The Morgan City daily review. (Morgan City, La.) 1916-1920, 1917-04-25
HOW ADVERTISING CUTS
SELLING COST

The present agitation on the high
cost of living has led to some inves-
LEGATIONS which have brought out
lot Of facts hitherto unknown to the
public. Some of the most important
work in this line is being done by
the Assc citation of National Adver-
tisers. an organization of 26O Of the
leading advertisers of the country.
Mr.. Sullivan, the secretary treasur-
err of the association, has given out
some vitality important facts con-
corning the relation of advertising
to selling cost.
"The old idea," said Mr.. Sullivan,
"that the cost of advertising raises
prices dies hard. But the business
man knows better. He knows that
selling goods is costly business-no
matter what the goods or what the
selling methods. And he knows
that anything which creates demand
on large scale, and thus makes SELL
ing easier is bound to reduce selling
costs and thus helps to reduce prices.
But evidence is better argument;
facts are better than theories, and
we have been at great pains to COL
lect the facts. We have secured an
immense amount of data from our
members which prove that adve--
Using does reduce selling costs and
thus tends to reduce the selling price
of advertised goods. Let me quote
few examples:
"The makers of famous photo
q aphic camera, when they began
advertising twenty-eight years ago,
made one camera which took a two
and one half picture and which sold
at $25 Today they make far
better camera which sells for $40.
Another which took a 4 by picture,
sold for $50. Today they sell far
better one for $40. And so on
through the line.
"A prominent hat manufacturer,
by means of advertising, reduced
his selling cost Z cents per hat. Re-
suit, the. buyer gets hat of better
quality at no increase in price; this
despite increased cost of raw mater
ial and workmanship.
"When the manufacturer of a
| famous breakfast food speciality be-
gan advertising his goods sold at Is
cents a package. Today the package
is so per cent larger and the price
has been reduced to 10 cents. Again
advertising did it, the same causes
producing the same results.
1.-THE producer of another well
known food speciality is selling his
goods 9. rs per cent less to the
wholesale grocery trade than four
years ago.
"Twenty years ago nationally
advertised shaving stick was sold in
a cheap metal leatherette covered
box. Today stick containing 20
per cent more soap is sold in a hand
some nickel box at the same price.
"Then take the most conpicuous
example of them all-the automo-
bile business; and compare the s.,
900 or $4,000 cars of ten years ago
with the equally good cars OF today
selling for fraction of the money.
"And so on through a long list.
every case, the manufacturer either
has been able to lower the price or
improve the quality at no increase
in price"
How has he done it? BY means
of advertising, which has created
demand on large scale and thus
permitted production and distribu-
ton on a large scale. Result, i'm
proved manufacturing efficiency
and reduction of selling costs. And
all of this in the face of steady in
crease in cost of labor and raw ma
terials which, with advertising elimi
mated, might in many cases have
doubled the prices of the goods.
"A triumph of economical market
ing" is the only possible verdict for
advertising in the face of these facts