Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-05-26
A Self=Made Merchant
The Good Drummer-He Is the One
Whose Letters Contain Chiefly
Orders for Goods,


Whose Letters Contain Chiefly
Orders for Goods.
Dear Pierrepont--When | saw you
start off yesterday, was just a little
uneasy, for you looked SO blamed I'M
portant and chesty that am inclined
~ think you will tell the first customer
who says he doesn't like our sausage
that he knows what he can do about
it. Repartee makes reading lively, but
business duh. And what the house
needs is more orders.
Sausage is the one subject Of all
others that fellow In the packing
business ought to treat solemnly. Half
Che people in the world take joke Sc
riously from the start and the other
half if you repeat it often enough.
Only last week the head of our sau-
sage department started to put out q
tin tag brand Of frankfurts, but
made him take it Off the market quick
er than lightning, because l knew that
the first fool who saw the tin tag
would ask if that was the license. And,
though people would grin little at
first, they'd begin TO look serious after
awhile, and whenever the butcher
tried to sell them our brand they'd I'M
agine they heard the bark and ask for
that real country sausage at twice
us much a pound.
A "sal salesman is one part talk and
nine parts Judgment. and he uses the
nine parts of Judgment to tell when
to use the one part of talk. Goods
ain't sold under Marques of Queens
berry rules any more, and you'll find
that knowing how many rounds the
Old I'm can last against the Boiler
Maker won't really help You to load
up the junior partner with our corn
fed brand hams
A good many statesmen have an idea
that buyers are only interested in bnse
ball. funny stories and Tom Upton
ard that business is a side line with
them, but as Il matter of fact mighty
few men work up to the position OF
buyer through giving up their Office
hours to listening to anecdotes. never
saw one that liked drummer's jokes
more than an eighth Of cent a pound
on Il fierce of lard. What the house
really sends you out for is orders.
or course you want to be nice and
mellow with the trade, but always re
member that melloWness carried too
far becomes rottenness. You can buy
some fellows with cheap cigar and
nha Int
there's no objection to giving man
what he likes. though l never knew
smoking to do anything good except 81
ham or tiattery to help any one except
to make fool of himself
Real buyers amt interested in much
besides your goods and your prices
Never run down your competitors
brand to them. and never let them run
down yours. Don't get on your knees
for business. but don't hold your nose
SO high in the air that an order can
travel under it without your seeing it,
You'll meet a good many people on the
road that you won't like, but the house
needs their business.
For your own satisfaction l will say
right here that you may know you are
In fair way Of becoming. good drum.
mer by three things:
First.-Nhen you send us orders
Second More orders.
Third.-Big orders.
If you do this, you won't have great
deal of time to write long letters, and
we won't have great deal of time to
read them. for we will be very, very
busy here making and shipping the
goods. We aren't specially interested
in orders that the other fellow gets or
in knowing how it happened after it
has happened. If you like life on the
road. you simply won't let it happen.
So just send us your address every day
and your orders. They will tell us all
that we want to know about "the stu
alton"