The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1920-02-24
PUBLICITY PROBLEM
MET BY ABILENE
Merchants Combine to
Eliminate Charity
Space Promoters
and Save

| ferent from big ones Wnen IL comes
to being the hunting grounds for
every sort of promoter, especially in
the advertising line. Men know that
advertising is good for others and
are more or less open to any scheme
that comes along backed by good
talk. Big towns have the advant-
age of protection. Many of them have
we'll organized committees and ad
clubs that fend off the free-lance at
tacks of specially men.
Abilene, '(Kansas, we suppose)
came to a realization of how much
money was going out of town for
wildcat advertising stunts, local
lodge programs, school booklets and
etc. etc. and the business men formed
an association. The experience Of
this association in saving the town
much wasted advertising money has
been made the subject of a lead ar
ticle in the Merchants Trade Journal
of February.
According to the author of this
article, the chairman of the Abilene
! Business Mems association made a
speech as follows at the organization
meeting:
1--WE are paying out in this town
$500 a year for fool advertising. !
| take a space in every one OF the
schemes that come along and so do
the others. Why? Because we are
afraid our competitors will get
ahead of us. If we will stand to-
gether we can all escape this tax and
have more money to put in the local
newspapers, where it will do us some
good"
One of the first rules of the as
ISOLATION was:
THE president shall appoint a
committee to have charge of the adj
vertising department and pass on all
requests for donations and advertis-
ing Schemes. All advertising, except
for daily and weekly publications,
shall be referred to the secretary and
by him to the committee, also all do
nations shall be referred to him"
Blackfoot has such committee,
but the Abilene club used it's COM
mittee.
A man came to town seeking to en-
tice the business men to finance a
campaign of advertising articles en-
titled: Trading at Home" The
price was high. Instead of letting
this man tax all the merchants of
town the association turned it down
and offered to pay for all the trade
at-home, plates the newspapers
wanted to order and publish.
One problem that came along to
make the business men think hard
was that of the war fund workers
who wanted to give a benefit enter
tainment and solicit advertising for
the programs The association held
firm and came back with: 1--WE will
print your programs free and have
no advertising on them. 1t will be
our donation-paid for out OF our
treasury. =.
To quote from the article:
"For years the fair association
had gathered in from $3.50 to 5000
for advertising in that premium list.
This was also good cause but the
merchants paid too much for the
publicity, which was of doubtful
worth. When the committee had
heard the plea for another solicita-
ton, it replied: We will print the
books for you free Of cost and the
only advertising will be general in
vitation to people to come to Abilene
to trade The premium lists cost
$82.50-which was paid out of the
treasury, a saving Of at least $3.50
and probably more"
Abilene, says the author, went on
the promoters blacklist, and only oc-
casionally would some cheap PROPOSE
ton come to town and hook the mer-
chants on the side streets who did
not belong to the association. And
then he states an inspired truth:
ut is a curious thing that many a
business man who will not advertise
in the newspapers which 60 into the
homes of the community will bite on
seem strangers plan which, under
the best of conditions could not give
one-tenth the publicity with cost
vastly greater"
After five years operation Of its
iron-clad plan Abilene found that 1t
saved 1880, $500 every year right
along. 1t was a matter OF co-opera-
ton.