G. H. E. Hawkins

POSTER
ADVERTISING

BEING A TALK ON THE SUBJECT OF POSTING AS AN ADVERTISING
MEDIUM, WITH HELPFUL HINTS AND SENSIBLE SUGGESTIONS
TO POSTER ADVERTISERS, AND WITH THIRTY-TWO PAGES
OF FULL COLOR REPRODUCTIONS OF POSTERS
USED BY NATIONAL ADVERTISERS

BY
G. H. E. HAWKINS
Advertising Manager of The N. K. Fairbank Company
(Makers of Gold Dust Washing Powder, Fairy Soap,
Sunny Monday Soap, Cottolene, etc.)
CHICAGO, ILL.

1910

PRICE, $3.00

“Speed booklet! Tell thy message. How the man

Who could not charm with colors, henceforth can.

This portion of its vast and fruitful fields

Lithography to advertising yields.”

—ADAPTED.

Copyright, 1910
By G. H. E. HAWKINS

Introduction

The trend of everything in the business world to-day is specialization. To my knowledge, there has never been a book written on the subject of posting. I believed there was room for one—that such a book would be welcome to advertisers, and that such a popular form of publicity as posting should have representation in advertising libraries. That is the only possible excuse I have for offering this volume to the advertising world.

There are so many forms of advertising to-day that have proven successful that no one would have the temerity to stand forth and say that any one medium is absolutely away and above better than any other medium. The wise advertiser has found that no one medium is “sufficient unto itself,” and that only by dove-tailing different mediums can the maximum of results be secured.

The purpose of this book is not to decry any medium of advertising, or place posting above all other advertising mediums, but to tell the truth about posting, its advantages, why it has proved one of the best forms of local advertising, and to give such information and crumbs of guidance as have been gleaned from a ten-year practical experience with posting and the expenditure of over a million dollars in that medium.

I trust that in the following pages the story I have to tell may prove of profit to some and good, easy reading to all.

I wish to thank my many advertising friends who have given me help with this book and encouraged me to issue it. May they not be disappointed!

G. H. E. Hawkins.

You have got to believe in your goods before you can make the public accept your advertising talks at par value. There’s something about honesty and earnestness that is catching.

Table of Contents

Why Bill-Posting Is a Good Medium

Repetition means reputation.

Celebrities are often credited with having said things which they never thought of. There are a hundred and one stories told on Abraham Lincoln that poor Honest Abe never even heard.

Barnum is quoted as having said: “The American public like to be humbugged,” but it is a significant fact that whatever feature the wily P. T. brought out—whether it was Jenny Lind or Jumbo—he always gave the dear public a good run for their money.

And so it always will be—you must deliver the goods in order to make good. Bill-posting is an accredited medium of advertising simply because it deserves it—it has won its spurs.

Posting has many advantages over other methods of advertising. First may be mentioned the large display which it makes possible, and its consequent conspicuousness. You simply cannot get away from it, and, consciously or otherwise, it burns its way into the mind through an ever alert vision. It appeals to masses and classes—every one who passes. The size of an eight-sheet poster is 84 inches by 112 inches, and, outside of painted boards and electric signs, it is not possible to get such a display in any other medium of advertising. The possibility of reproducing a trade-mark, figure, or the article itself, in mammoth size tends to impress it upon the mind in an uncommon way and with great force.

Another distinct advantage which bill-posting has over most other advertising mediums is the opportunity it offers for the use of colors. Colors are agreeable to the eye, they command attention, and the advertiser who fails to utilize the full possibilities of color in getting out his posters is missing his opportunity. It costs just as much to post a poorly printed sheet or an ineffective one- or two-color poster as it does one printed in bright, clear-cut, attention-commanding colors which the eye cannot pass.

Without going into the respective results to be obtained, posting is the cheapest medium for local advertising. The cost per town is less than any respectable sort of a campaign could be conducted for in any other medium.

It has been contended that poster advertising is only good as publicity advertising for a well-known product needing mainly a constant reminder to keep it before the public. I believe, however, that posting is effective and can be made profitable for even a new product, for, while a detailed story cannot be told on a poster, one single argument can be brought out on each poster, and, in time, the complete argument given.

Advertising has made more reputations than literature—Scott’s Emulsion is better known than Scott’s Marmion, the grim pill of Dr. Munyon takes the palm from the Pilgrim of John Bunyon, while Douglas, the $3 shoe man, won fame, fortune and a governorship, while Stephen A. Douglas, the little giant and foe of Abe Lincoln, is almost forgotten.

Size of Posters

It takes a live advertiser to swim up stream; any dead one can float down.

Posters are measured by sheets, the standard size of a sheet being 28 × 42 inches, which includes the white margin.

• An 8-sheet poster consists of eight 28 × 42 sheets.
• A 12-sheet poster of twelve 28 × 42 sheets.
• A 16-sheet poster of sixteen 28 × 42 sheets.
• A 24-sheet poster of twenty-four 28 × 42 sheets.
• A 32-sheet poster of thirty-two 28 × 42 sheets.

