The Edison phonograph monthly (Mar 1906-Feb 1907)

EDISON PHONOGRAPH MONTHLY. (Continued fiom page i). the December list in each year, and the advance orders for last December far exceeded any other month since the invention of the Phonograph. Yet the advance orders for the present month exceeded December by nearly ioo,ooo Records. The orders for stock Records show the same percentage of increase and there is no decrease in the orders for machines. The only suggestion worth making to the trade at the present time is to keep ahead with your orders and not wait till your stock gets low. It is not probable that Jobbers will fill Dealers' orders before they need the goods or that we will overstock Jobbers. PLEASE, DON'T. We regret that it is necessary to again point out to the trade that sample Records must not be played or exhibited to the public. These advance Records are sent to Jobbers for the purpose of enabling them to make up their orders more intelligently. For the same reason many Jobbers have arranged to let their Dealers hear them also. There is no objection to this . and we are glad to have Jobbers do it, for, after all, it is quite as important to the Dealer to get a line on the character of each selection. But here it must stop. The public must be asked to wait till the Records are regularly on the market. Where .we find that the samples are being played to the public we shall insist upon the offending Dealer being denied the privilege of getting the samples. This seemingly arbitrary stand is for the benefit of the entire trade. If we did not constantly insist upon compliance with the reasonable conditions that are laid down we soon would be unable to maintain the system that has proved so advantageous to every one handling Edison goods. If you are offending, Mr. Jobber or Mr. Dealer, don't do so any longer. Work with and not against us. CARRY A STOCK AND ADVERTISE. Every Dealer who has made a success of selling Edison Phonographs and Records will tell you that it has been due to two things: Advertising and carrying a complete stock of Edison goods. It is difficult to say which is the more important. In fact, each is necessary to the other. It would be a waste of money to advertise and not carry an adequate stock. It would be poor policy to carry the stock and not advertise. Worked together they yield almost wonderful results. To carry every Edison Record in the domestic list costs a Dealer about $275. The interest on this amount at 5% is $13.75 a year, which represents the cost of carrying the full line. Without this stock the Dealer loses many more sales in a year than is represented by the interest on his money, and being able to supply any selection a customer wants brings him back when he wants others. If he cannot find what he wants he will go to another Dealer and probably become a regular customer. Then, too, there is a satisfaction to a Dealer in being able to advertise that he has every Edison Record. The mere announcement stamps him as progressive and alive to his opportunities. Some Dealers will say that their towns are too small for such a stock of Records. Possibly this is so, but many who now think their towns too small would find that they would develop a surprising, amount of business if they would put in the full line. The tremendous growth in the sale of Phonographs in all parts of the country makes this subject of carrying every Edison Record more important than ever. Machines are going into every city and town in the land and they are making a wonderful Record business. If such owners cannot get the Records they want in their own towns they are going elsewhere. Next to the advantages of carrying an adequate stock of Records is letting the public know about it. Advertising does not necessarily mean the expenditure of a large amount of money. Advertising in newspapers is a most effective way of getting new business and it will cause people to buy Phonographs who had not thought of doing so, but many Dealers feel that their capital will not warrant the expense. An excellent means of getting Record business is to ascertain the names of people owning Phonographs or other cylinder talking machines, send them a brief circular, pointing out your facilities for supplying Records, and then put their names on a mailing list so they they will get a Record supplement each month. A circular letter mailed occasionally to prospective purchasers will get new machine business and the sale of a machine means a steady and profitable Record business. Any other form of advertising will prove profitable if done frequently. AN ERROR. On page 26 of the Phonograph Catalogue the statement is made that a Model B Reproducer can be exchanged for a Model C by returning the old one and paying $2.00 difference. This is an error. The difference to be paid is $3.00. THE PHONOGRAM. The Phonogram has reached an edition of 360,000 copies and is regarded by the trade as an excellent medium for selling Records.