Music Trade Review

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JUNE 21, 1924
THE
MUSIC TRADE
REVIEW
Sell Radio Sets—Not Technicalities
Sixth of a Series of Articles Dealing With the Merchandising Problems Confronting the Retail Music Mer-
chant in Handling This Latest Addition to His Line on a Profitable Basis—Technicalities in
Sales Talk a Creator of Future Service Expense for the Dealer
NE of the commonest faults that the
ordinary dealers in radio sets and sup-
plies have is the fact that their selling talk
is generally technical. They concern themselves
mainly with the theoretical working of the set.
Just why this is done is problematical. The
probable reason is because they have a smattering
of the art and wish to disguise their evident
ignorance of the machine by quoting theories
that they have picked up from salesmen and
booklets. As stated many times before, the cus-
tomer is not interested in the fact that the
neutralization of the tubes is accomplished by
feeding back in a reverse manner or any of the
other nice-sounding phrases. What he is inter-
ested in is if the set will perform satisfactorily
and if any one can operate it.
Raising the Cover
It is perfectly possible and extremely feasible
to sell a radio set without once mentioning any
technical matter except that the set works, on
three or five or nine tubes and that certain bat-
teries are necessary. To prove this take into
consideration the fact that several well-known
manufacturers have so constructed their new
sets that it is impossible to see the inside of
the receiver or how it works. When the cover
is raised the space for the tubes is seen and the
sockets are the only material noticeable. This
is a very good point and it is to be hoped that
more manufacturers will follow this lead.
Raising the cover of a set and exposing the
works only leads the customer to ask questions
and it is then that the average salesman will
generally resort to technicalities in his talk. One
large retail store in New York City, which is
very well known, instructs its men when sell-
ing radio sets not to expose the inside of the
set except in removing and replacing tubes when
demonstrating, and if possible to do this before
the customer is taken into the demonstration
room. The method has been in vogue for over
five months and every salesman is strong in his
praise of it, as it allows him to sell the radio
set to the best advantage without getting into
an argument as to the best method of receiving
and the most efficient circuit.
Customer's Interest
Customers are not interested in the inside
of the receiver. What they want is a machine
which is simple in operation, inexpensive in up-
keep and which, through its construction, will
allow them to receive music and other programs
as desired. They do not care if the manufac-
turer uses a low-loss condenser or a fiber grid
leak, so long as the set will function to their
satisfaction when placed in their home.
Take as an instance the reproducing piano
field. The salesman will never sell a piano on
its mechanical points. He sells it on its tone,
its beauty, its accomplishments and quality of
reproduction. At that a reproducing piano is
much more complex in its mechanical arrange-
ment than the most complex receiver made and
the salesman could, if he wished, spend hours
selling its mechanical side, but the customer
does not want that. He is not interested in
anything but the fact that it is a good piano
and will allow him to get good music from it.
The same applies to radio.
The customer is not being sold a patent or a
patent right or a license, which would make it
necessary that he know the technical side of the
question. He is being sold a machine which,
through its proper manipulation, will allow him
to get music, speeches and news from stations
at fairly distant points. Besides that, his artis-
tic sense must be appealed to by the fact that
O
the set is in a fine cabinet, that it looks well
balanced and that, all in all, it is a handsome
piece of furniture.
The Reasons
The reason for all this is the following: Once
a person is given a chance to inspect the inside
of the receiver and the salesman gives a certain
amount of time to the discussion of the ap-
paratus in the set, he leads the former to believe
that radio is an extremely simple technical
proposition. The customer gets the set home
and if, after a time, something goes wrong, the
lure of "fixing it himself" will tempt him to stick
his hands inside and try to find out what is
wrong. Then the dealer has his hands and
time full in trying to fix or repair it. If the
salesman had kept the cover closed and in-
structed the customer in the correct operation
and emphasized the fact that the works are
extremely delicate and should not be touched
this trouble would not come up.
It is man's nature to believe that he is rather
a mechanic and can "fix it himself" and for this
reason it is rather poor business to give the
customer the impression that it is an easy
proposition to repair a receiver. Take, for in-
stance, the telephone operators. They are given
weeks of schooling by experts in the operation
of a telephone switchboard, yet they do not have
mentioned to them one word about what goes
on inside the board. The telephone companies
have a special corps of trained and experienced
men to take care of the technical end of the
work and the operator's job is to take care of
the operation and see that the calls that come
in are correctly "routed." Sell the radio set
on the same basis.
