The record-union., 1895-11-23
THE QUESTION OF ADVERTISING

THE QUESTION OF ADVERTISING.
Our San Francisco contemporaries
have a quarrel over the question of
their circulation. If the advertiser will
snalyze their stories, as he surely will
later on, he will discover that he is pay
ing a very large amount of money for
advertising when he advertises in any
three of the papers Of that city. The Ex
aminer claims a city circulation of 80
600, the Chronicle $4,000 and the Call
$4,000.
The Spring Valley Water Company's
records show that there are $4,000
houses in the City of San Francisco
supplied with water; that is to say,
there are $4,000 taps of record in the
water companys offices. OF these,
there are at the present time 5000
vacant taps, which means that 5000
domiciles are paying no water rent.
This leaves 10000 houses occupied in
the City of San Francisco, and this
NUMBER includes all classes; among
them there are at least 10000 houses
IL be found among the poorer classes
where no paper is left at all. 1t is a
pers are left at the doors of 10000
houses in that city. But the fact should
not be overlooked that the three morn
ing papers claim a circulation of ~,
COO and that the three evening papers
claim an aggregate circulation of about
10000 This would give 10000 sub
scribers served by the daily papers of
San Francisco at 10000 houses. These
approximations are incomplete if we
leave out Of consideration the fact that
at least 5000 houses in that city are oc-
cupied by Chinese who are not sub
scribers to papers; and that at least
5000 more are occupied by Portuguese,
italians, Spaniards and other foreigners,
who are unable to read English. We
think, therefore, 10000 is an extreme
boarding. houses, receive large numbers,
the Palace Hotel being in receipt Of
over 800, while many Of the boarding
houses receive as high as 100. Thus
the 10000 subscribers claimed to be
served by the oan Francisco papers are
residing in 10000 houses, which, by
reason of the number served to the
hotels and restaurants, makes an aver
age Of three daily papers to each dom
icile served by them.
The advertiser who puts an adver-
tisement into three morning and three
evening papers is paying for a circula-
tion on the basis of 10000 subscribers.
and it is clearly deducible from the
facts herein presented that these no.
600 subscribers are duplicates and trip
ncates to the extent of three TO one.
Therefore the man who advertises in
all of the principal dailies of San Fran
cisco is throwing away one-third of his
money.
There is a false factor in the state
ments of our contemporaries some
where. If in the aggregate the three
morning and three evening papers of
that city circulate 10000. the people of
San Francisco are the most liberal pa
irons of the daily press of any city in
the United States or the world. Each
OF the papers, however, claim the right
TO charge the advertiser a rate common
surate with his circulation. 1t becomes
obvious. then, that the advertiser who
advertises in the six papers, and pays
upon the basis of 10000 subscribers. is
paying three times what he should.
Judging from well-established observa-
ton. there is no probability that more
than 10000 citizens Of San Francisco
are subscribers to the daily press.
There are about 10000 voters in that
city, including all classes, ages and con-
ditions. This number includes young
men, living in their fathers families,
with all the classes who cannot read
English. It is scarcely probable that
under these circumstances more than
10000 out of 10000 are regular sub
scribers to the daily press. A large
number of people depend upon the
free paper at the restaurants or the
hotel table or in the saloons. The city