EIGHT NEWSPAPERS IN THE UNITED STATES Each published more than eight THE BALTIMORE SUN was one of these papers 8,217,325 Lines were carried in the Morning, A GAIN OF 760,017 Lines over the same six months last The great growth of The Baltimore Sun in circu- It Pays To Advertise In One Disordered Industry to Straighten Itself Out by Advertising Sweet-Feed Manufacturers, Tired of Many Trade Evils, Confer and Agree Upon Joint Appropriation By R. L. Morrell Vice-Pres. Grain Dealers' Journal, Chicago, Ill. WE hear a lot about this sub ject "The Good Will of the Consumer." Nearly every issue of PRINTERS' INK tells how some concern gives its customers a "buzz" at regular intervals to reassure them there is but one place for that repeat order. But can advertising for good will of the consumer be made to accomplish definite work? Can it be made to accomplish this task in such a way that we will know definitely when it has done its work? One industry believes that it can be made a tangible force and its members are going to spend $30,000 to prove it. Some twelve years ago a New Orleans grain man conceived the idea of smearing molasses over musty grains, making them palatable for horses and mules. He called the mixture "sweet feed," mixed in a little sawdust, a little excelsior and sold it. Apparently the animals thrived, and from this undesirable inception there has developed an enormous industry of sweet-feed manufacturers. I say "undesirable beginning" because you shall see later that it was principally by reason of such a beginning that advertising was drafted for important work. When the sweet-feed manufacturers assembled in Memphis a few weeks ago they came together for the first meeting of their newly formed organization, the Sweet Feed Manufacturers Association. For the past twelve years each manufacturer had drifted for himself, built up his mill and selling organization, unmindful of the work of his competitors. Consequently these manufacturers had never studied co-operatively the many evils that grew up with their industry. They knew nothing about the practice of their competitors except as they were able to learn them from the stories of their own salesmen. Not in all these years of work and development had one feed manufacturer enjoyed the advice and experience of his competitor. Naturally each manufacturer seemed rather bewildered by the presence of so many with whom he had been engaged in hot competition that at times threatened to destroy the industry. In fact, it was apparent from the start that these men regarded violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Law and organization of competitive manufacturers in the same light. HOW ORGANIZATION STARTED The first remarks of their president were to assure these men that the association was not attempting to combine, but to find a solution for existing evils. He told them past differences were to be forgotten, whereupon each manufacturer "laid his gun upon the table" and settled down to what seemed to me the frankest discussion of trade evils I have listened to. There was no second meaning to what they said they were after facts and they found them. They confessed to the presence of price competition, to the presence of "yellow" salesmen, to the evils of long-time contracts; total disrespect of competitors and a deplorable absence of consumer good will. They confessed to all their sins and determined to find the remedy. How were they going to eliminate those evils and raise the standard of their industry? They (Continued on page 63) MENTS & RECORDS We have prepared a "Musical Instrument" campaign, taking into consideration the present unusual situation predominating in this particular form of enterprise. The manufacturer of a well-made instrument and records enjoying an adequate distribution will find this plan constructive from both consumer and dealer standpoint. The campaign is extremely seasonable at the same time decidedly economical. Properly handled this advertising campaign will produce a stimulus that perhaps has not been thought of in this field. It is our belief that no manufacturer in- If you are interested, we shall |