October 6, 1917 



HOETICULTURE 



THE S, A. F. PUBLICITY CAMPAIGN 



Regarding the $50,000 that the flor- 

 ists of the country are raising for na- 

 tion-wide publicity in the use and sale 

 of flowers, I think it every florist 

 stopped to realize the benefit of con- 

 certed publicity, the comparatively 

 small amount asked for would be sub- 

 scribed in a week. Right now, is the 

 time to start such an advertising pro- 

 gram, just when the fall season is 

 opening up and the mighty effect 

 where many minds are concentrated 

 on some particular object, will be at 

 once apparent. This is not a situation 

 where one can say — "Let the other fel- 

 low do it" and the other fellow can 

 say — "Let George do it," etc., etc. 

 Every man with a spark of business 

 ability should be able to see his own 

 particular interest in this campaign. 

 This applies with more particular 

 force to the retailers even than tne 

 growers, since the retailer will be the 

 man who will immediately reap the 

 benefit from this program. While I 

 am not belittleing for one moment the 

 work of the growers and what he 

 should do, he will in most cases, will- 

 ingly do his share also. 



Too" many retailers think that all 

 they have to do is sit in their store 

 and wait for the public to come to 

 them. I have heard retailers argue 

 that the growers should take care of 

 the publicity game, exactly as the 

 wholesale producer of matches and 

 soap or other like product, does. They 

 forget that the man who advertises 

 soap or matches does not have the 

 loss that the growers do, because soap 

 or matches sell just as well next 

 month or next year, but growers are 

 handling a perishable product and 

 should not be asked to carry the 

 whole burden of advertising for the 

 sale of the same. 



I think this is a wonderful chance 

 for every retailer, not alone in large 

 cities but in every community. If he 

 will get the literature put out by the 

 Publicity Committee and turn it over 

 to his own local paper, supplementing 

 it with a fair-sized ad. calling the at- 

 tention of his local people to the 

 product he is handling, he will soon 

 find his sales largely increased. He 

 should let the people know he is a 

 member of the Publicity Committee in 

 their nation-wide campaign. In this 

 way he will find a new dignity attain- 

 ing to his store and his ideas of busi- 

 ness and this should have a wonder- 

 ful effect on his cash register. 1 em- 

 phasize the retailers' position in this 

 matter because he is the medium be- 

 tween the wholesaler and the ultimate 

 consumer. Without his active aid. much 

 of the effectiveness of the advertising 

 will be lost, whereas if every retailer 

 could be enlisted to put even a card in 

 his window announcing the fact that 

 he is a member of this publicity pro- 

 gram it will add to the continuity and 

 reiteration of advertising, which as 

 every advertising man knows is the 

 basis of success. 



Every contributor to this fund can 

 rest assured that every dollar con- 

 tributed win be used in a good and 



proper manner. He also will have the 

 use of the advertising experiences 

 of successful :nen, should he care to 

 ask for it at any time. A recent note 

 from the Publicity Committee states 

 that cuts or plates can be procured 

 at a figure that would be impossible 

 excepting in this wholesale way. 

 These can be procured direct from the 

 committee. Window-cards and posters 

 will be furnished at a price barely cov- 

 ering the cost of printing. These will 

 be written up by experts who know the 

 advertising game thoroughly. In fact 

 the benefits of publicity through the 

 committee, are unlimited. 



The growers also, should not stand 

 aside and say — "this is the retailer's 

 business, since he is selling to the 

 customer and it is only boosting his 

 end of the game." If the retailer sells 

 more, he has to get more flowers and 

 the grower will have to produce more 

 and so the benefit is carried out to 

 the end of the chapter. 



This is a splendid chance to show 

 what can be done by concerted effort 

 along these lines. "In Union there is 

 Strength," and I predict when this pro- 

 gram of publicity is well under way. 

 the appropriation for its continuation 

 will be increased year after year. It 

 is absolutely the biggest thing in sight, 

 supplementing as it does the work of 

 the National Flower Shows, which 

 have been educating the people in the 

 love of flowers, and in this way have 

 increased their sales considerably. 



A motion is under consideration in 

 the New York Florists' Club, to be 

 taken up at its meeting' on October 

 8th, to contribute $1000 to this adver- 

 tising fund. The motion undoubtedly 

 will go through and it is excellent in 

 its way and will most likely be fol- 

 lowed ijy other florists' clubs through- 

 out the country. The national organi- 

 zation — the S. A. F., will also contrib- 

 ute generously for this purpose, but 

 this does not have the direct personal 

 interest that would come if a thou- 

 sand florists throughout the country 

 pledged themselves to give $10 to $100 

 each. 



