Would you enjoy sitting on the observation platform of a modern train in
company with interesting people from everywhere, seeing scenic America
from the Atlantic to the Pacific and from Canada to the Gulf—mountains,
prairies and cities? Who has not dreamed of this wonderful experience!
Who would not enjoy living in America’s magnificent hotels where the
traveler enjoys every luxury which money can buy?
_You_ can claim this wonderful life if you are willing to say: “I _will_
do it!”
It does not matter what your present position in life is. It does not
matter how limited your education may be, provided you can read, write
and talk fair English.
It does not matter about your age.
It does not matter whether you are a man, woman, young man or young
girl.
The only things that matter are these:
You must get it out of your head that you are not capable of doing big
things. You must realize that the reason you are not doing big things is
that you have never had an opportunity to learn. Every successful person
in the world to-day thought just the same things which you are thinking
at some time in their lives. They had to learn how, too. You must grit
your teeth and start. Close your eyes to everything but success. The
most difficult thing about being successful is making up your mind that
you are going to succeed. Once you overcome that fear which haunts you,
which holds you back, you will become master of yourself and the whole
world can’t stop you.
Don’t let timidity, fear, self-consciousness, or what others think rule
you. You know you are capable. Surely you believe in yourself, so close
your eyes to these petty obstacles and work for your own future instead
of to please your present associates.
Here is the plan that will give you your start on a successful career.
Read it. Think while you are reading how easy it would be to explain
this plan to a buyer even without practice or instructions. When we put
you through our salesmanship course you will look back at the things
which now appear impossible and laugh. How very easy it all is when you
once understand. And how different the whole world looks to you when you
are on the road to success. The dread of facing another day of routine,
which is torture, of associating with people whom you dislike; of
feeling dependent upon certain people for your existence—all these
thoughts vanish like magic. How pleasant it is to be prosperous and
successful! What a satisfying feeling it is for a married woman to be
able to help her husband bear the burden, and how wonderful it is for
her to have plenty of spare money to do and buy the things she has so
much wished for!
And the single girl!—the single girl who is obliged to earn her support.
Few indeed are fitted to do work that pays more than enough to barely
exist upon. What dreadful thoughts hover over her! She has her choice of
loneliness and poverty, or marriage at the first opportunity. Stop and
look about you! Look at the girls in your circumstances who married for
a home. How many of these girls are living the life you have so often
dreamed you want to live? Don’t stumble along blindly. Close your eyes
and think—think of yourself ten years from now!
Do you see happiness—do you see yourself the dainty well-groomed lady of
your dream? Are you living the luxurious life and surrounded by the
cultured circle you expected? Or are you shut up in a few lonely and
dingy rooms with nothing but sadness and poverty as your lot?
What a dreadful thought! All the things which are so dear to you—a
dainty skin, attractive figure, youthful and radiant face—all changed in
ten short years. Surely you must see yourself as you will be in ten
years, slovenly dressed with a worn and tired face, rough skin and
straggly hair; nothing but poverty and worry.
What a different picture you will see when you have had a touch of
success. When you are no longer dependent upon others for your
existence; when you no longer get up in the morning with the dreadful
worry of another day of torture before you. When you no longer think of
marriage as a means of securing a home. And what a difference it makes
when you are successful and can afford to dress the way you have dreamed
of, and can associate with the cultured young men and women you have so
often envied. How different it would all be if you could afford to live
in the sort of home you have fancied! This is the reward of success. And
the difference between success and failure is expressed in these few
simple words:
“I will start to-day—_NOW_—to learn the things which will make me
successful. If servant girls, clerks, factory girls, stenographers, and
every other kind of girls can succeed in learning salesmanship and rise
from their humble positions to the top of the ladder, I too will
succeed! I must succeed! I have firmly determined to start now!”
If you had bought a hat, a pair of shoes, an overcoat and a dress, and
two weeks later discovered that you had outgrown all of them, would you
be interested in seeing some one who had a plan to sell these clothes
for you and get more money for them than you originally paid? Would you
listen to them?