The following diagrams will show the sizes of posters of most common usage:

The writer several years ago discovered that there was no standard size among lithographers for posters; that is, while they were made on the 28 by 42 basis per sheet, posters are pasted up in such a varied combination of sections that the lapping precludes the possibility of having a standard size. This is largely accounted for by the tendency of lithographers to save on printing. For instance, a certain sheet in an 8-sheet poster may carry four colors; another sheet may carry but two, and they will so arrange their posters as to make the printing of the largest number of colors come on as few sheets as possible. I recently took thirty 8-sheet posters, which had been used by national advertisers and measured them. Hardly any two of them were the same size; they ran from the largest—114 inches in length by 76 inches in width—to the smallest—109 inches in length by 75 inches in width. The average length of the thirty posters was 111.3 inches, and the average width 75.7 inches, while the largest one contained 8,664 square inches and the smallest 8,175 inches. This brings up a question which has apparently heretofore been overlooked by advertisers; that is, the actual amount of space to which an advertiser is entitled on the bill-boards. The space allotted by the bill-poster for an 8-sheet poster is 112 inches high by 84 inches, and the advertiser who is only getting 109 or 110 inches in length by 75 or 76 inches in width is apparently not getting the best run for his money. It would, therefore, seem that all posters should be made so that they will occupy the full quota of the allotted space when pasted up. This may add slightly to the cost of paper but it will mean an added prominence for your posters.

The following will show just the amount of space an advertiser is entitled to on the boards:

The most popular poster in vogue is the 8-sheet; the next popular sizes are the 16-sheet and the 24-sheet. These larger stands are always four sheets high, the only difference being in the width. While most campaigns are made up on the 8-sheet basis, large advertisers who believe in securing extra prominence run almost exclusively to the 16, 24 and even 32-sheet sizes. The only objection to these larger posters is that outside of the largest cities there are very few boards which will accommodate them, and the better plan to pursue is to use a combination of an 8-sheet poster and a larger size, say a 24-sheet, using the 8-sheets exclusively in the small towns, a combination of the 8’s and 24’s in the medium size towns, and an exclusive showing of the 24-sheets in the larger cities; although some advertisers even prefer to sprinkle in a number of 8-sheets with their 24’s in the largest cities, in order to secure a greater number of individual locations at a lower cost.

Smaller posters, such as half-sheets, one-sheets and two-sheets are printed all in one piece, and are used largely for indoor store display, sniping (that is, on ash-barrels, fences, barns and non-listed locations), although in many cases whole stands are made up by a repetition of one- and two-sheets. Usually, however, this is not advisable as the sheets are too small for the reading matter to carry for any great distance.

The hare could run rings around the tortoise, but the tortoise beat him out because he kept pegging along without a halt. Be persistent!

Cost of Posters

The cheap sketch is the most expensive in the end.

There are all kinds of posters, just as there are all grades of printing and paper, and therefore there is a great variance in costs.

Shun the cheap poster and buy the best the lithographer can turn out. The posting costs nearly ten times the cost of the poster—and the expense of posting is just the same for a bad poster as a good one.

For the reason that one often wishes to know “about” what a certain quantity of posters of a certain size would cost, the following table of approximate costs is given. Everything depends upon the make-up of your sketch and the manner in which it can be handled. An eight-sheet poster with five colors on every sheet will cost much more than the same size poster with five colors on some sheets and two on others. These prices are based, therefore, on the average run of pictorial posters:

Approximate Cost of an Ordinary Pictorial Poster.

Above estimates are based on paper weighing 140 lbs. to the ream—size 42″ x 56″. Stone-drawing included, but not cost of original sketch.

Helpful Hints

Use good paper and non-fading inks.

Better prices can always be secured by furnishing your own sketches and then getting competitive prices. Where the lithographer originates the idea and furnishes the sketch he naturally and rightly charges liberally for it.

Rain-lapped posters can be had at a slight additional expense. To “rain-lapp” a poster means to paste the upper sheet over the margin of the next lower sheet just as shingles are placed on a house. The posters are usually pasted in sections four sheets high. Where posters are unpasted, the bill-poster starts at the upper edge of the board in placing the poster and pastes the lower sheet over the margin of the next top sheet. In consequence, the board does not drain the rain as it should, and the sheets tear off much more readily than with rain-lapped paper.

It is a custom with lithographers that posters should be paid for when the edition is completed, at a specified time, but they will store and ship posters as needed for any reasonable length of time. Such storage paper is usually protected by insurance for the customer’s benefit.

It is the habit of large poster advertisers to have the lithographer make all separate shipments, a list, with quantity designated for each town, being furnished by the advertiser for that purpose. The advertiser, in such cases, pays actual cost of labor and materials for wrapping and shipment, where the size of order is large enough to warrant.

You can save money on cost of paper by ordering a number, or a season’s supply, of posters at one time, especially if the designs are similar in color treatment. At any rate, the larger quantity insures a saving in paper and press-work. The lithographer is thus saved the extra expense of rush work, for which the advertiser always pays the penalty.

The cost of shipping for entire country is about four cents per eight-sheet poster.

Make freight shipments of over forty pounds. Express shipments under forty pounds.

A pretty poster without selling argument is like a pretty woman without brains. She compels your admiration for a time, but loses out in the end.

Copy and Sketches

An advertising trade-mark is a great barrier to imitation and substitution.

The first essential of a successful posting campaign is to have a good poster. A bad design will spoil the most alluring campaign ever outlined.

