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EVENING LEDGER PHILADELPHIA, TUESDAY, APRIL 13, 1915.
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DEVELOPING A SIDE LINE
All Philadelphians know the retail drug stores of
George B. Evans. Most Philadelphians also know of
"Mum,a personal deodorant, nationally advertised.
Not all, however, know that "Mum" is a Phila
delphia product made by Mr. Evans and sold as a
side line to his retail business.
"Mum" began as a side line, and has always
continued as a side line.
The problem of distribution and sales has been
so simplified by means of advertising that the side
line has never interfered with the retail business
out of which it grew. It is said that the agent who
prepares the advertising devotes more time to the
product than does Mr. Evans himself.
There has never been a salesman employed to
sell it.
And yet today it has a volume of sales fifty
times "as great as when it was first advertised.
Mr. Evans says flatly, "Without advertising
'Mum' never could have been marketed."
Fifteen years ago Mr. Evans was putting up
"Mum" for the trade in Philadelphia and round
about. Its reputation began to grow. Distant
consumers sent to Philadelphia for it, and some of
the leading department stores and drug stores of
other cities put it in stock.
There seemed to be possibilities of a wide sale
for such a product, and Mr. Evans determined to
develop it in addition to carrying on his retail
business.
There are two chief methods used for extending
sales. One is to put the product on the shelves of
retail stores, and entrust its fortunes to the merchants
and to the gradual spread of word-of-mouth publicity.
The other is to go out and create a demand from
consumers.
Mr. Evans preferred the latter method. Being
a retail merchant himself, he had a profound respect
for the wants of the consumer. He saw clearly
that a consumer demand meant swifter growth.
Advertising being the natural means of creating
demand, he decided to invest $1000 in it.
On the advice of an advertising agent he put
this entire amount into five advertisements in five
successive issues of The Ladies' Home Journal.
Results came almost at once. Women in many
states sent orders by mail, and wholesalers and
retailers who had never carried the article felt the
demand and sent for a supply.
The advertising had to be skilfully done. The
nature of the product was such that advertising,
instead of simplifying the problem of sales, could
easily have wrecked the business. A false note, or
a slight departure from good taste, would have killed
sales, as had previously been proved by the history
of other preparations. And for this particular
product, over-advertising spending too much money
at the start would have been equally dangerous.
f But the quiet, convincing story told in moderate
sized space, brought returns that were so promising
that Mr. Evans adopted a plan of appropriating a
fixed portion of his gross profits for advertising.
As the sales grew, therefore, more space was used
in The Ladies' Home Journal, and other publications
were added.
The increases have been so large that, although
the. advertising appropriation is now many times
greater than it was originally, it today represents a
far smaller proportion of the gross profits than evet
before.
There is now hardly a retail drug or department
store in the country where "Mum" is not sold, and
it is also on sale in South America, England, Europe,
Australia, South Africa and the West Indies
although no salesmen except advertising have ever
been employed.
The business is simple, clean-cut, free from
complicated selling machinery, running along as a
side line without greatly taxing the energies of the
firm, and producing a handsome revenue year after
year.
Two points worth reiterating:
1. "Mum" is a side line.
2. "Without advertising 'Mum' never could
have been marketed."
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THE CURTIS PUBLISHING COMPANY
INDEPENDENCE SQUARE, PHILADELPHIA
The Ladies? Home Journal . The Saturday Evening Post The. Country Gentleman
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