Would a man who owned a furniture store listen to you if you would tell
him you had a plan which would permit him to get all his money out of
the dead stock he had in his store? We mean such things as odd chairs,
tables, rugs, etc.; things which he had bought over a year ago and for
some reason couldn’t sell.
Of course he would. He would be willing to spend two hours finding out
how you could do it. Surely, you will not admit that you could not tell
him this plan. You don’t have to tell it just the way we will tell it in
this book. Tell it in your own language. Tell it just as you would
relate it to a girl friend. The simpler your words the more effective
they are. He isn’t interested in big, fancy words. He wants you to be
yourself and tell him facts. Here is the way we would talk to Mr. Brown,
who owns the furniture store:
“Good morning, Mr. Brown. I wonder if you would be good enough to let me
explain a sales plan to you. The plan which I would like to tell you
about is one that has been successfully worked in many furniture stores
throughout the country. It is especially designed to clean up odd pieces
of furniture which are dead stock with you, and does not require an
investment on your part until you have tried it out and have found it
successful. If it works, you want it. If it doesn’t work, you don’t want
it.”
What happens next? Well, if you owned the furniture store and had a lot
of odd pieces of unsalable furniture, wouldn’t you be interested in
hearing of some plan to get your money out of this dead stock? All
right, then what will Mr. Brown say?
“If you can show me a way to get half of my cost out of my dead stock
you are just the person I am looking for. Go ahead and tell me your
plan.”
Wouldn’t you feel the same way Mr. Brown feels if you were in his place
and some one had approached you in this manner? You see there are no
mysterious tricks in salesmanship. Just put yourself in the other
fellow’s shoes and say the thing that would sound reasonable and
interesting to you—common sense, that is the keynote.
Now we will tell Mr. Brown all about our plan:
“You know better than I do, Mr. Brown, how the average woman’s mind
works. She wants something for nothing. Bargain is her watchword. She
will actually buy something she doesn’t need simply because she thinks
it is a bargain. I once saw a woman buy two picture frames at $1.98
each, which were marked ‘_Reduced from_ $3.’ After she had bought them I
heard her husband ask her what she intended to do with them. He told her
they had no pictures to put in the frames. She answered: ‘Yes, John, but
think only $1.98.’ Later I was in another store and saw the same frames
selling regularly at $1.75 each. I have repeated this incident, Mr.
Brown, to show you how a woman’s mind works, for my plan to sell your
dead stock is a big bargain sale that has been worked successfully all
over the country. Here is a set of seven books. We call them the Woman’s
Library, for they cover the six most interesting subjects in the world
to women. Before I go into the details of my plan to dispose of your
dead stock, I want to tell you briefly what there is about this set of
books which makes women want to own them. Remember, I am not trying to
sell you books. In fact, I am not trying to sell you anything. I am
simply offering a plan whereby we can both profit. I will sell the books
and your dead stock. You will get your money out of the dead stock and I
will make a profit on the books. Mind you, I do not ask you to invest a
dollar in books. All I ask is your cooperation. Now, as I started to
say, it will be necessary for me to explain the nature of these books in
order to convince you that women will snap them up like hot cakes. If
you were a woman, I know you would appreciate their strong appeal and
salability.
“This is ‘The Book of Good Manners.’ It tells you how to do and say the
right thing on all occasions. It tells you how to introduce, what form
to use when you introduce an elderly man to a young girl, a
distinguished man to a group of people, etc. It tells you how to
acknowledge an introduction and when to shake hands. It tells when and
how to make formal and informal calls; what should appear upon calling
cards; how invitations should be written, sent and acknowledged; how to
acquire perfect manners at the table; when and how to use the knife,
fork and spoon; how to eat asparagus, olives, corn on cob and other
foods so difficult for most of us; in fact, every conceivable question
which women are interested in is answered. It is simply a dictionary of
etiquette. Do you know, Mr. Brown, that almost every woman in this town
feels the need of this book every time she entertains or calls on her
friends? Every woman has been placed in many a humiliating position
simply because she did not know the rules of etiquette. It is surprising
how little most of us really know about good manners. Here is a simple
little test which not more than one woman out of a dozen can answer.”
