The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1892-01-07
WILLIAM WANAMAKER's WAY
He Thinks the People Cannot BE
Hrnbugged.


Humbugged.
Mr William H. Wanamaker, a mem
b,r of the Philadelphia firm Of Wana-
mailer & Brown, on a brief business trip
to Louisville, where the firm has a -four
ishiDe branch establishment. has been
giving his views on the general subject
o: advertising in the Louisville CONNER
clal. Ills opinion and experience will be
read with interest He says: There are
10 people anywhere that can be hum
bugsed or deceived more than once.
Your customer. while lie may not know
the intrinsic merit Of what you offer. can
form Il pretty fair idea of quality, and
once you n1siead him his confidence in
vou is gone forever, and besides that he
will influence a portion Of his circle of
friends against you.
If there is any one thing would offer
as 4 maxim to advertisers it is this, The
truth pays. Some years we have spent
over I, quarter of Il million dollars in ad-
vertls'ng and you can readily see that
we tave given the subject very much
practical trial. and have studied it theo-
reticaly as a science. In all these years
we have watched the returns carefully
from every standpoint we have taken,
and are now prepared to give our un-
Qualified opinion that more and better
returns are given to us through the news
papers than all the other means ever
tried
We advertise every day in the year."
said Sir W.. except Sunday There is
always some trade doing. even in the
LTlleSt season. and we strive to divert
the Coating or transient trade to our
place Again. when business ordinarily
is dull. people who see our invitations in
the newspapers are more apt to read
them. for the reason that they have more
time to read. and there are fewer adver-
tlsements then Many merchants who
have been IN business for a certain num-
Der Of years will say, Oh, we are so well
known 1t Is no use for Us to advertise.
There never was Il greater mistake We
would as soon think Of canceling our in
surance policies as our advertising con-
tracts. We spend more money with
newspapers each year that goes by; there
are more people who want goods, and
new trade is always coming to the sur
face.
advertising that is well done is Gu
mulative in its character. 1t is like the
colnpounding Of interest An adver-
tisement inserted in daily paper one
day will, IN all probability, make good
return to the merchant who has the
goods the people want at the right prices
Each successive advertisement that he
puts III gains an impetus and influence
from the original one, and SO it counts
lp Eutl the name Of the firm gets what
Is equivalent to the good will of sue
cessful business besides deriving the
direct profit from immediate sales caused
by the advertising
To advertise well merchant should
give as much care to his newspaper
pace as he does to any other department
of the nlSIu".s- As a general thing a
merchant can we'll afford to spend in
newspaper advertising from one-third to
ou,. fifth the amount of all his other
total EXPENSES If man in business
tai.,- ~ earnestly through his newspaper
HeiI he IL addressing one or two hun
,.rrL thousand l,eople simultaneously
- wiIeu be Is talking to one customer,
f.e canno, fail TO make success of news
paper advertising"