44 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



not prevented them from advancing to other posts, and in fact in the 

 sales department their ability to determine quickly whether the 

 outposts could be moved back and the territory in which the firm 

 ■was doing business expanded, has proven to be a live asset. 



There is one point about having a traific manager which should 

 not be overlooked. He can get things from the railroad which the 

 average business man often is unable to secure. He knows the 

 law, the provisions of the tariffs and his legal limitations, and he 



uses diplomacy wherever possible. The irritated shipper who finds 

 himself ensnared in a tangle of traffic regulations is likely to lose 

 his temper and curse the carriers for all he is worth, all of which 

 helps to make the railroads and their representatives perfectly 

 willing to "hand it to" the shipper whenever they get a chance. 

 The ability to get things by skill instead of by force comes with 

 expert and inside information, and that is what the traffic manager 

 possesses. G- D- C, Jr. 



^ TOTO<«a:>:ZW-.^^t^s^6l^m:^Wi^ai^ai^aiTO^ 



Modern Office Methods 



Just as conditions in other lines have affected methods of marketing 

 goods, so have they affected methods of the wholesale marketing of 

 lumber, and quite pronounced differences are evident in the methods 

 of newer concerns as compared with those of the older ones. Pro- 

 gressive concerns in all lines are meeting conditions — not waiting 

 for conditions to revert back to the old basis. In lumber wholesaling 

 there is, however, still an element which has not recognized the per- 

 manent character of the recent changes in business conditions and it 

 would seem that continued ignoring of that change will eventually 

 result in its getting behind in the procession and in its being super- 

 seded by the younger, more up-to-date concerns. The question of 

 service, for example, is one which is gaining more consideration con- 

 stantly, and today it is the most important selling point, outside of 

 price, in marketing. 



The modern wholesale concern is recognizing that large and sumptu- 

 ous quarters and a big corps of office help are not required. The 

 number of clerks per office is constantly diminishing. Bookkeepers 

 are using adding machines, and a great deal of their work is done on 

 special long-carriage typewriters. This position calls for a book- 

 keeper and typist combined, and there are more applicants for this 

 position than there are for stenographers. Business is being done in 

 a smaller, more compact space, thus eliminating ' ' lost-motion ' ' ; more 

 careful investigation of claims and credit, and scientific, specific atten- 

 tion is given to inquiries. 



A lumber sales manage!', to hold his position today in a progressive 

 concern, must know every detail of manufacturing lumber; have spe- 

 cific facts about the length, width, condition of stock, time of de- 

 livery, as well as know what is the best finish to use on a certain kind 

 of lumber; how the lumber should be kiln-dried to give the best results 

 and furthermore, he ought to know how different grades will cut up 

 for the customer's specific requirements. 



The wholesaler of today does his business with the smallest help 

 possible, but this help is trained for economic handling and methods. 

 A small office, nicely furnished, suffices the wholesaler's needs and 

 means small expense. Small expense, in turn, means larger profits 

 in proportion and when necessary, business can be handled on a small 

 margin. The big office holders with large expense can never do this. 

 In dull times the smaller office can keep all of its force — the business 

 is not disorganized by having to let one or two clerks go to save 

 expense. 



An average progressive wholesaling concern today would perhaps 

 consist of two partners and two trained typists. One of the latter 

 would take care of the books, get out the invoices and in general look 

 out for the mill end of the business and that division of the corre- 

 spondence. The other would work on sales letters and customers ' 

 correspondence in general, as well as have charge of the order book, 

 acknowledgments, etc. Sub-dividing the business in this way makes 

 specialists, and the office can be left without the principals for days 

 and yet run along as though they were there. Under this arrange- 

 ment, of course, it is necessary that the assistants be capable of 

 grasping all the details of the business and that special efforts be 

 made to make them conversant with those details. 



Tho principals can thus devote their time to visiting the mills or 

 working at the sales end. This brings up another point pertinent 

 to any sales system — a customer would often rather do business with 



one of the principals in person than through a representative, espe- 

 cially if he is personally acquainted with the principal. Where the 

 personal element enters into the transaction, the customer feels that 

 his orders will be looked after better than if placed through a sales- 

 man. While this attitude may usually not be justified, it is certainly 

 a real condition. " 



Producers of lumber without representatives recognize the value of 

 progressive middlemen and let them handle all the stock they want. 



A salesman who had been selling for a western mill recently left its 

 employ, saying that the members of the firm were too old-fashioned in 

 their ways and not a bit progressive. In telling of their methods, 

 he said, "They take orders, acknowledge and fill them when they 

 please and generally want me to sell but one item. Last week I 

 chased through three states trying to sell No. 2 common poplar. 

 Naturally I had a big expense bill and they kicked about that. 

 Wouldn't fill any other orders until I had sold that item. When I 

 ask them to confirm quotations, they write back and say, 'Confirm 

 them yourself — we haven 't time. ' " A concern like that has no right 

 to have a representative unless it takes the trouble to learn modern 

 business methods. It would market its stock to a much better advan- 

 tage through a live wholesale concern that will keep it on the jump. 

 A salesman working with a house like that endangers his own reputa- 

 tion and will gradually lose all his trade. 



A progressive wholesale house, that recently started in a big eastern 

 market, has worked the question of management up to a high state 

 of efficiency. There are two partners and two trained typists — one 

 for the sales end and the other for the mill end of the business. Each 

 principal and each stenographer is alloted a definite part of the 

 work of the office and has a regular time for each task. In the 

 morning the mail is sorted into five divisions as follows: 



1 — Mill letters answering on stock asked for and invoices. 



2 — Stock lists and mill letters lor further consideration. 



3 — Customers' letters that can be .inswered without reference to any- 

 thing else and also customers' inquiries. 



4 — Customers' letters for further consideration. 



5 — Settlements to mills, settlements from customers and corai)laints, 

 etc. 



The time and work are so proportioned to each individual that 

 there will be no wasted time or effort. Each typist runs two dictation 

 books — called respectively book 1 and book 2 — the first for important 

 mail to go out that day, and the second for the unimportant work to 

 be done in spare time. Thus the typists always have something to do. 

 In case the sales typist has completely finished her work, she always 

 has in hand a list of stock with prices. She then takes out the ' ' classi- 

 fied buyers of each wood" and offers the stock by letter to that list. 

 The mill typist naturally has plenty to do with the bookkeeping, 

 collections, writing out inquiries to the mills, etc. 



With changing conditions the schedule, of course, is varied. If 

 sales are falling off, one partner is out all the time and the mill 

 typist, after her work is finished, works under the direction of the 

 sales typist on letters and offerings to the trade as well as following 

 up former quotations and working in this way to bring up the sales 

 to normal or better again. .Just the reverse applies if orders are 

 good and shipments poor or stock scarce. Of course the schedule 

 may vary a little according to business conditions, but in general it 

 is followed out as outlined. The writer fancies he hears disapproval 



