The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1917-06-22
ADVERTISE AND YOU'LL SUCCEED
Fight Catalogue Houses With Their Weapons
Prairie Fire An Example

consistently duVeTuSes UtiuSS " iCSSA
great reward in the form OF increased
business. Fences, rocks and trees are
covered with print and paint The
shower Of advertising In the shape Of
handbills is incessant They are put
into ones hand at every step-at the
church door and In hotels, In public
vehicles, thrust under private doors
and sent By millions through the mails
Differing Advertising Maze.
The only road to commercial success
leads through a glittering maze of adj
vertising.
Great boats, bearing on their sails
huge advertisements, sail mp and down
all season before crowded watering
places, and now and then a rain OF
advertisements comes from a wander
ing aeroplane.
When daylight fails the magic cleo
trio light throws advertisements on
large screens in conspicuous places In
both large and small cities.
l 0nOuS TFCm WlVuuHdW bOPs
Climb to the mountain top and shout
| for a solution Of the retail mail order
evil, and back over the hills will come
the answer in the echoing cry "Adver-
| isew
The life, the fame, the success, the
hope and future of commerce lie In
that one magic word
Advertising Is unquestionably the
weapon which will make the communt-
ty worthless for the retail catalogue
houses. but it is not absolutely neces-
sary that printed matter be the whole
thing.
Personal and individual advertising
is most helpful 1t is such advertising
that gives retail mail order houses
their trade.
And through advertising the local
merchants can deprive them Of much
of the trade that comes from their
community.
Fight the Prairie Fire.
The western farmer fights the prairie
fire with a little fire Of his own. which,
kept always under control, he so uses
that the bigger fire, finding no fuel
there on which to feed. sweeps by and
leaves him safe.
I b. So, in your advertising, you have
your saving fire with which to fight
the consuming competition of retail
mail order houses.
The printed matter, OF course. must
continue to be the main reliance for
urging people to enter your store.
Show windows, however good. are
sure to be seen only by few Of those
who might need to trade with you.
while personal invitations cannot be
given quickly enough to a sufficient
number to answer everyday purposes.
1t is through printed matter that the
/ retail mail order house offerings are
constantly made, and. If for no other
J reason than TO prove the determination
7 at least to match their efforts fol-
trade in your community. use the local
press and printed matter enough to lei
no one whose trade should be yours
forget that you are In position to ill
his wants
Originality Best Method.
The loca! merchant should dwell al
length on the fact that he delivers
after the goods have been seen and be
fore the money has been paid for them
and when 1t comes TO making good
should anything go wrong, he is right
at hand, not thousand miles away.
A reputation for originality is con
tinually being sought by most mer
chants. and one can get it more easily
by being natural in every move. AID
yertising that sounds like you is moi
only sure to bring the greatest results
> but 1t is also the one kind of advertts
ing your competitor cannot successful
ly initiate.
1t Is true that some self styled ad
vertislng experts have studied the die
tionary, the grammar and the type
specimen books until they are able Il
talk a jargon that makes Advertising
e BY which we mean printed matter
seem very much of mystery to th'
average man.
- Operate Like Pickpockets.
The mai. order house system experts
Yin the advertising art are something
like the pickpocket who. in an attemp
TO divert suspicion from himself. joins
the throng and shouts "Stop their a
loudly as any one Look through thu
mail order catalogues and you will tint
that nearly all Of them will tell yn'
that their houses are the cheapes
places to buy; that they have the hes
facilities.
They will intimate that the other fel
low is the one to avoid II you do no
want to get trimmed" and that It 4
the other fellow that handles the trash
When dog bites you the first TIM
blame the dog; If he bites you agail
blame yourself. II the mail orde
. houses get the best OF you once blaru'
) them; II they do It again blame your
4 self for being such an unthinkaoI
cbump.