X.y 



P^r - 

 ^^I^^ 



.<3 , <v V>V 'W'// 



•^T^"^' 



'l"-?--*'.*.*/ 



NEWS ADS FAVORED 



ABOVE FREE FLOWERS 



Replying to the letter reproduced below, the editor of Printers' Ink, a 

 magazine regarded as an authority on advertising because of its close study 

 of the problems in that field, emphasizes the predominant importance of timely, 

 or news advertising. He sees the problem with perspective — and as a whole. 





HEEE is, of course, no set 

 answer* that could be made 

 to Mr. Elberfield's ques- 

 tion. If he wished to ad- 

 vertise by giving some 

 roses to every member of 

 the club, the best plan 

 would have been to have 

 delivered the flowers to 

 each person. In that way 

 he would have been sure that every 

 member was advertised to in the man- 

 ner intended. As it was, the stunt was 

 lost on over half the members. 



Generally speaking, however, in a free 

 distribution of merchandise of this kind 

 for advertising purposes, it is the best 

 policy to make each recipient come to 

 the store for her share. Nearly always 

 the object of such advertising is to get 

 people into the store. If they do not 

 think enough of the proffered article to 

 come after it, there is no 

 end to be gained in forcing 

 it on them. In itself, giv- 

 ing away goods is not good 

 merchandising. Unless it 

 leads to something else, it 

 is a waste of money. What 

 it is supposed to lead to is 

 getting people into the 

 store. They thus get ac- 

 quainted with the estab- 

 lishment, may buy some- 

 thing while they are there 

 and lay the foundation for 

 future visits. 



Getting people into the 

 store is the object of most 

 retail advertising. That is 

 what price-cutters have in 

 mind. They are not foolish 

 enough to believe that they 

 can make any money by 

 cutting prices. They feel, 

 however, that the reduced 

 price, especially if it be on 

 some well-known brand, 

 will lure many people into 

 the • establishment to pur- 

 chase and that when there 

 they will buy other things 

 on which the store does 

 make money. 



By the Editor of 

 PRINTERS' INK 



them to visit the store. It is not eco- 

 nomically sound. There are other ways 

 that the progressive merchant can em- 

 ploy to get people in his place of busi- 

 ness, which are more effective, at least 

 in the long run. One of the best 

 methods is to get customers into the 

 habit of visiting the store whenever 

 they want anything that it sells. That 

 observation sounds bromidic, but in it 

 is summed up the whole philosophy of 

 good merchandising. Getting people 

 into the habit of buying at a certain 

 place, of course, presupposes that the 

 store offers standard merchandise at 

 fair prices and that its service is ade- 

 quate. 



But that isn't all. It is also neces- 



G«ttiiig Buyers In. 



All are agreed that unless 

 a concern is in the mail-or- 

 der business, it is good 

 policy to get all the persons 

 possible into the store. We 

 are not all agreed, however, 

 on the methods to be used 

 in getting people to come. 

 Certainly, price-cutting is 

 not tiie best way to get 



The Cause of the Comment 



AL^*i* €LmEmr<mi~a 



fHOKfS: 



r. 1806 



Mo. 



Editor of Printer* ■ 

 N«w York City. 

 Dear Slr:- 



Reecntljr w« war* doing aoa* adrartlilng in 

 War of dlatrlbutlng roaaa with our coapllaanta. We aad* out 

 tlokata inviting the people at a oertaln club to oall for 

 tbelr flowere. We found leae than fifty per cent called. We 

 }uet wondered, if the beet adTertialng would hare been for ue 

 to take the flowere to the olub aad dietribute thea,or whether 

 to eend them to their reeldenoe, aa we generally do when we 

 Bake theee dletributlone. 



Thoee who oaa* in found wBare we were, even 

 though n<rt many came. Would their Tlewe on our etore be worth 

 more than if we delivered the flower* to their reeidenceT I 

 would like to get a few euggeetion* which way would be aoet 

 effective. 



Alpha rioral Company. 



Per 



^jg-^^UyTL^ 



sary to keep the name of the store in 

 the minds of its customers and its pros- 

 pects. This requires advertising, but 

 cut-price advertising isn't necessarily 

 the most effective. It is true that 

 judged in the terms of immediate re- 

 turns, price-cutting is the best pulling 

 bait. There is nothing like a sensa- 

 tionally low price to get a lot of people 

 into the store. But such merchandising 

 isn't constructive. 



Timely Ads Best. 



Authorities now agree that the safest 

 way to build prestige for a retail estab- 

 lishment is to advertise store news. 

 Tell about the new goods coming in. 

 Warn of the need for seasonable mer- 

 chandise. Outline style tendencies, con- 

 nect the store with nationally-known 

 goods. In a word, interpret current 

 merchandise so that people will appre- 



ciate the values and the 



service that the store is 

 offering. For example, a 

 florist could advertise heav- 

 ily before Valentine's day, 

 Easter, Mothers' day. Deco- 

 ration day and before other 

 occasions that demand flow- 

 ers. He could tell the kind 

 of flowers that are most 

 suitable for the approach- 

 ing event. 



In off seasons, the florist 

 could advertise his wedding 

 service. Occasionally an 

 advertisement telling how 

 flowers cheer up the sick- 

 room, would be appropriate. 

 At times he could advertise 

 the significance of certain 

 flowers, how they are grown 

 and other interesting facts 

 relating to their history. 

 Should the florist once in 

 a while have in his posses- 

 sion a rare bloom, it would 

 furnish him an excellent ex- 

 cuse to invite the public in 

 to see it. In fact, novel ex- 

 hibitions of any kind give 

 the retailer something that 

 he can usually advertise so 

 as to get people in to see 

 them. 



Experience shows that 

 advertising is the easiest 

 way to get people into the 

 store. News advertising is 

 the best for the purpose. 

 There is plenty of news in 

 every business, even, as we 

 have pointed out, in such a 

 narrowly special business as 

 that of the florist. 



