Music Trade Review

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW, MARCH, 1U0
chances that dealers will do their part
in selling pianos. So many Weeks
abound that they are almost being
kidded, but the truth is that they pay.
Music Week for piano men, however,
lacks the specific appeal which is vital
for piano sales. The plan is "Eat more
Oranges Week" and not Eat More Fruit.
It is "Drink More Milk Week" and not
Drink More Beverages.
W
E see everything for Mu-
sic Week as such, but
there should be a Piano
Week proceeding it—Own
A Piano Now—Enjoy Music Week and
make every week musical . . . or some
better promotion phrase. To those who
say: "that's too much" they also can't
help but add: "and Music Week isn't
enough for pianos." There can come
no harm from having too much piano
promotion—look where the industry
went we didn't have enough, for as we
told you last month, $100 in sales to a
dealer can be on any musical product
and show the same profit. We also
added that there is no pride in the job
we've done as many other products
came up in similar percentages.
I
N fact, Music Week is so all-
embrasive that it can take in
everything from accordions to
zithers, including radio, combi-
nations, records, sheet music, books,
instruction and the whole gauntlet of
sound producing products. We like to
see all these products sold, but a piano
trade journal should promote piano
sales in self-defense. And we see
nothing of any interest to piano mfrs.
coming from anything but piano or-
ders. No one has yet proved that Music
Week boosts the sales of pianos, and
as we also think May is a poor piano
selling time. First week in October
is much better for SELLING. And so
is April. There is too damn much trade
custom and too many sacred cows
still in our midst, and piano selling
policies should be streamlined as have
been piano styling. The Piano is the
key instrument for the home—band in-
struments, etc. are individual articles
and rare sold and used as such. It
would be just terrible if the piano gets
labeled as anything other than "the
home instrument" and if the latter
phrase is ok to piano mfrs., that ad-
mission alone should prompt piano
promotion, first, last and always.
O
F minor importance to readers
is the fact that The Music
Trade Review in adopting its
policy of only piano informa-
tion for piano men, and which of
course is enjoyed by piano dealers and
managers, is the competitive advertis-
ing angle that the "book looks thin"
and thus must have a dubious adver-
tising value. Of course, no mention is
made of the percentage of visibility for
advertising, nor of the fact that we do
a whale of a job of advertising musical
instruments in an also exclusive type
of trade journal called "Musical Mer-
chandise." We would have a huge
book if we could put them together, but
it is a rare band instrument man who
cares a rap about pianos, and a rarer
piano man who thinks a flute is any-
thing but a stick of licorice. Many
dealers who handle both have a mana-
ger for each department and their
opinion of each other's lines are like-
wise sizzling. Our thought is that the
more pianos sold the more piano ad-
vertising we shall get, and some day
we hope to have "fat numbers" and
are willing to gamble in the meantime
on using one trade journal, alone, for
the promotion of pianos at the same
time tackling all comers who attempt
to prevent such a policy. Organs and
standard music are " i n " the piano
business. We would be gratified to
hear from piano men in any way they
believe as to the wisdom of our
having a trade journal devoted only to
pianos. Many thanks.
Y
OU noticed the paragraph on
Macy but did you hesitate on
reading the two words "no
grands?" Grands fell off a
half this past year, with dealers stating
that it is easier to get $400 for a con-
sole than to sell a grand for the same
money. It is now almost ten times as
easy to sell a console as a grand (based
on figures) still there must be a great
many more people who would buy a
GOOD GRAND if presented. Use of
the word "grand" in this paper is mis-
leading—in fact, the word "grand" has
been so abused with the making of