A figure is always attractive in a poster, because it carries with it a more-than-ordinary element of human interest. As an example of the comparative pulling powers of illustrations I have understood that the news-stand sales of the Saturday Evening Post are appreciably larger when they have on their front cover the picture of an attractive woman than when the design is more general and of less heart interest. If you have a trade-mark for your product that trade-mark should always appear in your poster. It may be the central figure of the poster or it may be introduced incidentally, but it should be there in sufficiently prominent form to be noticed, for it is the constant repetition of a trade-mark that makes it valuable. Such world-wide characters as The Gold Dust Twins, The old Quaker of Quaker Oats, the little Uneeda Biscuit boy, the old darkey of Cream of Wheat and the Victor Talking Machine Dog would never have been worth the millions of dollars at which their owners prize them but for the fact that they have been ding-donged into the public day after day and month after month and year after year in the magazines, in the street cars, in the newspapers and on the bill-boards. I have heard well-known advertisers remark that they did not believe in reproducing one figure constantly in an advertisement, because the public would come to recognize it, say “Oh, that is so-and-so’s advertisement” and pay no attention to the story told in the wording. I believe this to be the greatest fallacy ever advanced, and to my way of thinking, an advertiser could have no better advertisement than one in which appears a trade-mark which the public instantly recognizes and comments upon. You can ring the changes on the design, the color of the background or the arrangement, even if your trade-mark is a set one not susceptible of changes in itself.

Where you have no trade-mark, my advice would be to get one.

It is also a pretty safe rule to introduce the package itself in each poster, where the latter is not closely identified with the trade-mark. To familiarize the public with your package means instant recognition when they see it on the dealer’s shelf, counter or floor space.

If possible, have your poster made by a poster artist, and not by a designer of newspaper or magazine advertisements. The proper handling and harmony of colors, as well as that broad poster-carrying effect can only be fully realized by the artist who has specialized in that field.

The poster should be judged from a distance, and should be made for carrying effect rather than close view. People do not stand close to a poster; it is read from a distance and should be made to be perfectly clear and readable thirty to forty feet away.

The poster will not carry a detailed story. An illustration of a figure, a picture of the product itself, the name of the product, a catch phrase or a single line of argument is about all the ordinary poster will stand. I do not agree, however, with the contention that argument cannot be given on a poster. On a series of posters a whole story can be told, because one argument can be driven home on each poster. The “reason why” feature of advertising can be applied to posting by the use of this method, and in the development of posting in the coming years the tendency to limit the copy for a poster to merely the name and trade-mark will be over-ruled.

Break up your type matter, having a portion appear above the design, another portion below or at the sides. This will relieve monotony, and make it easier for the eye to read what you have to say.

Avoid defacing the design of your poster by carrying lettering across any portion of it.

A poor poster is an abomination. Get the best that money will buy. The cost of posting is in the neighborhood of ten times the cost of the paper; hence a few cents more in the cost per poster is insignificant if it represents the difference between first-class and mediocre.

Have your poster attractive—in order to catch the eye and rivet the attention.

Have some element of reason and argument in your poster—in order to create the desire to buy.

Tell the truth in your advertising—not because honesty is the best policy, but because it is the only policy in successful business.

Comments on Posters Reproduced

(Form lithographed by The American Lithographic Co., New York.)

Arrow Collars ([Color Page 1])—Attractive and “sketchy.” Quiet in tone and dignified in appearance.

Turkish Trophies ([Color Page 1])—Strong featuring of a well advertised trade-mark. Reproduction does not do justice to the original which was in more colors.

Military Tournament ([Color Page 1])—Simple and ordinary enough in color scheme, but strong in action. Lettering well arranged.

Lowney’s ([Color Page 1])—Neat and pleasing, but, to my way of thinking, the subject could be treated much more attractively. A pretty girl with a box of Lowney’s and a “yum yum” expression on her face would give it cards and spades. Note reminder of Lowney’s Cocoa on same poster.

Uneeda Biscuit ([Color Page 2])—Good strong reproduction of one of the best known national trade-marks. Poster shows name, package, trade-mark and price. The only thing lacking is argument, and I believe this poster is used in connection with other designs in which argument appears.

Gold Dust ([Color Page 3])—A “topical” poster which created a sensation, and drew a request for a sample poster from Charles R. Flint, the financial backer of The Wright Brothers. One of those ten-strikes which happen to an advertiser very seldom.

U. S. Army ([Color Page 4])—Simplicity, strength and beauty combined. There’s something about a uniform that attracts attention and commands respect, and this poster takes advantage of that fact to the fullest extent.

Cottolene ([Color Page 5])—A pretty poster which endeavors to pleasantly suggest to the housewife the wholesome, cleanly source of a food product. Used in connection with other posters giving more argument.

Chiclets ([Color Page 6])—One of the daintiest posters appearing on the bill-boards. Rich in coloring and truly suggestive of a high-class product.

Jap-a-lac ([Color Page 7])—A good example of the “mostly argument” poster. Rather old-fashioned and a little too much lettering. The crowded appearance of the lettering would make this poster hard to read at a distance.

U. S. Army ([Color Page 8])—A high-grade pictorial poster that would make almost anyone wish to join the army.

Gold Dust ([Color Page 9])—Multum in parvo. Gives the effect of four separate eight-sheets although the poster is only a twenty-four. Showing four principal uses of the product, and argument for each.

Gold Dust ([Color Page 10])—Good example of an effective poster in three printings only.

Cottolene ([Color Page 11])—Featuring the package and catch phrases. Another good three-color scheme.

Quaker Oats ([Color Page 12])—Strong presentation of a great trade-mark. Some Doubting Thomas of a muck-raker might say that although the Quaker denotes “Purity,” politics at Washington are not so darn pure as to warrant the association.

