The San Francisco call., 1896-11-07
ADVERTISING.

The CALL publishes to-day the first of a
series of letters on advertising, which
have been specially written for this paper
by Clement Wilder, the weli-known adver-
tising specialist. We call particular at
tention to them as matters of Importance
now that trade is reviving
The Honorable Arthur Balfour, in a speech
before the English Newspaper Society in
London last year, said: The general news
and comments and all the other machinery of
communicating information to the public
really are not of more Importance to the COM
munity at large than the power of communi-
cation by advertising"
wonder If the average business man ever
stops to think how much money is yearly in
vested in advertising. / say invested ad-
visedly, for advertising is an inves tment, good
or bad, according 10 the attention paid to it
and the quality OF the wares advertised.
1t has been estimated by one of Americas
best informed business exper Is q man who is in
better position to know than any other, that
there was put into advertising in the United
States alone, during the year 1895, $256, ,O0O,.
coo. OF this amount $110, ZOO, 900, he says
was paid TO the newspapers. And yet in spite
of this enormous expenditure, which is in
creasing every year, the N majority of business
men still look upon advertising as a business
help support the local newspaper" and they
fee from the advertising solicitor as If he were
possessed of the plague.
Ask the ordinary business man to advertise
and six times out of eight he will reply: ooh,
what's the use? No one will ever see my ad,
and if they do they won't read it," But pub
lish in the same medium. in the same space
and in the same type, some indiscretion of
his, and he will Immediately become frantic
nvQr fh..th thnt, hat fhn yhnf
know os it
1t is not too much to say that nine-tenths of
all advertising does not pay, and when say
this am speaking OF all kinds of adver Using
not that done in newspapers only. Six-tenths,
because proper attention is not given 10 the
preparation of the advertisements and the
selection of mediums; three-tenths, because
the advertisements are not backed up by right
goods and proper handling Of customers.
That advertising does pay and pay big when
given constant business, brainy attention is
proven by the colossal fortunes made, and
being made, in trade with advertising recog-
niZed as an important and essential factor.
j. Z. Aver began life as drug clerk, and at
first advertised his Cherry Pectoral in a small
but judicious way, gradually increasing his
expenditure year by year. When he died his
fortune was estimated at $40, 100000.
Twenty years ago A. B. Scott of Scott &
oo"hO WaS NOHkluE db ID utc To-
day his frn is spending 100000 per year in
advertising Scott's Emulsion.
Royal Baking Powder is probably the best
known article manufactured in America
j. c. Hoaeland, the originator of the ar
ticle and founder of the business, was, in the
early Sixties the proprietor of a small drug
store in Fort Wayne. Ind Last year 100000
was expended and 4,5OO publications used in
giving publicity to Royal Baking Powder.
Is there business man in America who has
not heard of John Wanamaker, the merchant
prince OF Philadelphia, and now of New
York also, through his purchase of the
famous house founded by A. T. Stewart ? Mr..
Wanamaker himself has said that he at
tributes his success in a very great measure
TO his continuous advertising, and that he
would as soon think of doing without clerks
as without advertising 1t is worthy of note
by retailers that the advertising of the great
Wanamaker store is and always has been car
ried on almost exclusively In the daily news
papers, and that the reading matter of its ad-
vertisements in its entirety is changed each
insertion.
Ihose experiences ana successes are not
exceptions. The list is long and growing.
AS writer recently observed, it is becom-
ing harder every day to avoid advertising. No
matter how long you have been established,
nor how old and reliable your name, if your
competitor advertises you will find yourself
compelled to meet him on his own ground and
advertise also, or he will eventually pull away
your trade CLEMENT WILDER.