The talking machine world (July-Dec 1922)

6 THE TALKING MACHINE WORLD September 15, 1922 pilllllllll!llllil!llllillllll!llll^ I How Pessimism Kills Business as Well as the I Morale of the Sales Force ;;i|li:J,M;,i!!::l,ll!||'ll!llll:yjk1IJiiU|!|l: IMIiljIlilJlIN!!!!1!:!! Upon the outlook of the members of the retail staff of a business depends in a great measure the success of the merchant. No salesman or staff of men can accomplish the best results of which they are capable unless their outlook on life and business in general is clear, courageous and optimistic. A pessimistic attitude, no matter how hard the salesman tries to keep it under cover, is bound to be noticed by customers, and an unfavorable impression is created, which may mean the loss of a sale, or perhaps of a customer, with a consequent loss of profits to the dealer. Furthermore, it has been found through observation that if one member of the staff loses his optimism the poison gradually permeates the entire force unless measures are taken to stop its growth and eliminate it entirely. A case in point was brought to the attention of the writer in a recent conversation with the Eastern manager of a large music concern, who has charge of a number of retail stores in the metropolitan district. This manager said in part : "One of my stores recently suffered a serious slump in business in comparison to the amount of business transacted by our other stores in less lucrative territories. I finally sent for the branch manager to discuss the situation and to see if there was any way of overcoming this difficulty. "He came, and from the time he started to talk until he stopped his story was one of pessimism. I asked him how he accounted for his poor showing in the way of sales and he lost no time in pointing out to me that it was almost impossible to make sales due to the fact that there were so many out of work; conditions were unsettled; many people were without adequate homes; there lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllli existed a buyers' strike, etc. I let him finish and then I asked him if he had made any attempt to figure out how many people in his territory had good jobs, comfortable homes and money to spend. He replied that he had not thought of that. "During the week following our interview I personally investigated conditions in that territory. I also dropped in to chat with the mana Ij Poisonous Influence ■ of Pessimism of One J | Member of Staff Oft j ■ en Affects the Entire g ■ Sales Organization j§ ger and some of the sales staff and I discovered that the attitude of the manager had poisoned the whole organization. "To make a long story short, this manager is now producing excellent results in the territory immediately adjoining his old stand and the store which had been made non-productive through his pessimism is now, under new management, reporting normal sales. "The first-named manager has learned his lesson. When I transferred him I impressed on By Alonzo K. Foster his mind that he was getting one of the most profitable territories in our organization and pointed out the possibilities for sales. He went to work with enthusiasm and is getting results. The fact that sales in his old territory immediately picked up following the change of managers is ample proof that the men composing that branch were affected by his 'blue' viewpoint and that this accounted for the poor showing made. "To be optimistic does not mean that a man must try to convince himself that business is good when it is not, but if he desires to remain in business he must face the facts squarely and try to discover just what is retarding his development and then set all his energies to work in overcoming the obstacles." COLUMBIA RECORD MUSIC FOR DANCE E. R. Berry in Columbia, Miss., Gets Some Good Publicity Through Free Dances Columbia, Miss., September 7. — E. R. Berry, proprietor of Berry's Pharmacy, gave a surprise to the music-loving public in this city recently by hiring the American Legion Hall and sending out general invitations for a free dance. The music for the occasion was furnished by exclusive Columbia artists, represented through the medium of Columbia records. E. L. Estes, field representative of the New Orleans branch of the Columbia Graphophone Co., operated an electric Magnavox in connection with the Columbia Grafonola, by which means the records were amplified sufficiently to fill the entire hall with perfect dance music. Sherman. May & Co. 111/! if. Tl tfictrolas Victor (Records tyictor cAccessories Main Wholesale Depot:] 741 Mission Street, San Francisco, Cal. Branch Wholesale Depots: 10th and Santee Streets, Los Angeles, Cal. N. W. Corner 13th and Glison Streets, Portland, Oregon Oceanic Bldg., Cor. University and Post Streets, Seattle, Washington 330 West Sprague Ave., Spokane, Washington 5 DISTRIBUTING DEPOTS Br YOUR CONVENIENCE I 1 ! >lfc=Ei 1^ t J 11 B^T71 jtf it m If I 1 pg=EEE=| « ^ > flH*»««~ .~NNXNVNW§ I I ifL ^ a -4 ¥1 .~ ~w( ^E=EE^ — mi«t S,s™%«««v ....... . — „.„, .™„„™.\\« ; Sfc W™.™„™...„— — „.,..— ™..«««S ! ^ V ^ ll ! &V. mini