Armour’s Extract of Beef ([Color Page 13])—Good live color scheme with strong contrasting effects, but I never did like the idea of Willie dipping his finger into the can and licking it off. That’s purely a matter of taste, however.

Pabst Blue Ribbon ([Color Page 14])—A perfect poster, treating a product whose use is questioned by some, in a dainty way that will appeal to all. Beautiful blending of colors and splendid arrangement of lettering.

Bull Durham ([Color Page 15])—A good, strong, commonplace poster. By “good” I mean in color scheme and arrangement of trade-mark and package; by “commonplace,” I refer to the artistic or pictorial effect. This trade-mark is a nightmare, even if it is successful and well advertised.

Fairy Soap ([Color Page 16])—A prettily effective poster, with a pleasing harmony of colors, featuring one of the daintiest of trade-marks.

You must tell why in order to make folks buy.

UNEEDA BISCUIT
Reduction of 8 Sheet Poster

GOLD DUST
Reduction of 8 Sheet Poster

U. S. ARMY
Reduction of 8 Sheet Poster

COTTOLENE
Reduction of 8 Sheet Poster

CHICLETS
Reduction of 8 Sheet Poster

JAP-A-LAC
Reduction of 16 Sheet Poster

U. S. ARMY
Reduction of 24 Sheet Poster

GOLD DUST
Reduction of 24 Sheet Poster

GOLD DUST
Reduction of 8 Sheet Poster

COTTOLENE
Reduction of 8 Sheet Poster

QUAKER OATS
Reduction of 12 Sheet Poster

ARMOUR’S EXTRACT OF BEEF
Reduction of 12 Sheet Poster

PABST BLUE RIBBON
Reduction of 16 Sheet Poster

BULL DURHAM
Reduction of 16 Sheet Poster

FAIRY SOAP
Reduction of 8 Sheet Poster

Value and Harmony of Colors

The proper use of colors will make your posters stand out like a sore thumb on a one-armed man.

Colors catch the eye. A small child is attracted to a colored Easter egg where it wouldn’t waste any time on an ordinary piece of hen fruit. We are all susceptible to the beauty and attraction of colors, and nowhere in advertising does color cut quite so much of a figure as in posting.

Strong contrasts and striking effects, rather than daintiness and real artistic combinations, are to be sought for poster work. A poster can either be made or marred by the proper or improper use of colors.

It is not the intention here to go into an exhaustive treatise on the harmony of colors, but rather to give a few general hints and suggest simple color combinations which will be practical when applied to posters.

The primary colors are yellow, blue and red. From these, in combination, all other colors are made.

Black is universally employed in combination with the primaries to give strength to the majority of poster printing.

Yellow, orange and red are warm colors, while violet, blue and green are known as cold colors. The cold colors have a soothing action on the brain; the warm colors tend to stimulate it. The cold colors are the more artistic for poster work; the warm colors have the greatest attention-attracting value.

GOOD TWO-COLOR COMBINATIONS

• Black and yellow (strongest primary combination).
• Black and red.
• Black and light blue.
• Black and green.
• Black and orange.
• Red and dark blue.
• Red and green.
• Red and yellow.
• Light yellow and dark blue.
• Blue and orange.

(A white letter used with any of the above will give a three color effect with two printings.)

In combination with black the density and richness of the other colors will be intensified in the effectiveness of the display. Where black is laid over the supplementary colors it often gives the effect of an added color.

GOOD THREE-COLOR COMBINATIONS

• Black, red and blue.
• Black, red and yellow.
• Black, yellow and blue.
• Black, red and green.
• Black, green and orange.
• Black, orange and blue.

Beyond the use of the three primary colors in combination with black, according to the density and richness of the colors employed, nearly all gradations of color effect are possible.

HARMONIZING HINTS

Red will harmonize with the other two primaries, yellow and blue; also with yellow and green-blue, yellow and violet-blue, green-yellow and blue, green-yellow and violet-blue, and yellow-green and violet-blue. Any of the pairs of colors named will form a good combination with red, in their normal state, or when reduced with white, or modified with gray, or darkened with black.

Yellow will harmonize with the primaries, red and blue; also with purple-red and blue, orange-red and blue, orange-red and violet-blue, purple-red and green-blue, and red-purple and sea-green. Any of the pairs of colors named will form a good combination with yellow, in their normal state, or when reduced with white, or modified with gray, or darkened with black.

Blue will harmonize with the primaries, yellow and red; also with yellow and purple-red, yellow and orange-red, green-yellow and red, green-yellow and purple-red, and green-yellow and orange-red. Any of the pairs of colors named will form a good combination with blue, in their normal state, or when reduced with white, or modified with gray, or darkened with black.

Orange will harmonize with green and violet, green and purple-violet, blue-green and violet, blue-green and purple-violet, sea-green and purple-violet, and sea-green and purple, in their normal state, or when reduced with white, or modified with gray, or darkened with black.

Green will harmonize with violet and orange, violet and orange-red, blue-violet and orange-red, and purple-violet and orange, in their normal state, or when reduced with white, or modified with gray, or darkened with black.

Purple will harmonize with orange and blue-green, orange and sea-green, yellow-orange and blue-green, yellow-orange and sea-green, and orange-yellow and sea-green, in their normal state, or when reduced with white, or modified with gray, or darkened with black.

Bill-Posting For The Local Advertiser

Advertising is appealing to people through their common sense and their artistic sense in order to win their dollars and cents.

Bill-posting is a logical and splendid medium for the local advertiser, and the baker, the butcher, the candlestick maker can use it with equal facility and advantage.

