Roanoke Rapids herald. [volume] (Roanoke Rapids, N.C.) 1914-192?, 1915-09-03
A Talk To Merchants

If the lnroadS OF the mail-0rder
houses on the business of coun-
try merchants are to b" stopped,
publishers must ne to the
front with their assistance.
Some publishers are Of the opin-
ion that it is up to the dealers to
fight their own battles, but
those most far sighted realize
that a growing community will be
beneficial to their own business.
No publisher ever lost much by
giving his help TO aid his neigh
Dor.
But publishers should remem-
Der that they are entitled to the
support of those they aim to
help, especially in the case of
opposing mail-order houses. By
liberal advertising any dealer
who finds that out-of- town cor
Germs are hurting his business
can recuperate his, losses and
turn the trend in his direction.
A. W. Cline. publisher of the
DaVidsonian at Thomasville, N.
c.. talks right from the shoulder
to those who allow the business
which rightfully belongs to
them to 90 elsewhere. In a re-
cent issue he talks to local deal
ers like this.
Local merchants wonder why
it is that the mall-order business
is constantly increasing, when
to the mind Of a man who knows
the first principles of advertising
it is perfectly plain. If local
merchants, especially furniture
dealers, would profit by the ex-
perience of the mail-order
houses, who have built up their
business solely from the proper
kind of advertising, they would
have hauled away from their
stores the car loads of furniture
that come to the freight offices
every month from mail-order
houses.
The housewife is the one who
generally selects the furniture
for the home, and if she can pick
up a mail order catalogue and in
4 few minutes select what she
wants, il is a settled fact that
she is not going to walk to the
furniture store, or if she lives in
the country, hitch up and drive
in, To look over the local mans
stock to See if he has what she
wants. Instead she is going to
write out an order for the article
she wants and have it delivered
to the freight depot and all the
trouble there is to it will be to
have a team stop and get it some
time when in town.
Ii the local man would adver-
tlse properly the new articles
that he receives and constantly
keep the public informed as to
what he carries in stock, all the
trouble it would be to the house
wife when she wanted an article
would be to call the merchant
over the telephone and tell him
to load the article on the wagon
when 1t came to town. The way
the majority of local merchants
carry on their business the pub.
lie will never know what they
have in stock.
The time is coming when a
man who won t advertise will be
considered out of the game, or
rather will have to get out and
make room for progressive men
who are building up their bust
ness by advertising.
The above facts are true in
every line of the mercantile bust
ness and it is encouraging to the
newspaper man to know that
some of the merchants are waking
up on this question. However,
there are those who are be-
yond redemption and willbeburied
so deep that they will never
see the light of prosperity that
will come to those who are taking
advantage of proper advertising
methods. Publishers Auxi-