While this general advertising pro- 

 gram was promulgated by the S. A. F., 

 every florist and grower whether he 

 belongs to the S. A. F. or not, (as a 

 matter of tact every florist should be 

 a member of this Society) should feel 

 it a personal duty on his part to con- 

 tribute to this fund. Every florist 

 will benefit but naturally the man who 

 contributes to the fund and displays 

 the posters and literature gotten out 

 by the official headquarters will bene- 

 fit more, since people seeing the adver- 

 tisements in the magazines, etc., etc., 

 and seeing the posters displayed in 

 florists' windows will be more forcibly 

 reminded that they want flowers and 

 will of course patronize the store 

 where the "reminder " appears. 



Get busy, lirother Florist, and show 

 the National Publicity Committee that 

 you are with them in this enterprise 

 which is bound to react beneficially 

 to every branc^h of the trade. 



Ch.\s. H. Tottv. 



TEAM WORK FOR PUBLICITY. 



These days it requires team work to 

 get results — the airmen in France are 

 now operating in teams. So it is with 

 the Publicity Campaign which w.7s 

 properly launched at the recent con- 

 vention, when about one-fifth of the 

 $50,000 required was raised in a few 

 minutes. Were you there? Did you 

 do your bit? If not, why not send now 

 a liberal donation to Secretary John 

 Young. No. 53 West 28th St., New 

 York? — who is receiving funds in be- 

 half of the S. A. F. & O. H. specially 

 appointed publicity committees. 



This campaign was started for your 

 especial benefit, it will largely in- 

 crease the sale of your fiowers and 

 plants, it is intended to impress the 

 public with the fact that flowers are 

 necessities — not luxuries — and to in- 

 crease the war-time demand for these 

 necessities. The energetic self-sacri- 

 ficing men on these committees are 

 freely giving their time and brains to 

 the good work, you should support 

 them by standing your share of the 

 expense. Don't be a slacker, or say 

 "let George do it." You will receive 

 your share of the increased business 

 or protection and should willingly do 

 your share in helping finance the plan. 



"What a willing pair of horses you 

 have, " said a farmer to his neighbor. 

 "Yes," replied the farmer, "one is 

 willing to work and the other is will- 

 ing to let him." Don't be that kind 

 of a horse, do your team share of pull- 

 ing — and if each of the 21,000 florists 

 In the United States contributes his 

 fair share of the expense to this well- 

 organized publicity campaign, the 

 florists' business will receive the im- 

 petus it should have but has never b> 

 fore known. 



It is greatly to the credit of the 

 officers of the S. A. F. & O. H. tha" our 

 organization has put the publicity 

 plan into active operation — while oth- 

 er organizations have been pow-wow- 

 ing and discussing as to how it could 

 be done. All credit to President Kerr 

 and the initial subscribers who 

 launched the plan— also to the com- 

 mittees who are merging their indi- 

 vidual interests in those of the gen- 

 eral welfare. If you have not put up 

 your share, send it at once to Secre- 

 tary Young. This publicity campaign 

 was inaugurated for you, don't you al- 

 low it to lapse. Yours truly, 



James MoHijtchison, 



President R. C. Kerr sends in the 

 following pleasing statement: 



iinitlt'iiien ; — I iim workinji on m.v wa.v to 

 SI. I.Dllis iliul Detroit oil tlic pulilirit.v fliliil 

 jinil h:iv»' fli'f'urei] so far siihscriptioiis from 

 OHO Ininilrcd por cent, of the ineniliors that 

 T liavo 4-aIhMl upon. \vlii<-Ii moans tliat every 

 man that I have calleii upon lias sllhserilieil 

 a.s follnwH : 



D.-illas l'"lonil Co.. $2.'i.lM) : nriimm SwmI & 

 Kloral Co., $50.0(1: J. K. MiAilama. $'_'r,.()0; 

 Texas Xurserv Co.. $25.00: H. (). Hunnn, 

 $10.00. 



TliLs only dpinonstriite.s the great Interest 

 the tlorixta are taking in this movement and 

 1 tliiiik you will tinil it an easy matter to 

 ;.'et at least 7,"i' v of tlie tlorists as sub- 

 scrlhers to tliis fuinl. if we can only reach 

 them. It la lip to the interested workers tii 

 y:et linsv- ^■llll^8 very trnlv, 



R. C. Kkuk. 