Posting can be used by the local merchant as the one and only medium, or as a supplement to his newspaper or street-car announcements. Its use has in the past been largely confined to the latter, but this has been chiefly because of the high cost of posters in the small quantities needed for local work. This difficulty is being overcome by the issue of stock posters for every line of business, and it is now possible to get from your local bill-posters either the paper itself or information where you can buy it for nearly every trade and every line of goods which would bear advertising. These posters are made up with a blank space at the bottom for printing in the name of the local merchant. Moreover, many manufacturers to-day furnish posters, imprinted with the local dealer’s name, if he will but post them.

Local poster advertising can be made either general or specific—it can advertise the full line or special sales. The specific advertising is usually more productive than the publicity style. Here are a few suggestions of specific opportunities for local merchants;

• Banks—Solicit savings’ accounts, and state interest-commencing dates.
• Stationers—Advertise school books and supplies just previous to opening of new term.
• Furniture Dealers—Special spring sale of furniture for porch and country places. Advertise April 15th a “Special Discount Sale” to catch people who move into new homes May 1st. Rug sale.
• Coal Dealers—Early fall poster admonishing people to lay in their winter’s supply and save money.
• Sporting Goods—Advertise baseball and tennis supplies in spring, football goods in fall and skates in early winter. Cameras.
• Haberdashers—Straw hats and Easter neckwear. Fall derbies, ties, mufflers, etc.
• Druggists—Specialty of prescriptions. Soda-water fountain and special drinks. Christmas gifts. Spring tonic.
• Jewelers—Engagement gifts and wedding presents. Special poster advertising clocks and watches. Silverware poster.
• Nurseries—Seeds, bushes and trees for spring planting.
• Hardware Dealers—Lawn mowers, garden tools and seed-time specialties. Farm tools and supplies in special “Farmers’ poster.”
• Real Estate—Special sales of lots.
• Clothiers—Spring suits and hats. Raincoats and umbrellas. Shirtings and gloves. Fall suits and overcoats.
• Shoe Stores—Ladies’ and children’s shoes. Low shoes for spring and summer. Fall shoes, rubbers and overshoes. Baseball, tennis, football and outing shoes.
• Custom Tailors—Made-to-measure clothing for spring. Fall suits and overcoats.
• Laundries—Advertise quality of work and prompt deliveries. Special poster on ladies’ shirt waists and lingerie.
• Cigar Dealers—Special price box sale of cigars. Pipes and smoking mixtures.
• Grocers—Teas and coffees. Special soap sale. Special advertising of premiums or trading-stamps.
• Gas Companies—Gas ranges.
• Dentists—Artificial teeth and crown work.
• Photographers—Special one-month price for cabinet photos.
• Department Stores—White goods sale. Special silk sale. Remnant sale. Linen sale. Ladies’ and children’s ready-made suits. Shirt-waist sale. Christmas furs. Christmas presents. Men’s hats and clothing. Boots and shoes. Special 10% discount month.
• Music Stores—Pianos and organs. Exchange department. Slightly used instrument sale. Installment plan.
• Summer Parks—List of attractions, free street-car tickets, etc.
• Milliners—Easter bonnets. Special $5 trimmed hat.

These are but a few random suggestions, and the list might be continued almost indefinitely, but I have given enough to suggest the possibility of special offerings through posting and show the way.

Most of such posters which cannot be purchased of stock lithographers can be made up by the local printer or newspaper office in one or two colors, with or without wood-cut illustrations, but the more attractive the poster can be made, the better the results will be.

The beauty of posting for the local advertiser is that he knows his advertising cannot be scattered. It will go right in his own territory, and he will not be paying for any waste circulation outside. Then, too, he can select his locations, supplement his special poster with hand-bills to the farmer, newspaper announcements and special window displays to connect his store with just what he is advertising at the time he is advertising it.

The fact that everybody knows the local merchant is no argument against advertising. They also know “the other fellow,” and advertising alone, combined with fair dealing, will give you the lion’s share of the trade.

The local merchant to-day who doesn’t advertise should at least advertise his business for sale, and in the next ten years posting will, I predict, be developed into one of the greatest forms of advertising for the local merchant. It is so big, so forceful, so always-before-you-and-never-to-be-thrown-away that it is bound to command unusual attention in the small town or city.

Talk it over with your local bill-poster and let him help you with suggestions gleaned from his experience.

Business is built up on confidence. It’s a game of confidence between buyer and seller, but woe betide the advertiser who considers it a confidence game. You must “Make Good” with the consumer to insure future sales and only in repetition lies success and reputation.

Checking the Service

“To Err is Human”

The Bill-Poster is just as prone to errors, both of omission and commission, as men in any other business, and while in the case of Associated Bill-Posters service is guaranteed, it is advisable even with them to check wherever possible so as to make sure that service has been actually rendered as guaranteed.

The importance of this is illustrated in the writer’s own experience with every showing that goes up. The following are but a few of the “errors” that were discovered by check, even in large towns where the bill-posting plants are supposedly at their best. Posters have been found put up on the leaves of a double gate which stood open all day. Posters have been put up on walls covering windows, and the paper was punched through to let in the light. Occasionally posters are put up with a sheet blank; one section of the poster was probably left out by the lithographer in collating, and the bill-poster made no effort to replace it. Other posters have been found on fences not high enough to accommodate the whole poster and strips have been torn off at the top or bottom. Showings have been billed that our checker found never went up. Paper has been covered at the end of two or three weeks and never replaced. Once in a while checkers run across a town where a strike is on among the bill-posters, and the paper disfigured by big smudges of lamp black.

