South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1915-11-29
AID CLUBS PLAN
BUSINESS PROBE
Horace w. Fox of Ad-SelI
League to Investigate
Local Conditions.

South Bend has been selected by
he educational research committee
Of the Associated Advertising Clubs
Of the World as one of the leading
marketing centers of America in
which il will make a thorough in
vestigation Of exact conditions of
business and prospects for the year
1915
Word was received by Horace w.
Fox Of the Ad-Sell league that he
has been appointed to represent this
city and gather the required infor-
nation. on Dec. 8. as soon as the
business men have closed their
books for the month of November,
investigators in all the leading cities
of the United States and Canada
will call upon representative mer-
chants in the leading retail lines
and ask a short list of questions
which the committee finds to be 81
barometer of business. The invesu-
CATION will consume four days.
This is the second investigation of
the kind. A year ago when all bust
ness men seemed to be confused as
to the effect the European war
would have on conditions in this
country. the Associated Advertising
Clubs OF the World conducted an
investigation among the leading re-
tail stores which showed that de-
spite many alarming reports the
average condition of American bust
ness showed a decrease for the
month of November, 1914, over No
vember, 1913, Of only 2.3 per cent.
The completed report was deliv-
cred TO Prest Wilson, Premier BOr-
den of Canada, and other govern
ment officials, and their high COM
mendation Of the investigation is
what has lead to a repetition of the
plan this year.
Interviewed by a News-Times re-
porter Mr.. Fox said: What we are
trying to do is to eliminate guess
work from sales and advertising eff
forts. and thus reduce their cost All
Of the work is volunteered, and none
of the investigators nor any Of the
mem bers of the committee are to re-
ceive one cent for their efforts. The
report is to be dedicated to the
business man.
There is ptobably no one ques-
ton so often asked or so poorly an
swered as 'Hows business A mans
answer is usually based on his own
personal experiences or from the
gossip he picks up from no-One-
70 nh prfgfraucy in,
south Bend is reported to be rot
ten or bully depending entirely
upon the most recent experience of
one particular travelling man who
calls upon one particular clothing
merchant, and the wholesale grocer
or manufacturer using this piece of
information judges South Bend ac-
cOrdingly. The next man who calls
on that clOthier may come out with
an entirely opposite report, depend
ing upon the size of his order, and
he in turn may gossip with a drug
salesman-and so it goes.
I'VE contend that the only real
test of business is the variation of
the demand of the consumers. The
only way to tell whether business is
good or poor is to get the exact esti-
mate Of the percentage Of increase
or decrease in the amount of money
the typical housewife is spending on
her groceries. her millinery, her
drugs. jewelry. etc.
The members of the Ad-Sell
league are proud to feel that South
Bend has been chosen as one of the
leading marketing centers 10 be rep
resented in this undertaking. and
we feel certain that our merchants
will show the same public spirit
which they have always shown, and
will willingly answer the few ques-
tons we put to them on Dec. g."