26 BULLETIlSr 1095, U. S. DEPAETMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



portance of personal cleanliness are qualifications that should be 

 required. With such qualifications and a good physique as a foun- 

 dation the possibility of future development into a successful sales- 

 man is mainly a problem of organization of the delivery system. A 

 company that does not have a well-formulated standard of service or 

 that neglects to train its route men is more than likely to have just 

 as many different standards of service as it has route men. 



The pay of a route salesman must be commensurate with the 

 amount and kind of work required of him. As a general rule the 

 salary of a salesman should compare favorably with the pay of a 

 skilled workman or mechanic. A route salesman who sells 400 

 quarts daily and makes an effort to build up his route is rendering a 

 service of a higher order than a driver or teamster, and unless he 

 is adequately paid he will eventually seek other employment. The 

 salaries of efficient milk salesmen vary from $25 to $50 per week. 

 A constantly changing personnel of dissatisfied route salesmen pre- 

 cludes efficiency in satisfactory delivery service. The premium or 

 commission system of payment, in which a bonus is offered to sales- 

 men for new customers obtained and for promptness in the collection 

 and return of bottles in addition to basic salary, is the usual method 

 of paying salesmen for efficient service and encouraging them to put 

 forth their best efforts. 



Because of the many disagreeable features of route-delivery work 

 there is a tendency among route men to look upon the work as a tem- 

 porary job until more agreeable employment is obtained. This tend- 

 ency is often further encouraged by the indifferent attitude of the 

 company toward the route men. Even companies which maintain a 

 most liberal policy toward their salesmen and pay adequate salaries 

 report that only about 50 per cent of their route force can be consid- 

 ered permanent. 



Adequate salaries, liberal commissions, and a bonus system of pay- 

 ment, convenient working equipment, and a reasonable amount of 

 time off' each month are strong inducements to route salesmen to put 

 forth their best efforts and to continue permanently in delivery work. 



Because the net profit on a bottle of milk is usually a small frac- 

 tion of its selling price, the reduction of credit losses to a minimum 

 is of more importance than in most other lines of business. The 

 advantages and disadvantages of various credit systems, and especi- 

 ally their adaptability to local conditions, should be investigated 

 before any one of them is adopted. 



The choice of a cash or credit system, or a modified form of such, 

 will depend upon competitive conditions, prevailing trade practices, 

 and the management of an effective sales organization and distribut- 

 ing system. Eeasons for and against may be given for each, but. in 

 general, cash systems have been found to be most economical of op- 



