Document jyZp12rQ62QQgrej3gNg40dR9

S&l ?a L20 u* Tbm* ihwti w dd--- sd UltanSIbilMam Binder Ko. 154. Keep item lnaumcricml ordtffornady r*fefe*. S-W MERCHANDISING I l i "To Be Helpful ) Th e Sh e r w in -Wil l ia ms Co mp a n y oi c a mAx* k o a d , mt . w.. cumAan o b io oamamiL bu u j r im n u mk i Tw o u mb t i Marlon, Ohio., Population 3t,M*. Dnrw Jan. 25, 1921 i | 1 , I I i TUa BaHttLa mt tot Pul] S & D I itt. AH Reps. Pionioiius DepU. re setting a supply tor BPA tut. Agent* ml) set Jt 'liter in the form r an S W P Monthly Nm i,etrw. REAPING GOOD PROFITS FROM THE PAINT DEPARTMENT By A. A. Van Alta of Scribner ft Van AUa, Proprietor! of Tie Amman* Hardware Co., Marion, Okie, -S-TK At/en!'. The field for selling paints, varnishes and special finishes is so large and the demand lor quality products is so great, that any merchant can easily' 'Reap Good Profits from the Faint Department.'' It is not necessary to mention how important profits are. neither is it necessary to mention why we should have profits, because every good merchant realizes that profits keep the wheels of industry turning day after day and year after year. ! MARION. O CptmCmpa --------------- .------- -m. WW a n \AayoHo fMfiflf lf> Moron Cosnly We have developed this idea of "Reaping Good Profits from the Faint Department" until it has become quite a reality in our store. In fact, we have developed the idea to such an extent that we con sider our paint department the most profitable department. This may sound strange to some merchants, but never the less it is truth, not fiction. Our city has a population of about 30,000 and has eleven stores that carry a full line of paints and varnishes, besides several that carry stock finishes of different kinds. With this amount of local competition, together with the little jobbing houses in a nearby NOTS: Marian Ohio / PrM/tef*>hof Hnf/nf'g teat* town mad hit Aonv im pi/pffd with 3 W tho paint thmt wina R1 l`rn I J3i Bulletin No. 2--Page 2 city, and the mail order houses, it would almost make a merchant in cline to scratch his head and worry a little bit, unless he used just plain common everyday "horse sense" and looked to the future with confidence and determination, and let the competitor do the worry ing- But then there is no need of our worrying, because we organize a good team from our sales force and pull with them until the task of pulling up the hill to "Successful Paint Merchandising" becomes easy. We carry a full line of Sherwin-Williams Paints and Varnishes. With this splendid line, we have a perfect right to act and feel that f; we have no competition. It is true there are some other good lines of paints on the market, but when everything is taken into consider ation from every angle, it is not a very difficult problem to figure that Sherwin-Williams is the best. During the past year, we have.sold at retail, nearly $23,000 worth of paints, varnishes and special finishes. We are almost ashamed of ourselves that we did not sell more when we think of the wonderful demand for these products. However, we are going to do our best to beat this record during the coming year and the following ideas will be carried out to accomplish our purpose: l first--We will start to arrange and replenish our stocks imme diately after inventory, which will be completed about January 15th. At the same time, we shall get our whole store in spick and span order,-because a desirable class of trade likes to patronize a neat, clean and well kept store. The ladies, especially, appreciate a store of this kind. Their paint trade is too important to overlook, because they are interested more than anyone else in having the home well 0007-SWP-000128581 SKI 4Ja IJ) ' Bulletin No. 2--Page S painted inside and out. The ladies also buy the special finishes freely, which certainly are so profitable that any merchant must not, overlook them. We are so pleased with our ladies' trade that we very often run the following slogan in our advertising: "A pleasing and inviting hardware store where ladies take pleasure in shopping." After getting our paint department well stocked and in excellent order, we will have a meeting of the employees and give them the proper instructions on paint and varnish merchandising. We shall also have the employees give us some good ideas which will prove helpful and be profitable to us. We are firmly convinced that a salesman should be well posted on painting and varnishing to make a good salesman along these lines. People like to trade with those who can help solve their painting and varnishing problems intelligent ly and do not object to paying a reasonable profit for good service. In fact, any. dealer Bells service and must always figure to give the best of service, then success is bound to travel bis way. After we have bad this meeting of employer and employees we are "keyed up to perfection" as the boys say, to start "Reaping Profits from the Paint Department." You can rest assured that the prospects who enter our store and ask the price of paint per gallon are not told the price the first thing. You possibly wonder why. The reason is, the price per gallon is a secondary consideration and has very little to do with the cost of painting unless^it costs per gallon just what it ought to cost to make an economical job in the long run. Instead of answering our prospect's question regarding the price per gallon, the very first Bulletin No. 2--Page 4 prices, and we shall be very glad to explain. At the same time, we ask him to go with us to the paint department. After we get him there, we reach for a bucket of SWP and a color card and we are quite ready to proceed. In the course of selling our prospects, you can rest assured we do not talk as if it hurt us to say a few words. Neither do we talk as if we did not believe in the goods we were selling. In fact, we talk so earnestly, so confidently and knowingly, that it does not take our prospect long to decide he is listening to real competent salesmen who mean business and are perfectly capable of selling paints and looking after their painting interests. You might be interested in knowing about what conversation takes place in selling our prospects. It is very simple and easy and is as follows: After talcing