Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1912-05-24
ADVERTISING AS AID
TO SALESMANSHIP
BY FRANK M. DU NOYER.

Il fishers of magazines and newspapers,
one and all, who are given to exploit
Il ing inflated circulations viii be en-
tremely questionable in the adverts-
ing world. and It will be the same with
those INSCRIPTIONS and incompetent
advertising agents whose only stock
in trade is being able to arrange for
placing accounts with inferior publica-
tions.
An enthusiastic man will create en-.
| thusiasm in others-not only by word
of mouth but by means of the written
word. 1t Is SO with a commonplace
news item dressed up by live man
who has an imagination, and equally
so with ad writer's. Enthusiasm will
take you right through to the Gus
toner
The subject of clerk hire Is always
| interesting to an advertising man, for
though his ads have the pulling power
to fill merchants store. unless the
clerks are well posted on the mer
chandise that is featured from day TO
day; unless they are courteous, alert
painstaking and obliging it is obvious
that results will not be satisfactory.
| have asked why Indifferent and in
competent clerks are so often found
in important positions. Sometimes
the answer is that this is mill town
and efficient help can command big
pay in the mills. Now, that answer
would not satisfy you If you were an
advertising man with your heart and
| soul in your work, for you know from
observation that one good clerk is
worth more to a merchant than four
incompetents. But conditions in that
respect are rapidly changing, and we
are all studying efficiency and how to
get the best results for the money
expended. There are many things that
people must buy somewhere, and they
are apt to buy most of these things
! through persuasive ads. And there
are many more things they would buy
if they were properly waited upon.
There is always a reason for every
thing whether 1t be success of failure.
The great success of John Wanamaker
| of course is not due to any one par
| ticularly good idea that emanated
| from that brilliant mind, but there Is
one rule in his big Philadelphia store
that surely has helped toward that
end-it is that no clerk must see a
customer stand waiting if it is pos.
sible to excuse himself from the Gus
toner he is waiting on and approach
the one waiting with a remark some
thing like the following: Il will be
pleased to wait on you very SOON"
and this must be said pleasantly; in
fact the clerks must be pleasant and
agreeable at all times under all cir
| cumstances to customers
The text of an ad may be ever so
we'll written, but if it is not attrac-
lively illustrated or displayed it will
not arrest the attention-and is lost.
This is technical feature of adver-
tising and ! will pass on to the text.
| The text of an ad should always
contain the facts But just plain facts
is not enough. Unless the ad contains
that spark of life that is born of en-.
| thusiasm-unless the writer Is really
| interested in this work and is able by
what he says TO hold the interest that
has been awakened by the Illustration
or display, the ad will surely fail Of
its purpose This principle is well
known to local news writer's. The en-
thusiastic local scribe who is able to
embellish a commonplace news item
with a lively imagination will get it
past that city editor unless it is
big day for news, without mark on
it--because 1t is readable and has hui
man interest
When a concern has been doing
business the old way, without adver-
tising, for several years. and has been
successful, it requires patience perse-
verance and much persuasion to get
them to look toward the light. I have
in mind the very trying experience of
an advertising man with the head of
very old and conservative business
concern. young man just through
college secured the assistance of the
advertising man and they undertook
to show the father the new and better
way to do business. OF course there
was some objection on the start. and
the ad man was subjected to the in.
dignity of being referred to in uncom-
plimentary terms very often. But the
ardent young college man said we
must not mind father-the ad man
must bear with him until the turning
of the tide-when results began to
show he would be on our side. One
fine day the ad man called the young
fellow in and told him he didn't think
he could stand any more jolts like the
one he received from his father that
day. Among other things he said that
the bill for advertising last month
was outrageous and asked if he had
come up that day to blow in the re-
mainder of the plant. The son admit
ted that was pretty tough treatment,
and said he wouldn't care to be pres
ent when the next months bill ar