Jasper County Democrat, Volume 15, Number 31, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 July 1912 — Advertising Talks [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Advertising Talks

PERSISTENCE IS NECESSARY Merchant Must Advertise Twelve Months in Year to Forge Ahead of His Competitor. Thomas J. Balmer, dean of advertising men in' the United States, was the guest of the Denver Ad. club at luncheon at the Albany hotel the other day. He spoke on the "Past, Present and Future of Advertising.” , ;,"1 notice,” said Mr. Balmer in his introductory sentence, “that I am referred to as the ‘dean of advertising men.’ I want to say to you now that there never has and never will be a

■dean .o£~mdyertising men.’ Advertising is a business in which there is no room for a ‘dean.’ It is a profession in which everybody is constantly forging to the front. They are pressing forward so rapidly that no man can remain in the van long enough to be a captain. ■ Advertising is a difficult game. It has gone through more vicissitudes front its very beginning probably than any other profession. Those in it suffer because •of beliefs. Many merchants are skeptical; few have confidence in the efficiency of advertising and its ability to produce results. It is because men hate progress, not so much because of their antagonism to progress in itself, but because they have inertia. The man who doesn’t know his subject, is not up-to-date id his matter, is not fit to be in the profession. He is like the surgeon who performs a criminail operation —he is a drawback to the rest of the profession.

“Advertising to bring results must be persistent and be followed up. Sixty per cent, of the business failures recorded annually are due to the fact that the man advertised a little and falling to secure results, gave it up just when he should have put more money into it. “Statistics,” said Mr. Balmer .show that it is only the man who advertises 12 consecutive months who forges ahead of his competitors. You won’t find a physician allowing a patient to take merely one dose of a prescription. Why? He realizes that one dose will do no good. He insists Upon the pa*> tient taking the whole prescription or none at all. The same principle applies to advertising. v “If we look back through history we will find that every good and beautiful thing has at one time or another been under the ban. Advertising is just beginning to come into its own. Merchants are finally accepting the doctrine that is the most forceful and greatest medium of distribution the world knows.” v

Mr. Balmer made a strong plea for clean advertising. He said: “It Is the only kind of advertising that pays. It may not pay you at first but in the long run if you adhere to this principle you will win out over all competitors. Never accept an unclean ad. Honesty is always the best policy. If honesty didn’t pay people wouldn’t be honest. The unclean advertiser Is rapidly losing ground and If he doesn’t take warning now and bar fakes and fakers, the day Is coming when Uncle Sam will take a hand in the matter and force him to clean up.”