the bucket of SWP from the shelf, we show the formula which is plainly printed on each label. We explain all ingredients, both liquid and pigment. We always mention the linseed oil in SWP as being the purest that is posable to obtain. As we have been through the Sherwin-Williams plant at Cleveland, we are able to tell just how this linseed oil is made, which is very interesting to our prospects. When we get to talking pigments, we take each one separately and explain why it is used, in detail. This does not take long and always interests the prospects. All the time this is getting us ready to tell the price per gallon. It also makes our prospects understand the true wisdom and real economy of buying SWP. If we know our prospects and know where they live, we tell them about some build ings near them that have been painted with SWP; at the same time we always mention the fact that it takes a lesser number of gallons to complete the job than is expected. Of course, it depends on the condition of the surface to be covered just how much it will require, but this is all reasoned out with our prospects until they are thorough ly convinced that SWP iB the proper paint to use as well as the price per gallon is the proper price to pay. If you give your prospects the "proper dope'' straight from the shoulder, they will know it and just about every time you will sell them sooner or later. It is very important for any paint salesman to understand the pigments in paint and their uses, as it helps greatly in demonstrating and proving why SWP covers so much more surface and looks so much better than just lead and oil. It also makes it easy to explain just how SWP wears away, leaving the surface in excellent condition for painting the next time. We are also active and on the job when we hear of a new building that is going to be erected or remodeling to be done, that will require punt oor finishes of any kind. NR.1 1J L " 3i* II ! i Bulletin No. 2--Page 5 We t t iaIc p it a point to see the architect, also the owner or ownersto-be, and make a great effort to sell the paint and varnish or any thing in o u t line that would be used in the construction of the building. We also have Mr. Doyle, the Sherwin-Williams representative, in our territory, go with us to the larger users of paints and varnishes and sell them a nice amount of finishes, which helps swell the volume of business. The real estate dealers who specialize on building homes to sell, use a great amount of paints and varnishes, and with the SherwinWilliams line it is veiy easy to furnish them just what they want. We of course, have Mr. Doyle go the rounds with us and come lwok with a nice volume of business. We make good use of the Decorative Department maintained by The Sherwin-Williams Co. for the free use of its customers. In our opinion, this is a wonderful department and we advise all dealers to make good use of it. Now where it comes to special finishes, we can certainly say ' `we get our share." Of course this pleases us because there is nothing that makes the dealer so much profit as Varnishes, Floorlac, Varnish Stain, Oil Stain, Enamel of all kinds, Auto Paint, Floor Paints, etc. We take advantage of the offer of the Sherwin-Williams Co. to mail our prospects circulars on Floorlac. We also have the special Floorlac demonstration at our store. In February we start to advertise the special finishes in our local papers quite freely and keep it up during the Summer and Fall. We hammer "Floorlac" so much in our advertising that we have people calling at our store for it almost constantly. We also advertise "Mar-not", "Rexpar" and "Scar-not" Varnish freely and find we get good results. Many people call us over the telephone and order these goods to be delivered, while others call at the store where we demonstrate and educate them in their different uses. The old say ing "Once tried, always used," holdB good with any Sherwin-Williams Products. When it comes to advertising in our local papers, we figure just how much our volume of business will permit us to spend and we try our best to use it to good advantage. We advertise big at the proper time and keep following it right up to get the full effect of all previous advertising. Our windows are kept up in good order and changed once a week as nearly as possible. We have a big window and often devote the whole window to "Floorlac" at the height of the season. We arrange and trim many good paint windows and we find they pay us big returns. 0007-SWP' \\*i .+ i t> DnUttm No. }--Pagt 6 When a customer enters our store, we are very anxious to give him the proper finish for the work he wants to do. We make it a point to find out what he wishes to finish and tell him the best finish to use and also tell him how to do it if he does not already know. Not long ago a lady entered our store and I waited on her. She had been wanting a painter to do a little interior finishing in her home, and was not able to get one. I asked her why she dkl not do it herself. She replied, "I would if I could." I replied, "You can and I will help you." This pleased her and I sold her some Mur-not Varnish for floors and some Floorlac Varnish Stain for the breakfast table and seats in the breakfast room that had previously been varnished but were scratched up somewhat. When she was ready, I jumped in my machine and went to her home and taught her how to paint and varnish. It did not take long and just as soon ns she found she could paint and varnish, she finished almost everything in the house and needless to say, we sold a nice paint bill. There are many other things that can be done to "Reap Good Profits from the Paint Department." I can only say in conclusion, that selling paint and varnish is simple, easy, and pleasant work. All that is required is to stock a good line and a well advertised line such as Sherwin-Williams. With this splendid line you can have so much confidence in the goods you are selling that you should he amply able to get a nice profit from your paint department. Ptini WiwdamafTh* A*mm 3mi Hun Co,, Aiirton, Okie (ThJ bulletin copyrighted lMi by Tho ShorwIn-WilUmma Co., CJerolmnd, Ohio* AU right* rMarrtd exoopt by epoclAo pormitoloa of D+p*rtmmnt of Pubthity.) SRB4A21U1 0007-SWP-00012858J