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News Number
THE
VOL. 87. No. 3
REVIEW
Published Weekly. Federated Business Publications, Inc., 420 Lexington Are., New York, N. Y., July 21,1928
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Yahrling Tells of Success With
Group Piano Instruction
President of the Yahrling-Rayner Co., Youngstown, O., Declares
Class Teaching Not Only Creates Good Will for House
But Makes Immediate Piano Sales
NE of the strongest advocates of group piano instruction for piano merchants as a direct
means for sales promotion is Charles H. Yahrling, head of the Yahrling-Rayner Music Co.,
Youngstown, O., and a vice-president both of the National Association of Music Mer-
chants and the Music Industries Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Yahrling's company has followed
out the group instruction plan for close to three years, being one of the pioneers and the results
have been set forth at length in The Review on various occasions.
Mr. Yahrling is of the opinion that if dealers
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and salesmen would give as much thought to
creating a new demand for pianos as they do to
golf, bridge parties and automobile touring
there might be some more piano business stir-
ring. In a recent interview regarding the ef-
fectiveness of the class piano instruction in the
warerooms as a means to developing sales, Mr.
Yahrling said:
"There is absolutely no question, and we have
proved it by our own experience, that group
piano instruction of any kind, whether the
Melody Way or any other system is used, not
only creates new business and unlimited good
will for a house, but stimulates the interest in
piano study. The one thing which I feel is
absolutely necessary, if the piano business is to
prosper with the children now growing up, is to
stimulate interest to learn to play the piano.
"It is not a question in my mind how much
any dealer can afford to pay for sales which are
produced through this group piano teaching. He
could well afford to spend all of the profits he
would make on the sales sold directly to group
piano students in order to keep the classes go-
ing steadily throughout the year, as the good
will he builds up in his community is of ines-
Charles H. Yahrling
timable value.
"We are to-night having a Melody Way pupils' it cost us nearly this 25 per cent until we built it
recital given by selected members of the classes up to a point where the volume of sales created
just finished. This is going to bring at least 200 through this promotive work cut the sales cost
people into our store. The mere fact that more than half.
"I do not believe that the total newspaper ad-
there are 100 children coming into one store
every week, many of them bringing with them vertising done by our house to secure Melody
their parents, at least keeps the carpets from Way pupils has averaged more than 4 per cent
throughout the two and a half years that we
getting moldy.
"I would say that any dealer could afford to have been operating these classes. We figure
spend 25 per cent of the gross profits on any the profit made on the material sold to the
sales made to group piano students for this pro- pupils pays for the teachers and clerical work
motive work, and, while our cost on direct sales necessary in handling the classes.
"What gets me is that dealers will go along
has averaged a good deal less than one-half of
this percentage, yet, when we first started out, and blow $200 or $300 in newspaper advertising,
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announcing low prices and bargains, and get no
returns merely because they have created no de-
mand for the merchandise they are trying to
sell at bargain prices. I think you will agree
that there must be a demand before people will
buy an article at any price, and they certainly
do not create this demand by advertising low
prices.
"Our records show that direct sales made to
Melody Way pupils have averaged better than
22 per cent in unit sales to those who came in
the classes who had no pianos. This does not
include the various other musical instruments
and radios that were sold to people who were
brought into the store through these Melody
Way classes.
"Up to date we have on our register pretty
close to 1100 names of people who have had
their children in these classes, and we would not
exchange this mailing list for all the profes-
sional mailing lists in the world put out by con-
cerns who make a business of furnishing such
things.
"In conclusion I will say again that any
dealer can afford to spend all the profits on di-
rect sales through this promotion plan for the
first year at least and over the course of two
years he wilj find that he has secured a substan-
tial amount of plus business that he would not
have gotten in any other way."
Referring again to the subject of business
apathy Mr. Yahrling remarked: "I find in my
conversation with a large number of dealers
that about the only subjects in which they ap-
pear to be interested have to do with golf,
bridge or touring. It was formerly a case when
you visited a dealer in another city that the
main topic of conversation was what can be
done to obtain more business; whereas, now it
sometimes seems as though it were a case of
liow little can be done to get business and how
much time can be spent in pleasure-seeking. I
really think this has more to do with any let
up in business than any other one factor at the
present time."
Buys Greenspun & Greenspun
PHILADELPHIA, PA., July 16—Harry I 7 . Schwoeri
has taken over the business of Greenspun &
Greenspun located at 2126 N. Front street, and
is conducting it as the Kensington Music House.
There is to be carried a complete assortment of
music instruments and accessories with Victor
talking machines and music rolls.