The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1916-06-23
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Business is no longer private. It is
public. At its own invitation, we have
come to look upon the modern bust
ness man as a public servant and upon
his place of business as an institution
existing to help us. And the whole
impression is of the modern business
man 8 own making.
At about this time in the history of
bookkeeping when one flexible price
became the rule in all good stores, tho
business man awoke to the fact that it
was possible to make people under
stand that they could buy with safety
without expert knowledge of the goods
they were buying-that they could be
brought to the thought of relying upon
their confidence in him as their assur-
ance that the wares he offered were
worth the price he asked.
About that time the business men and
the public began to take more interest
in each other. The business man be-
gan to realize that if the people were
know about him-for we rarely find
ourselves in sympathy with things we
see or hear about for the first time.
We are bit suspicious at first.
This interest in business men, and in
business methods has grown, partly
because business has become more and
more public, business men becoming
more and more frank the while, and
because the public has come to recog-
nize business methods as an interesting
topic.
So it is natural of us, as buyers of
things to be interested in advertising
and in every device which the seller
uses in our service, and to inquire into
the effect which advertising has upon
the cost Of things which we buy.
Perhaps you ask them, who pays for
advertisinga Nobody pays for it if you
mean by the question to infer that 1t
is cost added to the price of the goods,
for it is not
Suppose a great store has depart
ment whose sales are lower than they
should be, so that too much, proper
tionately, has to be charged to the sal
airy of the head of the department. Too
big percentage of all the money taken
in has to 60 to pay his salary. The
department is operated at loss, let ur
say.
Now, suppose the owners Of the store
dismiss this department head and hire
a manager for the department whose
salary is a little higher, but whose
sales are very much larger. His salary
is a smaller percentage of his sales than
the former man s salary, was of his
It is the same with advertising. There
are certain fixed charges that must be
added to the cost of the goods mer-
chant sells. He must add enough to
pay rent, heat light, clerk hire, etc Out
of each dollar in sales, certain per-
centage must go to pay for these things
but with advertising, he can sell more
goods with the same clerks, in the same
store, etc. His sales increase while
his fixed charges either increase very
little or stand the same His adver-
Using makes two dollars come in whers
only one came before. Without it, his
relative cost for the other items men
toned would likely make it impossible
for him to do any business at ALL
Advertising therefore can be said to
pay for itself. It is self supporting.
It makes its own way
If this were not true-if advertising
added to the cost of selling-would not
great non-advertising stores spring no
and drive the advertising stores out of
business?
The public would learn that the prices
Of the advertising were higher. He
could not sell his goods.
Advertising will bring a customer
once. The goods must bring him the
second time.
The Associated Advertising Clubs of
the World, which will meet in Phila
deiphia June 25 to 80, believe adver
Using is public servant-that it is
directly helpful to the public in short
ening the distance between the maker
and the user. We know it reduces sell
ing cost
Advertising has produced quantity
production and more rapid selling, max
ing labor-saving machinery and other
economies possible, so it has reduced
tho cost.