ABSTRACT
In the conduct of the ordinary affairs of an advertising agency one day is very like another. Newspaper men come in, tell of the success they are having, how rapidly the circulation is increasing, and explain how it is that this or that competitor is losing ground or has practically ceased to be a factor to be reckoned with. Advertisers have in mind introducing a new product, and believe that with the expenditure of a few hundred or a few thousand dollars, they can make their names household words; and when they learn that a one-inch advertisement costs $84 for a single insertion in one magazine that is mentioned, and that a page a year, in the same, will cost $48,000, go away with an impression that it will be well to look further into the matter before deciding to take the plunge. There will be interesting and surprising episodes now and then, more likely, perhaps, to be recalled at a later day than specially noted at the time. Sometimes unpromising customers will develop into good ones and again an apparently honest enterprise will turn out to be a trick or a fraud. Once a very shabby and, in appearance, rather stupid man wished to advertise a music box which he sold for a dollar; and the announcement said it would play eight tunes. His first investment in advertising was $1.25, but there came frequent orders afterwards, sometimes amounting to as much as $5. One day the office was surprised to see him produce four hundred very much soiled one dollar bills and authorize the insertion of his advertisement to the full amount. Inquiry elicited the fact that his “music box” was what is known as a mouth harmonica; somewhat box-like in appearance, may be, but hardly enough so to warrant being called a music box. It would certainly play eight tunes, or eighty, for that matter; or as many as the performer knew but the 382man said eight seemed to be a more enticing number to advertise than any other.
