Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1921-09-30
PUBLICITY PLUS"
KEEPS PLANT BUSY
According to Willard 4. Speak
man, President OF the Speak,
man Company.

I know OF no more difficult task
than placing upon any one thing or
act the responsibility for the present
very satisfactory business OF the
0peskman Company, writes Willard A.
Dpeaknan. president of the company,
In the current issue of Forbes. He
continues AZ follows; We are running
our plant In Wilmington full time with
a normal force. working only on or
ders. We have often asked ourselves.
"Why are we so busy, with business
undergoing Nadjustment and new |
building. which normally should ac-
count for at least fifty per cent of our
output, greatly curtailed?"
The answer is probably not in any |
one thing we have done. but every |
thing.
After the arrnistice lull there came
the flood OF orders. We were taxed TO
capacity-everybody was. Demand
said "put up more buildings-ex-
pand." Caution said. Look ahead"
We said both; we enlarged our plant
considerably.
Just about the time our new build
ing was finished. we started working
at inverse ratio with orders; they
were diminishing and production was
Increasing. But we had not over-ey-
yanded. We were about three years
ahead of what we would have been
ordinarily with our building program.
Readju@tment hit us with it's heaviest
Hledgc in the oarly part OF this year.
orders that six months before seemed
ordinary In sire now seemed large and
were few and far between. We were
working only half time A gratifying
Nature. however. was the fact that we
did continue to receive small orders.
oft times from dealers with whom we
mad never done business before, or
who had been inactive so far as we
were concerned. This must be ac-
credited TO our last wars national ad-
vertising campaign and 10 natural ex-
rs,nsion. the result OF the open. frank
way we have always done business
with our customers.
Intensive Advertising Campaign.
We had determined at all hazards TO
hoid togcther the organization which
We had spent SO many years in build
ing. Always we have recognized the
Individual merits Of our workmen. Be
cau~e In previous years. lay-offs had
been few and far between. we mad
succeeded In attracting the better
efss OF workmen-men who did their
own thinking. We impressed these
urn at the beginning OF their en-
rioyment that quality must never be
aacrinced TO speed.
Our stocks had been depleted by the
previous years demands; so when or
trrs fell of, We worked on showers
and fixtures for stock, even before we
went on half-time. Meanwhile, we
we're hooking for the way out. We
could not go along with stock forever
q year. or even six months The in
ycntory would be too heavy to carry
Surely. we reasoned. with q hundred
million persons using the thing we
make. we oan give our men work.
Meanwhile. the sales promotion end
OF our organization was busy. All-say
conferences were held with our adver-
tising agents. at which every possible
angle Of sa1es in advertising was dis
cl~~ed threshed out, and charted. We
determined upon only selling copy in
our advertising. Everything must be
sell, Sell Sell.
Showers we had determined would
continue to b. the keynote of our drive
for sales, but We would push hard also
on our other lines of sanitary brass
fixtures. We reasoned that dealers
and plumbers shelves must be nearly
empty. They would, therefore. order
IN small quantities those goods that
they urgently needed. and We must
make further effort to speed deliveries
Delivery Of goods had always been a
matter of pride with US; but we mus
excel ourselves
We were ready.
Our sales arguments started ap.
rearing in all our advertising. Eacf
called attention to one or two partic.
ular features of the fixture or shower
we were advertising.
Meanwhile. we had followed a pre-
viously mapped out plan of develop
sng new and moro efficient features
We had always tried to do this, 5u
now we were at il harder than ever
Then we prepared broadside of ad
vertizng to be used by plumbers. w,
supplied free electros of the illustra
tons. and also gave our customer
lantern slides--all they asked for. Ais,
window card. In addition. We uset
this broadside TO call attention to<ou
more popular fixtures and the oppor
tunities for installing them-ezcl
time strcssing their featurss. In otne
words. we We're specific-always.
Plumbers and dealers now startea
taking advantage of our very promp
deliveries. We received orders that w
know ordinarily would have gone else
where. our statesmen working on tn
outside made this a part of their sell
ing talk. They also talked of the re
suits Of local advertising. Soon re
quests came in for electros, ianter
slides. window cards, and trims. Mean
while, we had been sending out folder
by the hundreds of thousands, i'm
printed with the name OF the dealer.
ours, as you see, was a publicit
campaign plus--the latter represent
ing service. The results are that "
have wider dealer distribution b
many per cent than last year, the L
tai number of orders is IS per cer
greater than last year, and 33b ps
cent gyeater than 1919. We, of eours
adjusted prices, and made a reductio
~ wages affecting everybody in oil
organization.
~
Had Hard of prohfhftsar