The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1908-09-25
LOCAL PAPER FIRST

ne local newspaper Is Lne lOCal ln-
innate friend of the people you are
trying TO reach in each locality. You
may advertise in a few metropolitan
newspapers and break ground in a
big way. but you cannot get all the
results. and. in my opinion, you can
not get the best results unless you
bring TO your aid the daily association
OF the local editor with his local read
ers.
Many a man in Kansas City reads
and believes a statement vigorously
and often repeated in the Kansas City
Star for instance, who would pay no
attention 10 the same statement if he
saw il in the New York Journal 1t
wouldn't seem TO him to be a state
ment from home. And there are many
men in the small towns around Kan
sas City that would pay less atten-
. ton 20 a statement published in Col
onel Nelson's newspaper than to that
same statement published in a local
newspaper much smaller, much less
important in the worlds eyes, but
f published al their homes.
I am especially anxious to empha-
size this point because l feel very
deeply the importance of supporting
. local newspaper enterprises and of
4 rewarding adequately the work done
. by the local editor and his staff. You
cannot keep this country in order
. YOU cannot regulate or keep down its
/ finely organized rascality unless you
have in every little town and, if pos
sible. in every little village, the local
editor. who is a moral policeman, US
ing publicity as his club.
10 you Kill the local editor by neg
lecting his advertising columns you
deprive his locality and the country
a. large of the most important fea-
ture of public defense and good gov
. ernmenL You harm the community
as YOU would harm the farmers if
YOU went Systematically TO work
starving their watchdogs TO death
The local editors are the watch
4 dogs OF the local neighbOrhOod. and
r iu addition TO that. they are the real
4 defenders of the public. They do 2
work that a handful of metropolitan
f newspapers cannot pretend to do
+ Fortunately they give you a good
. return. the best return for your adj
yertisiug investment. when you ad-
yertise with them wisely, and they
viii grow in power and prosperity
with the growth of intelligent adver-
/ Using.
] would say TO the writer Of adver-
f tisements. as I would say to a report
or or a young editorial writer, that
the most important thing of all is
simplicity in language, distinct u1-
terance Of each thought, perfectly dis
/ tinct separation Of each thought from
each other thought. to avoid cOnfus-
ion. and above all things, cultivate a
] - ~ Easily ANaA AlNCAs man CeAAA
write simply. readably, if he will.
/ Certain formulas, I think, hold
good in the advertising field, as in
other fields of human effort The val
ne OF an advertisement depends, first,
upon the number Of people it reach
es: second. upon their willingness
and comfort in reading it, and, third,
upon the ability of the readers to buy
the goods advertised.
II is important for the advertiser
10 avoid duplicating his advertise,
ment. Much money is wasted that
way. A man goes into a big city and
advertises in half a dozen or more of
the newspapers in that city. One
man buys three or four newspapers
and takes them all home. Only one
out of the three or four is read by
the woman of the house.
The advertising done in the 9th
ers il duplicated or wasted-mOney
thrown away.-Arthur Brisbane to AID
. vertising Men at Kansas City.