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About La Grande evening observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1904-1959 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 18, 1918)
L. Ail X IS, 1518 ' jr. 4 ' 4. 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4t 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 LA GRANDK EVENING OLSERVEli Advertiskf Has vHeIbe'd''The' Government To Win The War Business Men, Bankers and Clergymen Have Placed Their Unqualified Endorsement on the Economic and Educational Value of Full Page Advertising. In Chicago and Other Places Business Men, Bankers and Advertising Men Have Bought and Don . ated Advertising Spaces for Red Cross, Liberty Loins, Knights of Columbus and War Savings Stamps Campaigns. Read This Article by William H, Rankin, One of the Foremost Advertising Mn in the United States: THE 1918 OUTLOOK (By WILLIAM II. RANKIN of Chicago) A review of the ''work done in 1917 brings forth the fact that advertising, and especially newspaper adver tising, has done more than its share to help win the war. While the government has not fonnd it possible to use an advertising campaign to reach the people of this coun try, the business men, bankers and clergymen have all placed their unqualified indorsement on the economic as well as the educational value of full page newspaper ad vertising. Results have proved that their judgment was good. These men showed not only their faith in newspaper ad vertising to bring the desired results, but they backed their faith with their own dollars in payment for this ad vertising as a patriotic contribution ,to our government.. While this "plan "of advertising originated in Chicago' last April and May during the original Red Cross mem bership campaign, nearly every city and town of a fry size in the United States have been furnished this plan and have used it successfully. . In Chicago business men, bankers and advertising men have bought and paid for half a million lines of adver tising in the Chicago daily 'newspapers from May 1 to date first for the Red Cross campaigns, then the Liberty Loan campaigns, the Knights of Columbus, the' war sav ings stamps. In New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Min neapolis, Des Moines, Portland, Seattle,San Francisco and Los Angeles and other cities business men have done just as well if not bettor. It is estimated that nearly $5,000,000 has been spent for advertising by business men .or contributed by the newspapers, magazines, farm papers, billboards, painted and electric signs, street ears and trade papers of the . United States all to help win the war and bring the people of this country to the realization .of their own re sponsibilities during the war. The treasury department at Washington, the officers of the Red Cross and the President himself all have ex pressed their approval and have thanked the bankers, business men, newspaper men and advertising men for their patriotic work in planning and securing this adver tising for the government. THE BUSINESS OUTLOOK FOR 1018, ON TIIK WHOLE, IS VERY KNCOURAGING. MILLIONS Ob1 PEOPLE WILL HAVE MORE MONEY TO SPEND BY FAR THAN DURING ANY PREVIOUS YEAR; THE GREAT MASSES OF PEOPLE, THE WORK INGMEN AND THE FARMERS TIIK VAST MAJOR ITY, WILL HAVE MUCH MORE TO SPEND; TIIK 'INORITY THOSE WHO 11AYK BE ION ACCUS ' TOM ED TO BUYING NEARLY EVERYTHING Til KY WANT, WILL HAVE LESS TO SPEND, BECAUSE OF THE MANY WAYS IN WHICH TIIKSK MEN WILL HAVE TO SACRIFICK TO HELP PAY FOR TIIK AVAR. THEY ARK MAKING TIIKSK SACRI , FICES CHEERFULLY AND THIS MKANS MUCH FOR THE SUCCESS OF OUR WAR EFFORTS. There is no question in my mind that business condi tions during the next two or three -years, whether we, continue to have war or not, will be very , prosperous. Money will be spent- for desirable necessary things. It will be spent more carefully, more advisedly, more wisely than ever. Every dollar wo have will be spent where the dollar counts most. Our per capita of wealth is now $213(5; that of Great Britain $1751; that of France $1750; of Germany $1338. Our present national debt is $15 per capita; that of Great Britain $370; of France $200; of Germany $290. We could pay our debt 142 times over without being broke. We have eighteen billions of liquid money in om bank deposit subject to checks. Our trade balance in 191G was over two billions in our favor. It's a bigger balance now. . " ' We may all take a lesson from London in this respect, where business all has-increased during the war. At the annual meeting of Sol fridge's Limited Department store, held in London last February, the earnings for the last' five years were given as follows: Year ending January 1, 1913, $520,000. Year ending January 1, 1914, $050,000. Year ending January 1, 1915, after six months of war, $070,000. ' ' - Year ending January 1, 1910, $750,000. And in the year just ended, $1,125,000. llarrod's, Ltd., another London department store, in creased its earnings during 1910 to $20,000 over the pre vious year. 1 lope Bros., Ltd., John Barker & Co., Dickens Jones and other stores selling general merchandise, all report similar increase. Sir George Paish, Great Britain's trade. representative to the United States, says: "An'ier iean merchants will enjoy greater sales than they ever expected to deal with. War means trade activity, not depression." ONE TI I TNG IS CERTAIN AND THAT IS TUTS: BUSINESS FOR TDK MANUFACTURERS OR MER CHANTS WHO SKNSK TIIK SITUAION AND PLAN TO REACH TIIK PEOPLE WHO HAVE THE MONEY TO BUY NECESSITIES AND EVEN TDK LUXUR IKS, WILL BE EXCEEDINGLY GOOD IN 1018. NEWSPAPERS WILL PLAY AN EVEN MORE IM PORTANT PART IN REACHING SUCH CONSUM ERS THAN EVER BEFORE. There will be large new advertising substitutes for articles that the food administration or the government wish the people of this country to use or eat less of or eat plenty of. For instance, through' advertising, people could be tol-- 'iiat there are plenty of potatoes, cabbage, onions, appl.- ud loot vegetables at prices as cheap, if not cheaper, than before the war. NEWSPAPERS ARE 7H3 LOGICAL MEDIUM FOR ADVERTISERS TO USE TO INFLUENCE OUR, PEOPLE IN THE ADVERTISING COLUMNS TO WATCH THE UNUSUAL AND SUPERLATIVE CO OPERATION NEWSPAPERS HAVE ALREADY GIVEN THE GOVERNMENT IN ALL BRANCHES. THEN 1918 WILL BE OUR BEST YEAR, AND 1JM MAKING IT THE BEST YEAR FOR ALL BUSI NESS, WE WILL DO OUR PART TO HELP PRESI DENT WILSON AND OUR ALLIES WIN THE WAR, ADVERTISING PAYS. The newspaper should be paid for Public and National advertising. PAGE-TrrREE ' ' ii