the fflational lurser^man. 
FOR GROWERS AND DEALERS IN NURSERY STOCK 
The National Nurseryman Publishing Co., Incorporated 
Vol. XXX HATBORO, PENNA., APRIL 1922 No. 4 
Advertising Suggestions to Nurserymen 
Address by Mr. Ralph Bertini, Advertising Manager of the A. C. Gilbert Co., of New Haven, Conn., to the 
Connecticut Nurserymen s Association, February 9, 1922 ,Hotel Taft, New Haven, Conn. 
When our mutual friend, Walter Campbell, wrote me 
some time ago asking me to come down here and say a 
few words on advertising, he very kindly gave me a 
definite topic. So definite indeed, that if I had the abil¬ 
ity and you the time, we could stay right here for the 
rest of the week discussing it without a stop. He wrote, 
“Tell us of the principles of advertising—the mistakes we 
make—how to correct them, etc., etc.” He put in a couple 
of extra “and so forths,” probably because he didn’t want 
to write them down, hut at the same time wanted to in¬ 
clude anything that his suggested subject might have 
over-looked. Either he thinks of me as a prodigy of some 
sort, able from what experience I have had. to point out 
in the short space of 30 minutes, all the evils and pitfalls 
in advertising, or else he had something against me, and 
wanted to hand me a real job for once. However my re¬ 
marks will be brief and, I hope, to the point. 
To begin with, folks, everything you do in business is 
advertising. The way the girl in your office answers the 
telephone is advertising. If she has a bright and cheery 
“Hello” she is advertising your business properly to those 
who seek you. The reception visitors get to your place of 
business, the courtesy with which they are treated, that 
is advertising—good or bad, depending entirely upon the 
thoughts impressed upon them at the meeting. 
The condition of your offices—bright, freshly painted, 
inviting looking buildings attract customers, whereas ill- 
kept, unpainted houses repel them. What a very pleas¬ 
ant frame of mind is instilled by walking up through a 
nicely kept lawn to an attractive building. All that is 
advertising, gentlemen, and the kind that costs you little 
or nothing. Before you do any other kind of advertising, 
be sure that the stage is all set, so to speak, and there are 
no loop holes by which you can detract from the good ef¬ 
fect.of the printed word. 
This, then, brings us to the thing in which we are all 
most interested today. Printed advertising, printed sales¬ 
manship to go out as the missionaries of your business. 
Too many business men today who realize the necessity 
for doing something to stimulate their business, say to 
themselves, “I’ll advertise.” They have no definite 
thoughts in mind as to just what they’ll do—how much 
money they’ll spend, or anything else. They look upon 
advertising as some sort of a cure-all to make sick busi¬ 
ness well, and to he disregarded again as soon as the 
business gets on its feet. But above all. it is not that, 
It will he of small benefit to any business if not used with 
the same judgment and care that is exercised in the selec¬ 
tion of the product you have to sell. It wants to be made 
a vital part of your business, a continuous agent well in 
the minds of everyone who has to do with the laying out 
of the year’s work for your company, kept in mind in 
every sales plan if it is to do you the most good. And 
it wants to be laid out as carefully as you plan the artis¬ 
tic surroundings for the homes of some of my rich 
friends. It wants first of all to be budgeted. By that I 
mean a certain, definite and agreed upon sum of money 
should be set aside every year for advertising. This sum 
of money to be based on your estimated year’s sales, and 
governed, of course, by your usual selling cost. Un¬ 
doubtedly, many of you are following that policy now in 
your advertising and realize the importance of having 
definite figures to work on. It is the only method which 
permits of intelligent planning—one of the most neces¬ 
sary features in any advertising campaign. 
I would not attempt to advise you how much money to 
spend in advertising. I certainly advise very strongly, 
however, that you work on a definite percentage of your 
net sales. For example, in our business we spend a cer¬ 
tain percentage in advertising Gilbert toys and another 
one in advertising Polar Cub electric products, and we 
spend this definite percentage religiously, so to speak. 
Of course we have been advertising for a number of 
years, and it has more or less become second nature to 
us to lay out our year's campaign. We do it in this way: 
At the end of every year we take the figures of our 
sales for that year and discuss the possibilities for the 
coming year. Consider all of the outside influences with 
which we will have to contend, the condition of the mar¬ 
ket. etc. And every year, with the exception of the one 
we have just been through, we have been fortunate in 
being able to set our sales quota ahead of the year previ¬ 
ous. Then taking the percentage which we have arrived 
at from our previous experience we know immediately 
how much we can invest in advertising. 
By the middle of the year, if we find our sales are ex¬ 
ceeding the quota set, we increase our advertising pro¬ 
portionately to keep step with the progress we are mak¬ 
ing, and I consider this plan one of the basic principles 
of advertising. The budget system whereby advertising 
becomes a standard part of your selling policy constantly 
works for you, because in a sense you have put it on the 
payroll along with your other salesmen. 
When it comes right down to the point ol preparing 
an advertisement, I think we are all inclined to think of 
the people we are addressing—the so-called buying pub- 