Answering Questions
If the customer asks a few technical questions
you should answer them in a clear manner and
try to get away from the technical side. Draw
comparisons between the action of the set and
some every-day occurrence. Take the follow-
ing instance: The customer asks just why it
is necessary to operate a certain dial when
looking for a station on a different wave length.
This could develop into a very long and tech-
nical discussion of frequencies and wave lengths
and tuning to resonance if the salesman wanted
to and understood it. But it will satisfy the
customer more and help the sale if something
like the following is the answer: Take, for in-
stance, an automobile when it is being driven.
The factor determining the speed is the amount
of vaporized gasoline that is allowed to enter
the cylinders during the operation. In tuning
the set the factor determining the stations de-
sired is the wave length to which the set is
allowed to become sensitive. By feeding the
car more gas the speed is increased. By turning
the dials so as to include more condenser ca-
pacity or more coil inductance the wave length
is increased. This gives a fairly good idea of
the tuning of the set to the customer and does
not at the same time include any tangling tech-
nicalities which might cause the salesman to
raise the cover and explain by means of illustrat-
ing the action inside the set.
The less said about the technical side of radio
in the sales talk the better pleased the customer
will eventually be because he will not be con-
stantly wondering if so and such is performing
correctly. When you are talking technicalities
you are treading on thin ice, so keep away from
it. There is plenty to talk about without the
technical side of the question entering into the
sales talk at all.
Occasionally a customer who has built his
own set will enter the store and start in to ask
a lot of questions regarding this circuit or that
circuit and the function of this part or that part.
This puts the salesman on his mettle to handle
the proposition. He should answer the ques-
tions as simply as possible and lead right away
from that side of the question to the operation
of the set. It is a true saying that a little knowl-
edge is a dangerous thing and as no one except
a thorough technician who has had years of ex-
perience is qualified to discuss the technical side
of the receivers it is apt to lead to difficulties
that will keep the customer from buying the set.
You do not sell a talking machine by showing
its motor, so do not sell a set by selling or
showing its works.
Occasionally, however, when selling one set
against another of a different type a slight tech-
nical explanation is considered necessary to
show the customer the difference in the two.
If such is necessary let it be short and under-
standable and in such terms that it will be easily
assimilated by the hearer. This is really the
only reason that the salesman has for discussing
the technical side of the question and if he is
wise he will do it in such a manner that there
is no opening left for the further discussion of
the matter when it is done. Such can easily be
done by drawing similes between radio and
some well-known daily occurrence.
However, with all this it does not mean that
a man should be allowed to sell the radio re-
ceivers who does not himself thoroughly under-
stand it. Such a salesman will find it easier
to sell the set on a non-technical basis than the
man who has a cursory knowledge of the ques-
tion, as he understands the actions and can draw
a parallel in simple words.
Weaver Pianos Sold
in Far-off China
Weaver Grand to Be Use in Peking Union Uni-
versity, Peking, China—York Also Installed
in Peking Church
YORK, PA., Tune 14.—The Weaver Piano Co.,
Inc., in substantiation of its claim that the fame
of the Weaver piano has encircled the globe, re-
ports the recent sale of Weaver pianos to be
delivered in China. On May 29 the steamer
"President Adams" sailed from New York with
a Weaver grand piano for Peking Union Uni-
versity, Peking, China. It is stated that this is
the first school in all of China which has a
music school similar to those in this country.
The head of this music school is the Rev. Bliss
M. Wiant. Before sailing for China last Sum-
mer, the Rev. Mr. Wiant visited the Weaver fac-
tory and made a thorough investigation of ma-
terial used and method of manufacture. He ex-
pressed himself as convinced that the Weaver
piano would give good service under the difficult
climatic conditions of China. The order placed
for this grand is substantial evidence of his
faith. On June 14 the steamer "City of Manila"
will sail from New York for Tienstin, China,
carrying a style IS York piano for the Asbury
M. E. Church of Peking. This is a large
church seating 1,500 people.
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