Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1909-06-03
VALUE IN ADVERTISING
Methods Adopted by Cities That
Find 1t Pays.
PRESS AGENTS ARE EMPLOYED


| One Of the surest ways to boom a
town and attract outsiders to it is by
advertising. Let the world at large
know Of it's attractions and its value
as a business and residential place.
If you read that Seattle, Tacoma,
Springfield, New Orleans, Shreveport,
Memphis, Pawtucket, is each and sew
orally the pIeasantest and the most
profitable place to live in; that in
Pittsburg neither stogies nor steel mil
lionaires are compulsory social habits;
that New York is the only place to buy
stylish clothes; that Greensboro, n. c.,
is half Yankee and half southern and
q money yieIder; that fortunes grow
on apple trees around Spokane; that
''the sun loves to shine on Kittitas;"
that San Francisco is better than it
was before; that there are no poor and
consequently no charities to support
in-one besitates to name it-and if
you continually come across refer
ences to the seductions and comforts
of these cities, you will know that
there's a reason.
The reason is that even cities now
adays employ press agents.
Advertising cities is merely another
application of the familiar truism that
advertising brings success" if what
you advertise bears out your adver-
tisement. The Springfield (Mass.) board
of trade has just awarded a prize Of
$500 for scheme for agenting the
city which calls for an expenditure of
$4,000 a year, including a combina-
ton advertising reading notice agent.
This plan is now In the hands Of a
special committee. Among the sug-
gested mediums Of publicity outside Of
magazines and newspapers, which, OF
course come first, are personal letters,
buttons, stickers, billboards and
monthly bulletin.
The Commercial club of Knoxville,
Tenn, expects to spend $4,000 this
year in the advertising columns of
northern and southern newspapers and
magazines. Spokane, Wash, is repeat
ing it's last years expenditure of $780,
900 in promotion work. 1t is circulat-
ing, chiefly through its chamber of
commerce, newspaper clippings, bro
chures, pamphlets, circulars, dodgers,
leaflets and copies of publications hay
ing descriptions Of the city. Every
inquirer for information is posted upon
the chambers bulletin board. He i'm
mediately receives letters and rates
and propositions and pictures from rail
ways, from land dealers, from bank
ers, etc.
This is one Of the most cOmprehen-
sive, impressive, eager and judicious
examples of the new system. Yet 1t is
only in the leaflet of dealer In SpO-
kane's city bonds that you learn that
Power City" owns its own water
works, it's own garbage crematOry and
much other valuable property and that
its net general bond indebtedness is
$1,510,0O0. No city that adVertises
tells you what the tax rate IS. None
except Houston, Tex, tells what re-
lief you are to have from the ordinary
or extraordinary burden of local politi-
cal grating.
What is spread broadcast, as oc-
casion serves, is notice that winters
are warm, summers cool Gas If you
wanted to stay the year round in one
spot, that there are numerous secret
societies, that growth has been rapid
population fancifully estimated for
1920, that in the suburbs there is not
much rain, and therefore that last
feebleness of noble minds, the dream
that hens can pay, will there come
true Others declare that within their
borders there is no sunstroke; others
that the town contains 1.-The only daily
newspaper south of Baltimore that car
ries a full up to date news service" or
that here is the only hippodrome south
of New York, or that it contains many
private sanitariums, or the largest can
dy factory, or an excellent race track,
or fifty through trains for other points!
Boston's long suit advertised by low
ing friends, is the circumstance that it
has five hour train to New York.
Greensboro, n. c.; Seattle, Wash,
and Pawtucket, R. l., have devices for
advertising on every piece of first class
mail Envelopes bear either q photo
graphic stamp and a patent opener
marked Pull For Greensboro or can
ceiling stamps saying Worlds Fair,
Seattle, 1909" or attachable stamps
with an arboreal design and the words
"Pawtucket, a City Beautiful"
One southern city circulates a minia-
ture poster of a portly and portentous
frock coated person of the southern
oratorical or political type, one hand
on hip and with the other reckoning
with two fingers to the world at large.
He beckons you to come from the il
limitable outer darkness. The very
way in which he throws his head back
and his waist line forward prepares
you for the announcement that if you
come to his town you will come to "a
geographical CENTER" whatever that
may be, and he offers you various
OPPORTUNITIES of an assured future"
and allows you to approach and expe-
rience the boon of schools, colleges,
art, music, health and that happiness
which genuine culture and elevated
associations tend to produce"
Houston, Tex, is offering q new IN
ducement to visitors and home seek
ers 1t has been paying out good
money for the advertisement at so
much per word:
Her city hall is a business house. She
has no wards, no ward politicians, no
graft. Her city officials are public work
Experts, growing In the service and kept
there as long as they make good-no
longer.