Music Trade Review

Issue: 1926 Vol. 83 N. 2

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
The Music Trade Review
JULY 10, 1926
brisk band and orchestra business. "We have
had a wonderful business in this department,"
he said. "June was the biggest band instru-
ment month we have ever had." The firm
handles the King line now, and has as manager
Several Report Demand Has Been Better Thus Far This Summer Than Has Been the Case in oi the department Jack Don, who has done quite
Several Previous Years—Sharp Daynes With Daynes-Beebe Music Co.
a lot of broadcasting which has given him a
wide and valuable acquaintance.
Mrs. Ethel Olin, manager of the Utah Music
ALT LAKE CITY, UTAH, July 1.—The that are selling best are the portables which can
sheet music and phonograph departments be taken along and used in the canyon tent, Co., is attending the convention in the East and
seem to be enjoying greater prosperity than where everyone who is able to get away may visiting prominent music manufacturing and
sales centers. She has been away about a
other departments in the principal music stores be found just now.
of Salt Lake City at this time. One thing that
Harry O'Loughlin, of O'Loughlin's on month but is expected home next week.
Oscar Olsen, salesman for the Daynes-Beebe
has helped the phonograph business during the South Main street, reports a big demand for
past few days is the extreme heat, the first phonographs at this time, and especially for the Music Co. for many years past, was married
really hot weather of the present Summer. Such Brunswick Panatrope. He said the demand for in the Salt Lake Temple yesterday. The
expressions as "A wonderful phonograph busi- talking machines of all kinds was better than in couple have gone to Yellowstone National
ness" are not at all uncommon here this week the Summertime of other years by a large per- Park for their honeymoon.
in music trade circles. Of course, the machines centage. Mr. O'Loughlin also reported a really
Sharp Daynes, son of president and general
manager Joseph J. Daynes, of the Daynes-
Beebe Music Co., has joined the sales staff of
the company and will be in the phonograph de-
(Continued from page 3)
partment for the present. Mr. Daynes, Jr., re-
that the retail music merchant can experience. poor returns that mail advertising shows, much cently graduated from the University of Utah.
General Manager Royal W. Daynes, of the
Protection of turnover is always more vitally of the material of this nature he sends out is
important than the absolute maintenance of the wasted. Under such conditions it is not likely Consolidated Music Co., is on a business trip in
that the dealer will go to the expense of postage Idaho.
margin of net profit.
Miss Aurora Herrington, sheet music depart-
Retail music merchants devote by far the greater and mailing unless the returns are likely to be
ment of the Consolidated Music Co., is enjoy-
part of their advertising appropriations to the better.
ing a vacation at Fish Haven.
Miss Alice
piano. The Review questionnaire showed that
Special Sales Copy
with the retail music houses reporting, 74.66
Of the retail music houses answering The Re- Campbell, in charge of the Information Desk, is
per cent of their advertising appropriation was view's questionnaire, 63.4 per cent reported that at Yellowstone. Miss Campbell is expected to
devoted to that instrument and 25.44 per cent they used special sales copy and 33.6 per cent be away for two months.
A requisition for $5,000 worth of musical in-
to the other lines handled. One house reported that they did not utilize it in their work. Most
that it divided its advertising appropriation on a of those reporting, however, stated that their struments and $1,500 worth of clothing and
basis of 3 per cent pro rata for each department special sales copy was not regularly used but equipment for the 324 Cavalry band, now at
on the basis of its annual volume of sales, and cnly at long periods. Their statements as to Cedar City, Utah, was sent to Philadelphia this
another used the same system, only setting the the results that this copy produced showed that week by the executive officer of the organiza-
percentage figure at 5 per cent. Another retail it is obviously losing its appeal to the purchas- tion, Colonel Dougherty.
Burglars entered the Consolidated Music Co.'s
music house stated that its advertising appro- ing public. While a few stated that they re-
priation was divided as follows: Piano de- ceived excellent results from it, the generaJ store the other night and carried off $900
partment, 6 per cent of the gross sales; talk- opinion seemed to be summed up in the follow- worth of instruments. Entrance was through
ing machine department, 4 per cent of the gross ing statement from a prominent house, the ad- a rear door. Banjos and a portable phonograph
sales; musical merchandise department, 6 per vertising manager of which stated: "Results were taken.
John Elliot Clark and Alvin A. Beesley,
cent of the gross sales; and sheet music depart- from this type of advertising are fair only. It
ment, 3 per cent of the gross sales. Another seems to leave the selling field exhausted, as it prominent local figures in the phonograph and
house stated: "We make an appropriation de- were. Besides, we feel that its frequent use general musical merchandising field respectively,
pending on inventory and previous annual does not create a healthy attitude on the part of have been appointed members of the special
the public towards the house." Several other committee organized by the mayor for celebra-
sales."
