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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
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