Mansfield mirror. (Mansfield, Wright County, Mo.) 1908-1957, 1914-12-17
DR.. Marden's
Uplift Talks
BY oRIsoN SWEET MARoeN.
oopyrishs By Mcclure Newspaper syndicate

BY oRisoN SWEET MARpEN. 5
Copyright By Mcclure Newspaper Syndicate
COURTESY A BUSINESS MAGNET,
A successful New York business
man once sent a telegram to each
Of his several thousand clerks which
read. did you say thank you. to
every customer you waited upon to-
day?" This man says that thank
you" has been the motto on which
he has built an enormous business.
He has spent $4,000 In trying to I'M
press this motto. and all that II
means, upon his statesmen and clerks,
30 that they will not fail to make ev'
cry customer feel that It Is q real
privilege to wait upon him.
These clerks are urged to establish
the friendliest possible relations with
their customers. to greet them with
a smile, and to talk with them. not
at or. to them. They are urged to
make such a pleasant impression up
on every customer that he will not
only come again, but will bring a
friend.
A successful business man has tried
to impress this idea upon the minds
Of his clerks, always think of what
the customer will say when he gets
out Of the store"
Competition has become SO keen,
and the bid for public patronage so
insistent that It is a matter Of first
importance for the business institu.
ton which would succeed today to be
popular to have the good will Of its
patrons.
The officers Of a bank, for instance.
know that they must win and hold
the favor Of the public or go to the
wall. They know that they cannot
snub their customers today, as they
once would, when there we're fewer
banks, without losing business. With
a score Of banks soliciting his bust
ness and offering every possible In
ducement to secure 1t, 1t does not re.
quire a very keen insight into human
nature to know that, other things
equal, the business ma will patron
lie the bank that has the most pleas
ant, the most agreeable officers and
clerks. 1t is human nature to like to
be treated with courtesy. with con-
sideration. I have known a rich New
York nan who carried a very large
balance at his bank to change his
account because of q little incivility
Of the receiving teller. One warm
day when transacting business at the
bank the man removed his hat and
put 1t on the shelf In front Of the
teller's window. The teller ordered
him harshly to remove his hat. "Yes,"
was the quick reply, II will. and I
will remove my account. too" which
he proceeded to do. This was a lit
tie thing, you may say. but 1t is Just
these little things that influence GUS
toners.
Bank officials often wonder why Mr..
so-and-So has withdrawn his patron
age, and they will probably never
know that 1t turned upon a hasty
remark Of a teller. a little disposition
on the part of some official to be In
accommodating.
On the other hani. men often go
out Of their way quite a distance in
order to desposit at a bank where
the cashiers or tellers have been
courteous. kind to them. have always
shown a disposition to accommodate.
Some railroads In this country have
built up an enormous patronage and
made millions of dollars by this pol
Icy of helpfulness and courtesy among
their employees to their patrons,
while some parallel roads have been
unsuccessful and have gone into the
hands of a receiver largely because
of the lack OF courtesy. kindness and
obligingness of their employees.
Courtesy pays in every business In
stitution. Human nature is so consti-
tuted that people will often put them.
selves to great inconvenience, will
even put up with an inferior article
with discomforts. rather than pat
ronize houses that treat their custom.
ers rudely.
Courtesy is to business and society
what oil is to machinery. It makes
things run smoothly, for It eliminates
the jar and friction and the nerve
racking.