The best time to make this check is open to some difference of opinion. Some advertisers prefer to check just as soon as the paper goes on the boards so that complaints may be adjusted early in the life of the showing. Others prefer to check toward the end of the service so they may satisfy themselves that the paper has been kept in good condition, and that none of the stands has been covered by other paper. The advertiser who is posting generally will, however, be glad if he can have check made any time during the life of the posting, especially in towns where he has no local representative.

The main difficulty on a general showing is to secure people to make the check. In towns where you have branch houses, local salesmen, or exclusive dealers, check lists may be forwarded to these. Otherwise it is necessary to depend on your traveling salesman covering the towns in his territory during the life of the posting, or else send the check lists to some local dealer, with a request that he look over and report on the showing for you. Arrangements for checking can also be made, we understand, through the telegraph companies who would have the work done by one of their messengers.

Four things are necessary to watch in checking the showing, viz., Position of the boards on which your paper is posted; position on the boards; condition of the paper; and contiguity to your own posters or those advertising competitive products.

In regard to the first you will of course want a fair share of the paper to go on boards in the center of the town, on the most traveled thoroughfares. You do not want the paper all on the outskirts of the town, or posted in alleys and other inconspicuous places. In regard to the position on the board, the ends of the board are of course preferred positions, and the more posters you can get on corners the stronger the showing will be. In regard to the condition of paper, a glance will be sufficient to satisfy your checker whether the paper is in good order, or whether it needs renewing.

It is also desirable that no two of your own posters be posted too close together on the same board (as a matter of fact it is best to put up each poster on a separate board) and of course it is decidedly objectionable to have paper advertising competitive products put up next to your posters.

The following are illustrations of forms used in checking.

Specimen Check List as Furnished by the Bill-Poster.

Sample of Checking Form Attached to Check List To be Forwarded to Salesman or Local Representative.

It is important to remember in this connection that complaints should be filed promptly with the bill-poster, and, wherever possible, the checker himself should call on the bill-poster and arrange for the adjustment of complaints while he is on the ground. Where adjustment cannot be made by the checker on the spot, and correspondence is necessary, complaints must be made within ten days from the date of expiration of service.

Specimen Letter Sent to Dealer when Check List has been Returned by Salesman Unchecked. A Blank Leaf is Provided For Reply, also Addressed Stamped Envelope.

Connecting Poster Advertising With Sales

“That good old Ship—Salesmanship”

Sales results depend upon advertising and the advertising results upon salesmanship. The two are so closely allied as to be all but inseparable, and the Advertising and Sales Managers should pull together as one team.

If you have salesmen on the road keep them thoroughly informed about the advertising you are doing in their territories. Give each salesman a list of the towns which you intend to post in his territory, and do it in advance in order that he may acquaint the dealer with the fact and use the publicity as a sales argument. The salesmen or members of your advertising crew, if you have one, should also be able to use the fact that you are going to post a town to secure window displays in advance from the local dealers, in order that their stores may be connected with the advertising and secure a certain portion of the demand.

Give your salesmen either a sample of the poster to be used—or, better still, a small reproduction of it which he can carry around and show the dealer as Exhibit “A.”

A splendid method of connecting your posting and window displays is to get out a one sheet poster, hanger or banner for window use, the same being a miniature of the poster itself. The repetition of the poster design in the store window at the place where the article can be purchased will be strongly supplemental, will tend to freshen the mind of the consumer as having seen the poster and create a desire to buy and try at just the right moment.

I have found in a long experience with advertising and salesmen that a good live traveller is always awake to the benefits of advertising, and that nine times out of ten it is the result-producing salesman who uses your advertising matter intelligently rather than wastefully and who takes advantage of all your local advertising to use as a lever on the merchant for bigger business.

Checking your local posting by salesmen is of two-fold value. Where the work is honestly and intelligently handled, you not only get an above-the-ordinary checking report, but you impress the salesman, especially if he seeks out each individual location, and spur him on to more active sales work.

The live-wire salesman realizes that in these modern days of fierce competition the aid of advertising is of vital importance and that without it his work would be anything but easy sledding.

To sum up this chapter in a nut-shell:

Acquaint your salesman fully about your local advertising.

Give him a small reproduction or print of the poster itself.

Furnish him, wherever practicable, with small posters or hanger of the same design for store work.

Urge him to secure window displays from the dealer to remain during the life of the posting.

Give him a check list for each of his towns and insist upon him personally inspecting the showing.

Suggest his getting acquainted with the local bill-poster, with the idea that the personal equation almost invariably insures better service. It is but human to do your best for those you know.

Many an advertiser has killed a thousand dollar space with a twenty dollar sketch.

General Hints to the Poster Advertiser

Don’t try to be funny in your advertisements. If you’re that good, you can make more money in the Bill Nye business.

Owing to the fact that posting is exposed to the elements, extra paper should be sent with your regular shipment to replace damaged posters. 20% extra is the usual allotment for renewal paper.

A bill-poster’s month is four weeks, rather than a full calendar month; a bill-poster’s year is, therefore, forty-eight weeks.

A discount of 5% is allowed for a continuous showing of three months, and a 10% discount is allowed for a six months’ continuous contract.

