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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
cotton and dropped the American stuff. Our consuls complain that
much of our foreign trade is carried on as that old-fashioned Ameri-
can firm dealt with the Chinese. It pleased itself, but not its cus-
tomers. That is not the way to create trade.
N experienced advertiser remarked recently that the smallest
newspaper advertisement is worth many times over any ad-
vertising matter in a sealed envelope, while the unsealed letter
is worthless. The sealed letter is expensive, and pre-supposes a
personal communication. Nine times out of ten it causes a feeling
of resentment, as though it had deceived the receiver.
Advertising in regular periodicals pays, and immense fortunes
have been built through the liberal returns from patronizing the
recognized channels of publicity. Every advertisement carries the
influence of all the advertising which has gone before. It pays to
keep it up continuously and intelligently, but it also pays to advertise
a good product, for all the advertising in the world will not bolster
an article which lacks merit.
A
ROBABLY manufacturers of pianos have more unreasonable
claims made upon them for alleged defects than manufactur-
ers in any other line. We saw a complaint from a dealer recently
who claimed a rebate on a piano because the varnish showed some
hair checks after the piano had been removed from a car which had
been stalled in snow drifts to a warm wareroom. He evidently be-
lieved that the piano manufacturer was responsible for the contrac-
tion and expansion of woods and metals, and should adjust his var-
nish accordingly.
That is in line with another claim that a dealer made for a re-
duction on a piano which his customer had placed near a red hot
stove with dire results. Because the varnish blistered, he urged an
allowance on the ground that he must meet the demands of the retail
buyer who said that he affirmed that the varnish would stand any
changes of heat and cold. He wanted a piano that he could throw in
the furnace and serve piping hot with its ashes on the side. The
amazing part is, the men who present such claims pretend to be
offended, and mildly suggest dropping the piano unless the claims
are met in a fair spirit.
P
PEAKING of original advertising, the late Robert Bonner,
whose New York Ledger was the most successful weekly story
paper ever published, set the pace in this country for original and
expensive advertising. A writer in Printer's Ink recalls the time
when Mr. Bonner hired space by the column, and sometimes by the
page, in leading newspapers, and filled it with repetitions of the same
lines, something in the following style:
S
The New York Ledger
The New York Ledger
The New York Ledger
Will be for sale
Will be for sale
Will be for sale
To-morrow morning
To-morrow morning
To-morrow morning
Throughout the
Throughout the
Throughout the
United States
United States
United States
And New Jersey
And New Jersey
And New Jersey
:
The New Jersey joke was a departuie from Mr. Bonner's usual
methods, a mixture of humor and business being out of his line;
but this form of advertising, of which the foregoing is a miniature
example, made a tremendous hit with the public and created an im-
mense sale for the Ledger. But in those days it was regarded as
freaky, sensational and rather beneath the dignity of legitimate busi-
ness enterprises.
ND hereby hangs another tale of Mr. Bonner's aggressiveness
and audacity. One morning the publishers of Harper's
Weekly—the embodiment of respectability and culture in journalism
—were amazed to see their own advertisement printed in the Bonner
style in several leading New York papers. The wording was appro-
priate and unobjectionable, but the columns of repeated lines gave
the Harpers a violent shock. Inquiry brought out the fact that the
advertisements had been ordered and paid for by Mr. Bonner, his
object being to give dignity and tone to his own method of pub-
licity. Besides thus getting into good journalistic society, he made
the Ledger more talked about than ever, and got a great many thou-
sands of new readers for it. Incidentally, Harper's Weekly had no
reason, from a business standpoint, to resent Mr. Bonner's coup,
and its publishers philosophically joined in the general laugh.
A
The writer in Printer's Ink relates that Mr. Bonner was often
heard to say, when speaking of his success as an advertiser, that
over and over he would gather together all the money he could lay
his hands on and "throw it all out to the newspapers" and that it
seemed as though, before he could get back to his office, it would
all be there again and a whole lot more with it. It is a curious cir-
cumstance that Mr. Bonner, although himself a lavish advertiser,
never allowed an advertisement to appear in the Ledger. But he was
a genius in his way, and after his retirement there was nobody who
could successfully' continue his methods.
T
HE technical department, which is conducted weekly in The
Review, should not be overlooked by those who are inter-
ested in this special field. It should not alone be perused by tuners,
but by manufacturers and salesmen as well, for it presents regularly
information concerning matters relating directly to the technical side
of the industry, which too frequently is overlooked. A man with
an accurate knowledge of the technical side of the industry is worth
infinitely more to himself and to his employers than one who has
merely a superficial knowledge of those essentials.
T
HE primary object of advertising is to bring and keep a class
of goods before the buying public. The question is, does
the present method accomplish this result—that is, is the advertising
matter in such form that it can be utilized for reference by the pur-
chaser, and does the advertiser obtain the best results? There are
large sums of money spent annually in advertising matter through
circulars, catalogues, personal canvass, etc., a large portion of which
we believe does not bring adequate returns. The reason for this is
that it is not distributed in such form that it can be properly filed for
reference. In order to keep goods or a concern making or selling
them before the buying public, it is necessary to have advertising 1
matter in such form that it can be conveniently and accurately filed,
and it must be borne in mind that advertising matter is filed by the
purchaser, not only on account of advertising a certain brand of
goods, but for the information it contains. It would, therefore, seem
that the most effective advertising is literature which contains the
most information and in such form that it can be utilized for the
purpose intended.
T
H E question of uniform advertising is therefore a very impor-
tant matter. If, for illustration, a manufacturer who spends
large sums of money annually for the purpose of familiarizing the
trade with bis goods, could feel that his advertising matter which
gives full information covering his goods, was carefully filed away
and will be referred to whenever a prospective customer is in the
market for that particular class of goods, he would feel that he is
getting value received, and would place his customer in a position
where he would at all times have complete information covering the
product. Such a system of advertising, therefore, would be very
valuable to both parties concerned. This question was discussed at
some length at the recent convention of the Electrical Association,
and active steps were taken to standardize all advertising matter.
So far this move has met with the hearty approval and co-operation
of manufacturers and jobbers.
I
T will be interesting to manufacturers in the music trade industry
to note the standards adopted, which were as follows: Eor postal
cards, circulars, quotations, etc., 3 x 5 inches; for catalogues, 4 x 6
inches and 6 x 9 inches; letter paper, bulletin circulars, etc., 3!^ x 11
inches. All descriptive matter is to be printed on paper similar in
size, so that it can be filed. It is also recommended that business
cards be 3 x 5 inches in size, and in all cases uniform, so that they
may be used for filing purposes. There is no question that a large
amount of advertising matter finds its way to the waste-basket;
whereas, if there w r ere a system of uniformity it would be a com-
paratively easy matter to keep it in some form where it is easily
accessible.
OMBINATIONS, amalgamations and absorptions in the music
trade industry seem to be in the air. Rumors affecting leading
houses, not only in the East, but in Chicago and the Pacific Coast,
continue to prevail. This is the usual aftermath of the Aeolian-
Steck deal and further fuel is added by the White-Knabe-Wanamaker
arrangement, whereby the Knabe-Angelus piano, and presumably the
Knabe piano, will become important factors in the trade of New
York and Philadelphia. To publish the details of the various rumors
would make interesting reading, but it is always the better plan to
await developments, no matter how anxious a newspaper man is to
rush into print with all he knows and hears.
C