lie is told, but the
truth is expressed in a manner intended
to mislead "a species of acted lie. During
the past season there was "a time when
fur capes could not be delivered fast
enough. Everybody wanted them, and
the merchant who was fortunate enough
to have a stock of these goods could turn
them over at a fair profit Astrakhan
was one of the popular furs. The capes
brought about $12 and the muffs about
SO. 90 and 81 at retail. No wonder, then,
that many ladies were allured by sign
on a cape in an up town store which
read, Remarkably cheap, only $3.50
The writer was in the store when a lady
asked to be shown one of the SD. 70 capes.
"Ohl that sign don't mean the cape, "
said the clerk, "it is the mulf that is
1915"
"Then why" asked the lady, "do you
put the sign on the cape and not on the
muff?''
Elm sure / don't know. ] suppose
that the firm take it for granted that no.
body would expect to get fur cape at
that price. and that the $3.75 must refer
to the muH.
THAT may be as you say, but it is
nevertheless an attempt to deceive"
This was the customers verdict, anC
she was entirely correct. When the
customer had gone inquiry was made
and the fact elected that for some reason
the trade had fallen off wonderfully fol
the two days that the sign had been eX
hbited. TWAS plain that the ladies' feel
: ing indignant at an attempted imposition
turned away from that department with
out making any purchase. Dry Good
Economists.