The bill-boards are usually the most crowded during the summer months, from about April 15th to October 1st, not only because summer is the best time for the posting of national advertisers with few exceptions, but because of the great amount of circus and other show paper. You will frequently be disappointed in securing space during this period unless you contract for it in advance of showing. Thirty days is usually ample notice for all but the very largest cities, where it is well, in case you wish a showing to go up on a fixed date, to give sixty days’ notice.

Advertisers pay all carrying charges on posters.

If you have branch offices in various parts of the country, a goodly saving in carrying charges may be effected by shipping all paper for a certain territory by freight to your offices in that section of the country and have them re-ship the individual allotments by express. This suggestion will be especially valuable to Eastern advertisers shipping paper to the Pacific Coast, as individual freight shipments mean long delays.

Ask the bill-posters not to place your paper next to competitive paper.

Treat the bill-poster like a white man, see that his bills are paid promptly, and he in turn will show his appreciation by giving his most efficient service.

General Hints to the Bill-Poster

The buying public of to-day are pretty discriminating. When they ask for mushrooms they’re not going to stand for toadstools.

Use judgment in the placing of posters. Have them harmonize in color scheme, rather than clash. Do not place two posters of exactly the same color background alongside each other.

Do not place competitive products alongside each other. Give them separate locations, or, in the case of a long board, have them as far apart as possible.

Be liberal with your renewal paper. Aside from the fact that it is your duty to see that each poster is maintained in perfect condition the full contract time, the advertiser, especially the one who checks closely, will appreciate the service.

Instead of being afraid to “give something for nothing,” cover your old, dead paper with the left-over paper of some good, live, liberal bill-board advertiser. Then let him know, through his agent, that you have done so. Freshly papered boards are a good advertisement for your medium.

Don’t spoil a good effective poster by smearing paste all over the face of it. Put your paste on the back of the poster, and place it with a brush wet only in water, or, if you must use paste on the face of the paper, do so sparingly.

Don’t get into any wrangles with the local Civic Improvement Society, and have them writing all your advertisers to discontinue the use of your medium. You can find plenty of good locations without spoiling the landscape. A whiskey advertisement right next to a church is bound to rankle in the breasts of the congregation.

If you have a grudge against an official solicitor, don’t take it out on the innocent advertiser by giving him poor service. Write the advertiser telling him that the agent isn’t giving you proper treatment, and, if your claim is just and can be proven, ten to one he will rectify the trouble.

Don’t think that your obligation is fulfilled when the paper is placed. Try to work with the advertiser and encourage him to greater use of your medium by giving him information as to local conditions regarding the sale of his product, post the local dealers who would naturally be interested just when a certain product is being advertised, and endeavor to secure their co-operation in the way of window displays, etc., to connect the advertising with their stores.

Official Solicitors,
Associated Bill-Posters and Distributors

These Official Solicitors to The Associated Bill-Posters and Distributors of the United States and Canada enjoy the protection of the Association rules and regulations in maintaining service for their clients. The Association requires that the solicitor be financially responsible, and through them you secure the same rights as though you placed the business directly with the bill-poster.

The services of the solicitor cost you nothing, as he is paid a commission by the Association, and you, the advertiser, are saved the expense of clerical hire, postage, stationery, order and check-forwarding and the many details of the follow-up system.

• Amsterdam Supply Co., 111 Fifth Avenue, New York City.
• Anderson, H. J., Enquirer Printing Co., Cincinnati, Ohio.
• Associated Bill-Posters’ Protective Co., 147 Fourth Avenue, New York City.
• Ayer & Son, N. W., 300-308 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, Pa.
• Ayres, H. E. & Co., 164 Federal Street, Boston, Mass.
• Batten Co., George, Fourth Avenue Building, Fourth Avenue and 27th Street, New York City.
• Clague-Painter-Jones Co., First National Bank Building, Chicago, Ill.
• Cusack Co., Thos., 15th and Throop Street, Chicago, Ill.
• Darlow Advertising Agency, Inc., Bee Building, Omaha, Neb.
• D’Arcy Advertising Co., Fullerton Building, St. Louis, Mo.
• Donnelley & Sons, John, 97 Warrenton Street, Boston, Mass.
• Ewing & Miles, Inc., 32 Union Square, New York City.
• Flynn, Joseph J., Lawrence, Mass.
• Green Co., J. Chas., San Francisco, California.
• Gude Co., O. J., 935 Broadway, New York City.
• Holbrook & Parsons, 44-46 E. 23rd Street, New York City.
• Jersey City Bill-Posting Co., 104-6 Green Street, Jersey City, N. J.
• Long-Critchfield Corporation, Corn Exchange Bank Building, Chicago, Ill.
• Lord & Thomas, Trude Building, Chicago, Ill.
• Mahin Advertising Co., American Trust Building, Chicago, Ill.
• Massengale Advertising Agency, Atlanta, Ga.
• Morton, P. H., St. Paul Building, Cincinnati, Ohio.
• Newark Bill-Posting Co., 27-33 Treat Place, Newark, N. J.
• New Haven Bill-Posting Co., New Haven, Conn.
• Nordhem Co., Ivan B., Bessemer Building, Pittsburg, Pa.
• Peel, Frederick, 14th floor, Times Building, New York City.
• Procter & Collier Co., Cincinnati, Ohio.
• Ramsay Co., Charles A., 575 Old Colony Building, Chicago, Ill.
• Robison, Sanford II., 814 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, Pa.
• Sherin Co., C. E., Fifth Avenue and 40th Street, New York City.
• Snitzler Advertising Co., 256 Madison Street, Chicago, Ill.
• Southern & Co., I. M., 1402 Broadway, New York City.
• Stoops Bill-Posting Co., Chattanooga, Tenn.
• The Crockett Agency, Maison Blanche Building, New Orleans, La.
• The Edwards Co., Waco, Texas.
• The Fowler-Simpson Co., 500-8 Schofield Building, Cleveland, Ohio.
• The Public Advertising Co., Inc., Suite 604, First National Bank Building, Cincinnati, Ohio, and 683-685 Broadway, New York City.
• The Thompson-Briggs Co., The Rookery, Chicago, Ill.
• Throop, George Enos, 1516 Tribune Building, Chicago, Ill.
• Van Beuren & N. Y. Bill-Posting Co., 132 W. 65th Street, New York City.
• Varney, Thomas H. B., Oakland, California.

