The talking machine world (Jan-June 1923)

6 THE TALKING MACHINE WORLD May 15, 1923 UNUSUAL SERVICE STIMULATESilNTEREST IN RECORDS Owners of Large Record Libraries Apprecia More Enthusiastic Patrons — Experiment te Cataloging of Their Records and Become Tried by Wiley B. Allen Co. Manager It is not an unusual thing to hear of music lovers and record enthusiasts who have collected great libraries of phonograph records amounting to the hundreds and, in some cases, thousands. Managers of record departments and record sales girls often boast about the desirable patrons. "He comes in every month as regularly as clockwork," says the record sales girl, "and picks out the best records on the new list and buys them." And one wonders sometimes whether it is love of music or satisfaction of buying from a pretty sales girl that is the motive— perhaps a mixture of both. Well, it is a fine thing to have a customer of that kind. But it looks a little too easy — too easy to last indefinitely. At least that is what Freda Stephan, manager of the record department of the Wiley B. Allen Co., San Francisco, Cal., thought. So she developed a plan in the shape of service. She planned things out with Barbara Carruth, one of the members of her staff of sales girls. Barbara had a customer who owned about 1,000 records — practically all Red Seal records at that — who was a regular buyer of more records each month. The customer was a lady, and Miss Stephan wondered how she kept track of so many records. Were they properly filed and indexed? To make a long story short, Barbara Carruth was sent to the lady's house, where she found confusion and lack of system both in lists and files. So help and assistance was given in the construction of suitable record racks or files and lists of the records were indexed and crossindexed by Miss Stephan and Miss Carruth. Now this is what the result was: The lady, for the first time, knew what records she really had and could get at them at any time without any trouble — and she was delighted. But, when the index was examined, and when the lady happily read the cross index — showing what operas she had, with this and that overture— she found gaps. And then the smiling Barbara came to her rescue and filled up the gaps! Many records had to be purchased before that library was as complete as the owner wished it to be. The lady has become a more enthusiastic collector than ever. She still buys records every month — more than ever — and she is tremendously obliged to the girls for their splendid service. But that operation — somewhat reminiscent of the killing of the golden goose, but so different in result and so painless — brought a rich reward. And now Freda Stephan has taken it upon herself to be a regular performer of similar operations. Customers who are real collectors of records are picked out and offered the services of Barbara Carruth, or of one of the other members of the record sales department, and they are generally delighted to accept. SELL VICTOR CATALOG RECORDS ' HISMASTEK'S von PEG. U.SPAXOFF 55057 SSObS 55066 *i7017 87C44 S707O 87072 S7095 S7221 87222 87243 88001 &S002 8soei 8.SO(.5 S5073 88113 S8IZ7 S8I38 S82(i6 ORMES' BOOKLET— "If You Bought Only One Victor Record a Week" Will Increase Your Record Business Write for Prices — Stating Size of Your Mailing List ORMES, Inc VICTOR WHOLESALERS 15 W. 37th St. New York, N.Y.