In studying these figures it must be remem- firms stated that in their opinion special sales tion of July 4.
bered that the music merchants to whom the copy had lost its pulling power through being
The Consolidated Music Co. has a fine
questionnaires were sent are largely houses overdone in the trade, that it was very difficult portable phonograph window this week. It is
where the piano department constitutes the to obtain results from it, and that it is losing a canyon scene. A man is fishing in a stream
greater part of the business and where it is its power to a great extent.
while a woman is standing at a camp table,
Seventy-six per cent of the retail music mer- presumably ready to prepare for breakfast the
given the most emphasis. But this is also true
in the great majority of the general music chants reporting stated that they used institu- fish that her husband is expected to catch. In
houses who constitute the backbone of the re- tional copy regularly and 24 per cent that they the dainty little tent is a portable phonograph
did not use it at all. Those who did use it were with fhe price, $50.00, attached. Just outside
tail music trade.
generally satisfied with the results it brings, the tent is another machine priced $17.50.
Newspaper Advertising Leads
Newspaper advertising, according to these some of their comments being: "Good all sea-
Harry O'Loughlin, of O'Loughlin's, and
questionnaires, is without question the most son"; "Create an improvement in the class of family have returned from a pleasant trip along
important in results for the retail music mer- trade done by the house"; "Builds confidence the Pacific Coast, which they took by motor.
chant. Sixty per cent of those replying to the and good will"; "It is indirect, but builds pres- Frank Warren of the same company and his
questionnaire stated that the results they tige and good will"; "Increasing its use with in- family are at this writing enjoying a similar
achieved with this type of publicity were good, creasing results." Out of all the music mer- vacation, Mr. Warren having left right after
and 40 per cent, fair. None stated that their chants who stated that they used this type of Mr. O'Loughlin's return.
results were poor. On the other hand, only 7 copy, only one reported that the results ob-
per cent of the merchants reporting stated that tained from it were poor. It is possible to
their returns from mail advertising were good; infer from the general trend of the answers that
21 per cent stated that their results were fair; this type of copy is being used more and more
CHICAGO, III,, June 28.—Walter Gotsch, presi-
and 72 per cent, poor. This condition is ade- every year and that the results obtained from dent of the Musical Instrument and Acces-
quately reflected in the division of the general it are becoming better and better.
sories Manufacturers' Association, and vice-
appropriation between these two types of ad-
president of the Association of Musical Mer-
Automatically Lowering Expenditure
vertising.
From this investigation it is obvious that chandise Manufacturers, Chicago zone, and A. E.
It is obvious, however, from the way in which the reason for the shrinkage in lineage on mu- Hunter, general manager of the Regal Music
these questions were answered that the average sical instruments in the daily press from 1924 Instrument Co., who is also secretary and treas-
music merchant has no direct methods of check- to 1925 is largely due to the fact that a falling urer of the local Association, are spending their
ing up on his advertising. Evidently this con- off in sales volume led to an automatic cutting vacations, together with their wives, touring the
dition has been found to require a remedy since of advertising appropriations. Newspaper ad- East. The party left a week previous to the
several houses stated that they were beginning vertising of musical instruments has not lost convention and attended the National Conven-
to provide space on their salesmen's sheets for its pulling power, except in the case of special tion of the Music Industries during the week
sales copy, according to the statements of these of June 7 in New York, and then continued on
the purpose of checking up such data.
music merchants. But this falling off leads di- their tour, which takes them through New York
Warning to Manufacturers
There is one thing that this poor showing of rectly to a more healthy condition in regard to State and New England.
direct mail advertising should teach the manu- musical instrument retail advertising. It would
facturer. That is, if he devotes any large sum also seem that special sales advertising is kill-
to dealer co-operation, and a good percentage ing itself through its. constant reiteration and
of this is spent on direct mail material, it would the consequent loss of confidence on the part
The Montelius Music Co., of Seattle, Wash.,
be better for him to concentrate on other forms of the public in the statements which it con- has leased the store at 220 Pine street to pro-
of dealer aids, since it is obvious that, with the tains.
vide additional display space for its line.
Talking Machines Leading in Demand
With Music Dealers of Salt Lake City
S
Ratio of Advertising to Sales of Retail Music Dealer
Spending Vacation in East
Leases New Store
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
Featuring All Sides of the Player in
the St. Louis Campaign
A Striking Example of Constructive Copy Used by the St. Louis Retail Music Merchants for the Player-
Piano Based on the Wealth of Music Which Is Available to the Owners of the Player-Piano
—The Results Brought by Co-operative Advertising to Retail Merchants
T
H E miniature war, of which the piano
business of St. Louis is the center, is more
or less familiar to the members of the in-
dustry generally, who have watched with con-
siderable interest the campaign carried on by
the Better Business Bureau through one news-
set the effects of the Better Business Bureau's
drive against certain specified houses, which has
naturally reacted against all retail piano concerns
in the city, through reduced volume of business
and increased sales resistance, there has been
evolved some excellent copy, specimens of
One of the latest of the series of co-operative
advertisements occupying something like five
columns and almost the entire depth of the
page in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is repro-
duced herewith because of the unusual character
of the appeal made to prospective purchasers
of player-pianos. There are some features in
the copy that might well be embodied in all
player-piano advertising, for instance, that sec-
tion calling attention, in large type, to the great
variety of music that is available to player
owners through the medium of music rolls.
