Cut Bank pioneer press. [volume] (Cut Bank, Mont.) 1909-current, 1915-03-05

AuNCA tAoAh6R Inv thO AeShLAOdus An0
telephone, the newspaper, the school,
is a creator of human activity. Like
all Of these it is a force for the wider
and quicker dissemination of informa-
ton. 1t brings within our ken things
that we never knew existed, or never
thought we wanted. 1t teaches us to
want things a little beyond our grasp
and to work a little harder in order
to get them. Thus advertising (and
we use the term in its broad sense in
Guiding all forms of commercial pub
licity) is one of the great forces of
civilization and progress. 1t shows
people the way and rouses their am
bition to possess-and to produce in
order to possess.
Some people say that advertising
merely takes business away from n
man and hands it to his competitor.
They think if everybody stopped adj
vertising, business would go on just
the same, and things would be
cheaper.
This sounds plausible, but it is not
true.
Obviously advertising is much used
as a competitive weapon, and a pow
erful one. Any method Of selling
advertising, show windows, clerks,
travelling men-gets business that
without the selling effort would have
gone elsewhere. 1t would be just as
logical to say that if everybody board
ed up their show windows and dis
charged clerks and travelling men,
business would &c on just the same
and things would De cheaper" All
selling plans r competitive, but
most of US believe that competition is
a good thing. 1t keeps down prices,
keeps up quality and improves serv.
ice. The value Of advertising, purely
as a competitive weapon, has been
clearly demonstrated in many great
business enterprises.
But advertising and publicity dc
more than merely stimulate competi
ton. In fact it's chief use lies entirely
beyond that. 1t creates new markets
new demand, new desires. 1t makes
possible new products, new methods
a better national life. In its highes
forms, advertising is not primarily
weapon of competition but a o
constructive public service. Advertis
ing does not increase prices. But tn
very fact that it increases bushes
and creates new business, advertisini
is more likely to reduce prices. Mos
of the so-called substitutes for advel
Using do not and can not take it
place. Premiums, discounts, tradin
I stamps and the like may increase bus
I ness by taking it away from others
purely competitive devices-they d
not create business.
The following story which was fes
tured in a recent issue of the Satul
! day Evening Post, above the sign;
ture of the publishers, illustrates tn
: creative power of advertising:
In one of our large cities, a fe'
< years ago, ~fifty-one per cen of tn
: stock of the local gas and electri
company was acquired by a nations
. p~ublic-service organization. The wa
the new management went about it
job sent thrills of apprehensio
through the minority stockholderI
, who were local citizens. The div
dends paid the year before ha
amounted to 1000. Immediately tn
> new board cut the price of both ga
and electricity. Figures showed tina
with the same consumption as tn
year before, the total dividends at tn
!, new rates would be only $4,000.
: But there lay the difference: Th
consumption was not going to be tn
!, same. The company began a stron
campaign of advertising. To the LOCI
stockholders this seemed ruinous fc
! ly. They reasoned, "Have we not
complete monopoly? We control e
elusive franchises on both gas an
n electricity. Why in the world shoul
A we spend money to advertise whe
il we have 'em both coming and going
If ever a case existed where adye
r Using solely for competitive purpose
would have been absolutely futile, tn
was it. The company certainly hs
the city both coming and going. b
the answer was, I'VE are not going
spend money in advertising. We a
it going to invest money in advertising
Half pages began to appear in Il
1t newspapers. In the course of a yei
a. the gas and electric company ust
'e more space than any of the depal
s. ment stores, which, of course, hi
a. been up to that time the heaviest a
vertisers in the city.
Cooking schools to show women Il