CANADIAN OFFICIAL REPRESENTATIVES

• Canadian Poster Co., Power Building, Montreal, Que.
• The Ware Co. of Canada, Ltd., 95 St. Genevieve Street, Montreal, Que.
• The Desbarats Advertising Agency, 42 Victoria Square, Montreal, Que.
• A. McKim, Ltd., Star Building, Montreal, Que.
• The Canadian Advertising Co., Ltd., 25 St. James Street, Montreal, Que.
• Connor-Ruddy Co., 11 Wellington Street E., Toronto, Ont.
• J. J. Gibbons, Ltd., 119 West Wellington Street, Toronto, Ont.
• Woods-Norris, Ltd., Mail Building, Toronto, Ont.
• Dominion Advertising Co., Ltd., Stair Building, Toronto, Ont.
• McConnell & Fergusson, London, Ont.
• London Bill-Posting Agency, London, Ont.
• The Lindsay-Walker Co., Ltd., Winnipeg, Man.
• Bond & Ricketts, Ltd., 420 Cambie Street, Vancouver, B. C.

Comments on Posters Reproduced

(Form Lithographed by The Carqueville Lithographing Co., Chicago.)

Regal Shoes ([Color Page A])—Bright, snappy coloring, but not the best drawing in the world. Room at bottom, presumably for address of local representative or store. Wholly lacking in argument of any kind.

Red Spot Cigar ([Color Page B])—A good example of how not to do it. Poor drawing, no argument. Very ordinary poster of the old school.

Clothcraft ([Color Page C])—Poor poster. Design stilted, no argument, no explanation as to whether “Clothcraft” stands for suits, underclothes or what-not. Presumably designed for local dealers’ use, with room for name and address at bottom.

American Radiator Co. ([Color Page D])—A high-class poster to which this reproduction hardly does justice, as the drawing has lost in the reduction.

Duke of York Cigarettes ([Color Page E])—Simple yet effective in arrangement and color scheme. Good featuring of an attractive trade-mark. No argument but price.

Kellogg’s Toasted Corn Flakes ([Color Page F])—Striking combination of colors. Brings out trade-mark, catch-phrase and package without any suggestion of crowding.

Red Seal Lead ([Color Page G])—Simple but effective featuring of trade-mark and use of product. Color scheme could be vastly improved.

Old Underoof ([Color Page H])—A very neat and pleasing 24 sheet, far above the general standard. Old Underoof posters are usually good.

Budweiser ([Color Page I])—Strong and rich in coloring. One of a series of posters featuring a catch phrase. Note space for local distributors’ imprint.

St. Charles Cream ([Color Page J])—Rather pleasing from an illustrative standpoint. Lacking in display of trade-mark or package.

Kellogg’s Toasted Corn Flakes ([Color Page K])—Would not be worth powder to blow it up for ordinary publicity, but was probably effective as a curiosity arouser in a preliminary campaign when the product was just being marketed.

E. C. Corn Flakes ([Color Page L])—Good combination of picture and lettering. Well arranged and quickly and easily read.

Kuppenheimer Clothes ([Color Page M])—Rather conventional, but strongly appealing to the athletic young man. Wonder why some of these clothing makers do not show more real business men in their advertisements? Note line at bottom for imprint of local dealer.

Wrigley’s Spearmint ([Color Page N])—Stands out like a wart on the end of a man’s nose. Simple yet strikingly strong. The argument and package harmonize well with, and stand out splendidly from the black background. Hard to get away from this poster!

Carnation Milk ([Color Page O])—A strong pictorial poster, rich in coloring, with good display of package. Only fault a little too much lettering; that under the group of cows would not be readable except at close range.

Quaker Corn Meal ([Color Page P])—Very novel in treatment. Background effect an oddity. Main lettering, package and the cooked product all effectively shown.

It will not pay in the long run to advertise goods without merit or goods which do not give a dollar in value for every dollar asked.

REGAL SHOES
POSTER A—8 SHEET

RED SPOT CIGAR
POSTER B—8 SHEET

CLOTHCRAFT
POSTER C—8 SHEET

AMERICAN RADIATOR CO.
POSTER D—8 SHEET

DUKE OF YORK CIGARETTES
POSTER E—8 SHEET

KELLOGG’S TOASTED CORN FLAKES
POSTER F—8 SHEET

RED SEAL LEAD
POSTER G—8 SHEET

OLD UNDEROOF
POSTER H—24 SHEET

BUDWEISER
POSTER I—24 SHEET

ST. CHARLES CREAM
POSTER J—8 SHEET

KELLOGG’S TOASTED CORN FLAKES
POSTER K—8 SHEET