(You hand Mr. Brown a folder with the questions printed on it. He will
probably smile and remark that he doubts if he can answer them. While he
looks at the folder you continue talking.)
“Incidentally, Mr. Brown, one of our methods of making people realize
the need of this book is to ask a lot of questions in our ads, similar
to the questions you are reading. You see our plan is to make them
realize that they are continually committing social blunders which make
them appear crude and common in the eyes of their friends. When I
explain about these other books I will show you how we handle the
advertising and copy of ads which have proved very successful.
“This volume is called ‘Color Harmony and Design in Dress.’ It is
difficult for a man to understand what a problem it is for a girl or
woman to buy the clothes which are becoming to her. You see certain
girls can not wear certain colors. For a girl to appear ‘at her best’
she must know what colors harmonize with her hair, eyes and complexion.
If she is too stout, she must know what designs and colors will make her
appear slender, and on the other hand, if she is too thin, she must know
how to make herself appear in proportion. And then there are the tall
ones whose problem is to decrease their height by the camouflage design
and color combination; the short ones who have the problem of increasing
their height. Perhaps this sounds silly to a man, but you know how vain
most women are, Mr. Brown. They will spend their last penny for a box of
powder or something that will make them beautiful. Of course, I am an
exception (?) ahem!” (This remark will bring a smile and relieve the
strain for a moment. Mr. Brown will pass a few complimentary remarks
which you will take good-naturedly, and continue.)
“I know that you are not interested in hearing all about a woman’s
troubles, Mr. Brown, but as I said before, I must tell you this in order
to show you how these books answer all of their problems. I am trying to
impress you with the fact that the Woman’s Library is not a collection
of ordinary books. They are the only combination of their kind
published, and I will wager that every woman in this town will want them
if they are put before them in the right way. They are the very keys
which open the door to a woman’s most perplexing problems. They are to a
woman’s life what a furniture trade journal is to your business life.
You read the trade paper because you want to keep in touch with what the
best type of furniture dealer is doing, and try to improve your store.
It is a woman’s business to be as attractive as possible, and there
isn’t a woman alive who wouldn’t grab at the chance to find out how to
become more so. You can’t appreciate what a problem the average girl or
woman is up against trying to buy or make clothes that magnify instead
of mar her good looks.
“Now, this volume tells ‘how to prepare and serve a meal.’ It tells just
how the table should be set; where each piece of china and silver should
be placed; at which side of a person you should stand when serving or
removing dishes. In addition to answering hundreds of these questions it
contains menus for every occasion from simple home dinners to elaborate
afternoon teas. Each menu is followed with recipes telling how to
prepare each dish listed.
“Do you know, Mr. Brown, that not one woman out of ten actually knows
these things? Do you know that every time the average woman entertains
she is self-conscious and afraid she has committed some terrible blunder
which ‘gives her away’ to her friends.
“The last half of this volume is devoted to ‘Interior Decoration.’ It
tells how to arrange furniture and bric-à-brac to beautify the home. It
tells what color draperies harmonize with certain colors in floor
coverings, upholstery and walls. In short it tells how to plan a home
that will reflect good taste and a genuine homelike atmosphere.
“You know how funny women are on this subject. You see it every day
right here in your store when they buy furniture. How often have women
displayed their total ignorance of color harmony when buying upholstered
furniture from you. How often have they asked: ‘Will the blue velour
upholstery on this suite match well in a room papered green?’
“This volume is called ‘Physical Beauty.’ It tells how to become
beautiful; how to care for the skin, develop a good figure, remove
wrinkles, double chin, freckles and all other blemishes which mar a
woman’s beauty. It tells how to care for the hair, hands and teeth. Also
home preparations which have been used by famous beauties are given in
detail.
“It goes without saying that this volume touches one of the most tender
spots in women.
“‘Avoided Subjects Discussed in Plain English’ is a book on sex. It
outlines every single mystery of sex in plain English. I feel that the
title of this volume speaks for itself. You know without me saying so
what a strong appeal this subject carries.
