Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1917-03-07

Features Of the farm enterprise
that have already been mentioned
have rendered it unnecessary for
farmers to use a trade mark. 1t has
any quantity of goods to sell that a
trade mark could be very profitably
used in connection with the farm adj
vertising. Manufacturers use trade
marks with considerable profit to
themselves and it seems probable that
the farmer could make as effective
use of this device.
Except in very rare cases should
the farmer attempt to make or ORR
ginate his own mark. He is not well
enough acquainted with the psychol-
ogy of selling, nor is he able to look
at his product in the light of a pros
pective buyer. Since so much of psy-
chology and so much of looking at the
product from the viewpoint of the Gus
toner determine the value Of the trade
mark, in most cases it would seem
wiser to ask some advertising house
to originate a trade mark. They have
access to artists and after the pro-
Queer has explained to the designers
what he has to sell, whether he wishes
to cater to high-class trade, and
what idea he wishes foremost ip his
advertisements, then will the artist
be able to create a trade mark that
will embody all of these ideas.
To be useful on the farm, trade
mark must be so flexible that it can
be used on any product. My ideal of
a farm trade mark is one about the
size of a silver dollar. 1t must be
borne in mind that in the course of a
year, the average farmer has for sale
cattle, hogs, eggs, dressed poultry,
strawberries, seed corn, ETC., therefore
the farm trade mark ought to be so
adaptable that it can be used on any
of these products. 1t should convey
a sense of quality, honesty and integr-
ity. Of course, it should in some
way convey an idea of farm life if
that be possible.
In the past, no farmer has thought
much about buying and using labels
in the marketing of his products
yet we are rapidly coming to that.
The consumer likes to know where
to place the responsibility and as
long as the grocer assumes the re-
sponsibility for the eggs he sells, just
so long will he profit most from the
egg business. Responsibility is ex-
pensive. More profitable selling
means that the farmer will use stick
ers and labels telling who it was that
produced the goods. The trade mark
ought, by all means, to be used on
these labels, stickers or shipping
tags. The trade mark on these goods
will give dignity to the farmers pro-
duct and insofar as it places the re-
sponsibility for the satisfaction of
the customer, it will give the produc-
er a pride in the production of the
article that he never knew before.
This same pride when once aroused,
stimulates the development of better
stock.
The trade mark has arrived, what
shall we do with it? Eggs are sold
from nearly every farm. If they are
to command their way in the market
and sell above competitive prices,
they must be marked so the buyer
can reach the producer if the egg is
bad. The farmer is this case would |
be able to create an enormous trade |
his eggs if he had a rubber stamp |
made so that each egg might bear his |
trade mark, name and address and
the date the egg was laid. Tit name !
and address and date have been tried |
already with some marked degree of |
success but the trade mark on the egg |
is a new departure yet judging from /
the prestige that has been won with |
commercial trade marks, there seems
little doubt but that trade sign |
coupled with an unfailing ability to