The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1911-08-09
SaIesmanshlp In Your Advertisements

The most pertinent question a re-
taller must think about when he starts
out to consider the question of filling
the advertising space he has bought
in the local newspaper is, how can |
sell my goods successfully through
this newspaper The best answer to
the question is undoubtedly another
question He must ask himself: III
L had to sell these goods in my store,
how would l approach my customer
how could | interest her and in what
way should | convince her?" Last of
all he must ask himself whether he
is as capable of doing all this in the
newspaper space as we'll as in his
store.
When merchant has answered
these questions satisfactorily he may
commence compiling his advertisement.
But until he realizes that salesman
ship is just as necessary in the news
paper space as in his store when sell
ing goods, he can never hope to get
the value he has every right to ex-
pect from the space.
Successful newspaper publicity has
been called salesmanship OH paper
When a retailer can distinguish that
KIND OF salesmanship and appreciate
its value, he is long way on the road
to advertising success.
If retailer employed inexperienced
or amateur help in his store to sell
his best goods he would be classed as
Il fool. Why should he not also be
put in that category if he EMPLOYS
amateur salesmanship in his newspa-
per space? He pays good money for
both and should get the same degree
OF satisfaction for his expenditure.
/ -Four main points enter into all
i SGlesmanship whether personal or on
| paper: First, the attention of the DOS
sible customer must be obtained: sec
ohd, interest must be created in the
goods you are going to sell; third, the
customer must be convinced that she
wants the goods, and last, but by no
means least, she must be induced to
make a purchase.
In planning his advertising, there
fore, the merchant has to apply these
principles in such way that, from his
announcements, results are obtained
as a matter of course. But he must
remember always that salesmanship
on paper is more difficult than sales
manship in person because he cannot
make his selling arguments felt in
the same degree as when he meets his
customer face to face.
unless Il merchant can apply these
four principles successfully to his
craftsmanship through advertising. his
publicity Will get no more returns
than bad salesman in his store. And
let me state here that no ordinary mer-
chant can get the highest grade of
salesmanship in his newspaper space
without outside help. There are many
reasons for this. 1t has been found
for instance. that the best way to Sc
cure attention is to use good illus
tration. Nothing has surer human
interest effect or gets quicker action
than well selected picture. To get
such illustrations you need not only
a high grade experienced artist but
one who has first class knowledge of
advertising art. Then, it REQUIRES
/ considerable study and experience i'm
descriptive literature to create inter
est In goods-eYen in those you are
selling daily. Again, TO bring con-
Viction to the mind of reader sure
ly and successfully. necessitates
knowledge of how it has been done in
thousands of other cases.
All this means that the up-to-date
merchant who desires to make his
advertising scientifically certain must
either study retail advertising as
part of his business training or employ
inexperienced Advertising construc-
tor. There is more in planning and
writing successful advertisement than
the ordinary retailer realizes. And the
smaller the advertisement the more
difficult the process. Only those who
have made big successes by the en-
ployment of advertising in its most
efficient form know the true value of
salesmanship through advertising.
The time Is now due for the ambi-
tictIS retailer to learn something ahou,
this art If he does not care about
ploddtng at acquiring the necessary
know himself there are plenty
| or = VI securing tho riohf ltnd -
sa on paper, the kind that