Here in itself is an argument that alone justifies
the space devoted to the advertisement, for there
has been altogether too little attention devoted
to the music that is possible through the player-
piano in proportion to the amount of space
given to the presentation of the instrument
itself.
VERY musical enjoyment is realizable with a
Player-Piano in the home. Without previous
Then, too, a special effort was made to dis-
musical training any member of the family
tinguish between the various types of player-
may most pleasingly play music ' ' the most difficult
pianos for the benefit of the prospective buyer,
compositions may be played with ease.
differentiating very clearly between instruments
operated by foot power or electrically, and with
Old favorites, almost unknown to this younger
the expression controlled by the player and
generation, may again be played and loved for
those instruments of the reproducing type, for
melody and sentiment.
instance, which are entirely automatic in opera-
A new song may become the
tion.
rage over night. Without
bothering with an unfamiliar
More advertising of this broad and informa-
score, the music roll has it
tive
type carried on by the trade at large in all
ready for instant playing
sections of the country should prove of great
Not to everyone is given the
benefit to the player division of the industry as a
gift for quickly reading music.
whole, for despite the fact that the player in its
Hours of practice are some'
times necessary for many
various forms has been on the market for over
before perfecting fingering
a quarter of a century, there still remains in
and rhythm..
the minds of many excellent prospects consid-
To those, therefore, who can-
erable doubt as to the range and possibilities
not play and the many who
of the different instruments.
do play, a Player -Piano, with
its inexhaustible library of
The St. Louis piano merchants, fortunately,
music rolls, is indeed a boon.
in combating the effects of the clean-up cam-
paign of the Better Business Bureau have not
All Player-Pianos may be
hand-played exactly as ordi-
endeavored to impress the public with the vir-
nary Pianos.
tues of the various co-operative concerns, but
have endeavored to instil confidence in the trade
Music Rolls Embrace More Than 5000
and its products by a straightforward presenta-
Different Pieces of Music
tion of facts. The advertisement devoted to the
SACRED
OPERATIC
CLASSICAL
player-piano is a particularly fine example of
NURSERY TUNES
DANCES
HEART SONGS
this work and should prove effective on merit
BALLADS
POPULAR SONG
MARCHES
alone.
OVERTURES
SYMPHONIES
PATRIOTIC
It may seem a bit unnecessary to devote val-
The cost of any of these music rolls is small»' inconsequential in
uable advertising space to telling player owners
view of the pleasure enjoyed and the happiness afforded. There
is something for every mood and every occasion. Any music roll
that they may obtain in music roll form a wide
may be played with the performer's own interpretation of
selection of the classics, semi-classics, old-fash-
expression, if desired.
ioned home songs, etc., but when one considers
TWO TYPES OF PLAYER-PIANOS
the average run of music roll advertisements,
PURELY AUTOMATIC
FOOT PROPELLED
which are certainly few enough, it would ap-
This is the reproducing type. Plug in on the house current, in-
This U the Upright style. The Player u built in and u an integral
sert the reproducing roll and listen to Paderewskl and hundreds
pear, in most cases, that there are produced
part of the instrument. It U fine mechanism and is easily, almost
of the world's famous pianists. The tempo and expression are
Unconsciouslyi propelled. It U the favorite instrument of music in
only the popular airs of the day. The advertis-
automatically controlled. In Upright, and Grand Piano style*.
countless hotnei. It costs little more than a good ordinary Piano.
ing setting forth the character of music that
Buy a well known make. Convenient terms may be had wherever standard make Pianos are sold,
can be obtained has, therefore, a double appeal;
with your old Piano or Phonograph, appraised at a fair value, accepted as part payment
first, to the player owner who may have tem-
porarily lost interest in his instrument or seeks
rolls that meet his requirements, and, second,
to the prospect who appreciates good music but
questions whether he can produce it without
personal musical training on the player instru-
A Player Advertisement in the St, Louis Co-operative Campaign
ment as at present constituted and constructed
paper to educate the public regarding the ques- which have already been reproduced in The by the industry.
tionable practice existing in the local piano Review. Being co-operative, the advertising has
Perhaps the example set by the St. Louis
trade and a counter-campaign carried on in
had to deal with generalities, naturally, and has music men may prove an inspiration to retailers
another newspaper by piano dealers themselves been confined for the most part to emphasizing in other sections of the country, who may thus
on a co-operative basis to re-establish their
the need of music in the home and of the value be moved to use explanatory copy either in
place in the confidence of the people.
their individual campaigns or where possible in
of the piano in its various forms for educational
co-operative advertising.
In the co-operative campaign designed to off- and entertainment purposes.
For Fathers and Mothers
and Sons and Daughters
The Player-Piano
E
PLAY MORE MUSIC
5

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