The bee., 1910-12-13
NEWSPAPER is BEST MEDIUM
Banker Declares That Program Ads are
Simply Donations System Should
be Followed.

be Followed.
Declaring that program adYertis-
inc savors OF too much charity ana
mat bnsiness meu might better give
the cash outright TO the cause; that
newspaper advertising is the best
medium through which TO reach the
mamie and that an advertisements
today aud none tomorrow is money
thrown away, Mortimer l. Stevens
qave a spirited embarrassing talk
an advertising before the 225 bank
ers assenb ed in recent annual con-
yention at La Crosse, Wis.
Mr.. Stevens referred to the stereo-
typed advertisement used by bank
ers i'm days gone by, stating the cap
ital and declared that in this money
was being thrown away. Or all ad-
vertising. 70 per cent is hitand miss
no said. There IS no preconceived
idea to carry out and the result is
ehoas.
That certaju sum should be set
ns,de bv the bank for its advertis-
ING. is the opinion of Mr.. Stevens, q
campaign mapped out and followed
as closely as circumstances will per-
nit.
Advertising Is not given today by
a successfui business man out OF
charity to a newspaper man who has
Done him some favor. 1t is cold
blooded proposition.
Sticktoitiveness 10 required II one
would succeed. declared the speak
OF.
"Don't advertise today and drop
n tomorrow. Don't knock your
neighbor Ia your ads. If yon do,the
shances are the customer who
might be yours will walk on the 9TH
or side.
"Space is of no value without
something to fill it. To fill space so
that it will bring results requires
brains.
"Dress up your ad and make it at
tractive and fOrceful. A judiciOus
use of white space should be COM
bined with the proper way of word
ing and arranging the ad. An ad
set solid does not hit the mark.
Mr.. Stevens emphasized the neces-
sity OF patronizing home papers
rather than an outside agencv,
which gets rakeOff on the work, 81
per cent. of which should be done
near home.
"You are likely to find that items
OF interest In which the name OF
your institution might appear are
missing when your advertising is
placed away from home" ssid he.
They might be of considerable
value to you. these littleitems, and.
You wonder why they are overlook
ed. Place your advertising with
bhe paper direct aud cooperate with
them in furnishing news which will
be Of general interest and into
which they will be glad to mention
ihe name of your institution as a
sort of exchange OF courtesy"
Among other things he said:
"Time was when the bank adver-
hsement, IL 1t appeared at all, was
nethIng more nor less than the
stereOty ped form of title, capital
and deposits and the names OF the
officers and directors, and 1t is to be
regretted that this form OF adver-
sisement Is in common use today
The money spent in such advertis-
ing is money thrown away.
ut is difficult to set down any
hard and fast rules to guide the
bank advertiser. Local conditions
of necessity have much to do with
ihe style of advertising to be adopt
ed; but there Is one thing which
must be observed lin bank adver
tising and that Is to preserve the
dignity Of the institution.
"Another iron-clad rule lie per-
Eistency coupled with judgment.
Too nch advertising, and do not
believe that 1 err when / say that
Is per cent. OF the advertising not