The Holt County sentinel. (Oregon, Mo.) 1883-1980, 1914-03-20

why would 1t not bring business TO
the small town merchant who fol.
lowed same plan Of description and
price.puotinyY
The answer Is easy-it would. II
has done It, Is doing II, and will con.
tinue to do It.
The mail.order houses not only pay
immense sums for advertising In one
form or another. but they pay enor.
nous salaries to expert advertising
men TO prepare their advert Using copy.
They know that scientific advertising
pays. The small town merchant can
not employ special adyer, Using experts
TO prepare his copy, but he can devote
a little time TO the study of adyer,is.
Ing methods, and he can tell his posi-.
bIe customers In plain and simple
7 language just what kinds Of goods he
has for sale, and just what the re all
price IL.
80, I'm not going To let my com.
petitors know what my prices are"
eSclaims the small town merchant.
There you 20 again Does the mail.
order house hesitate 10 let a competi.
tor know what prices 1t charges for
lis goodsY Not a bit Of Il. II does.
NJ care a rap about that. IL dcyo,es
lis whole energy to writing Its adver.
tising In such way as to make you
prefer It's goods to the goods Of the
other fellows. And having adyer.
ti>ed 1t exerts every energy TO render
service. What's the Use Of advcrtis.
INK lavishly, bringing people to your
stores In droves, and then failing TO
give the service advertised2
No, so very many years ago the
country store" pretty nearly con.
Quoted itself. hut that condition no
longer exists. Today such an institu.
tion must be something more than q
store; It must be place OF business.
It's owner must think OF something
more than buying an article for 80
much and selling II for so much more
than lie paid for II. IL is.sometim
good business, and profitable, to sell
an article for less than II cost. and
more often profitable TO sell IL for
what II originally cost. Several years
ago Lincoln clothing firm bought
out q competitor and Immediately
proceeded TO sell OIL Its purchase al
special bargain prices. In that stock
were smoking jackets, overcoats and
suits that had been In stock for from
three TO eight years. Did the pur.
chaser endeavor to get the original
cost out OF themy Not by from 20 to
M per cent. ANY price received for
them was profit.
There Isn't an up.to'date general
store In any Nebraska city Of consid.
cradle size that hasn't q bargain shoe
counter or something else OF the same
nature. And on these bargain coun.
tiers one may lind the out.of.date
styles, Just a. good as the day they
we're purchased, 80 far as wearing
'pft'flIitis bltFtt III
prices far below cost. u il good buSi.
ness 10 get rid Of them al any price
rather than keep them forever cum.
bering the shelves.
Why wouldn't II he equally good |
business sense for the small town |
merchant 10 do the same thing a. ne.
ceSsiiy repuiresY
Every small town merchant has his
own problems 10 solve. lie can not
solve them by putting In his spare
time damning the mail.orier houses.
lie can only solve them by careful
study and investigation. II he does
not know the requirements Of his
trade territory, or does not know even
his trade territory, the sooner he goes
out Of business the better |, viii be
for him, for lac Is going out OF bust.
ness sooner or later. In his own local
he has weapons that will
avail him much II lntelligently used.
Through them he can meet the mail.
order houses on their own grounds, or,
rather, compel them to meet him on
his own grounds. Hut the mere buy.
ing OF newspaper space Is the smallest
part OF the advertising game. Any.
body with money can purchase adver.
Using space somewhere. The trick is
to tlll the purchased space with mat.
ter that will convince the readers
thereof that they want what the adj.
vertiser has to sell. Don't overlook
one patent fact-adyertising Is not
the art OF selling people what they
want nearly so much as IL Is the art
ofconvincing the people that theywant
what you have to sell, And the only
way to convince them OF this Is TO
first get their attention, then drive
- TO hnpna IN In ,