Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
MUSIC ROLL SPECIALIZATION DEMANDED.
(Continued from Page 3).
that for the number which is actually used daily and you have the proper basis upon which to figure
music roll possibilities.
Now, with a limited field, does it not pay to work along progressive lines, rather than casting
profits to the winds?
In my opinion, more and more piano merchants must realize the losses which are bound to accrue
to them by conducting their music roll business on a methodless basis, and if they will only give it
the same thought which they bestow upon the marketing of players and pianos they will find that it
will pay them splendid profits.
The music roll business deserves good treatment, for it will pay handsome profits, and a good mu-
sic roll means an increased use of the player-piano and a greater admiration and respect for its pos-
sibilities.
The music roll business can, if properly handled, be a tremendous force in stimulating musical
interests—particularly player interests—and will pay dealers everywhere handsome profits which they
are not receiving under the present system.
Watchful waiting will prove ineffective in this case. The situation demands prompt, decided and
systematic action. The returns will be in accordance with the soundness of methods shown.
It is admitted that this is the age of specialism, and to cover any field in a satisfactory manner
requires expert knowledge of the particular environments of that field.
The rapid growth of the player has made it imperative that that department of the business
should be specialized, in order to obtain the most satisfactory results.
It is necessary that the salesman should specialize on the line which he offers purchasers.
The day of glittering generalities and automatic speechifying has departed.
Any man to succeed must have a specific knowledge of the functional powers of the product
which he offers. Hence the necessity of specializing in the music roll field.
I believe that the piano merchants who specialize on the player are moving along successful lines
and certainly those who have not specialized in the disposition of music rolls are not mindful of their
own interests.
Unless this department is given the special treatment which it de-
serves, it must, of necessity, fail to produce.
The field is a good one The opportunities are offered and should
be satisfying from a business viewpoint, but it requires concentration
and specialization to pay.
Opportunities to Stimulate Public Interest
T
HE dancing- craze, which lias spread throughout the country,
has opened up new opportunities for piano dealers in a num-
ber of towns to stimulate interest in the player-piano as well as in
their establishments. By many dealers the window has been util-
ized for advertising purposes in a very effective and interesting
way through securing dancers of recognized ability to demonstrate
the latest tangoe-; and trots to the music of the player-piano. Thus
an enormous crowd is attracted to the store.
But a much more effective and refined means of publicity is
the series of invitation dances gotten up by many dealers at certain
periods, in which the player-piano supplies the music for dancing,
while vocal selections on the talking machine, recitals on the player
and the serving of tea help to make the evening one to be remem-
bered. These dances act as good prospect developers and more-
over convey an idea to those in attendance of the remarkable per-
fection of the modern player-piano, for between the dances in many
instances recitals by skilled pedipulators are given which interest
and educate alike.
The present dancing fad has not been utilized as much by the
piano dealers as by the talking machine men, who have, through
their recitals and dances, been able to increase to an extraordinary
degree the interest in the talking machine, resulting in sales that
may be termed phenomenal.
No piano dealer can afford to overlook any plan that will tend
to advertise his business, provided there is nothing of an objection-
able nature that will tend to depreciate the prestige of his estab-
lishment. Dancing displays in the window, or invitation dances in
the warerooms, are all right when discreetly and correctly managed.
There is a line of differentiation to be observed, however, so that
there may be no "cheapening" of the house.
Nothing perhaps in history can equal the virility of the dance
craze. The most fashionable hotel? and restaurants and private
clubs are victims as well as the more democratic places. And it
must be remembered that there can be no dancing without a musical
instrument of some kind so that after all this dance campaign has
helped the music trade industry in no small degree.
installed on which recitals are given at frequent intervals and
which attracts considerable favorable attention.
The informal musicale—the sort of demonstration which en-
courages the casual visitor to stay awhile and listen without feel-
ing obliged to remain until the end of the program—is growing in
favor. It is verv probable that the piano man profits just as largely
from that class as from those who want to spend entire afternoons
in his concert hall. The recitals are for the purpose of demon-
strating the musical qualities of various instruments, and the de-
sired results can be accomplished just as well in ten minutes if the
visitor is interested, as in a whole afternoon. That recital audi-
ences are inclined to linger is not always an indication of the fact
that they are made up entirely of piano or player prospects. A
musical hour twice a week is preferred by some houses to a two-
hour recital once a week, for by the former means practically twice
the number of people may be attracted and interested.