“‘The Book of Culture’ contains a series of essays on subjects related
to self-development. Here are the titles of the essays: (show him the
book opened at the index page).
“This volume on ‘How to Make Money’ gives a number of practical ways for
the average man, woman or girl to utilize her spare time profitably.
Every aggressive woman is interested in ways and means of making money.
“Now, Mr. Brown, I think you will have to agree that this set of books
is something every woman wants and will buy.
“Here is my plan for disposing of your dead stock: Suppose that you have
a lot of kitchen tables which cost you six dollars each, a lot of chairs
that cost you five dollars each, a lot of mirrors that cost you four
dollars each, a lot of rugs that cost you seven dollars each, and a lot
of pedestals that cost you eight dollars each. All of these are dead
stock to you. Let us make up a list of the dead stock as follows:
Twenty kitchen tables—your cost each $6—your regular selling price
$10 each.
_OUR BARGAIN PRICE_ $9.98 each and the Woman’s Library given free
with each table. You make the sale, collect the cash and pay me $3
on each sale for the set of books. You will get your cost out of the
tables and $1 profit on each sale after you pay me for the books.
Thirty chairs—your cost $5 each—your regular selling price $9 each.
_OUR BARGAIN PRICE_ $8.98 each and the Woman’s Library given free
with each chair. After you pay me for the set of books you make $1
profit on the sale and get your cost out of dead stock.
Twenty-five mirrors—your cost $4 each—your regular selling price $8
each.
_OUR BARGAIN PRICE_ $7.98 and the set of books free with each sale.
You make $1 profit on each sale after you pay me for the books.
Fifty small rugs—your cost $7 each—your regular selling price $12
each.
_OUR BARGAIN PRICE_ $11.98 and a set of books free with each rug.
Your profit on each sale after you pay for books.
Ten Pedestals—your cost $8 each—your regular selling price $12.50
each.
_OUR BARGAIN PRICE_ $12.48. You make $1.50 profit after you pay for
books.
“Now let us see what we have done. We have turned $800 worth of dead
stock into ready cash and made you $190 profit besides. We have given
your customer a set of books which is worth $5 more than they paid for
books, chair and all. Will they sell? Well, Mr. Brown, as I said in the
beginning, I will prove to you by actual sales that they will sell. We
will sell your regular customers and we will bring you new customers who
probably would never otherwise have come to your store. I have twenty
sets of these books, and am willing to come to your store and help fix
up your window. We can fill your window with the chairs, tables, rugs,
etc., and attach a large card stating that the Woman’s Library will be
given absolutely free with each chair. In the center of the window we
will make a big pile of the twenty sets of books with an attractive sign
on them. I have here copy for advertisement which you can run in our
daily paper (we furnish you copies of ads to show Mr. Brown). We will
sell your dead stock so quickly you will wonder how it was done. This
plan, Mr. Brown, has been tried all over the country. We know it works.”
Now, honestly, couldn’t you sit down and tell the facts just related to
most anyone after you had familiarized yourself a little more with the
books, etc.? You see that after all, selling goods is more a matter of
common sense. When you have something good to sell and are convinced
people will buy it, you have won half the battle.
Suppose that you were going to sell Mrs. Jones our “Book of Good
Manners.” The first thing to do is to write down all the good reasons
why you think Mrs. Jones should buy it, and then arrange these reasons
into a short interesting talk. Try to think of all the objections she
will raise and have an answer ready for her. We have repeated the above
conversation between a saleswoman and the buyer of a furniture store
simply to show you that all there is to selling is:
First: Having something good to offer.
Second: Knowing all about your article.
Third: Explaining your proposition with simple words in the same way
you think it would sound well to you if you were the buyer.
Fourth: Knowing when to stop talking and close the deal.
You could probably explain this plan to your buyer in many different
ways and sell him. Each person has distinct methods of getting results.
Now let us see where your profit will come in. Each sale made would net
you $1.50 profit. Suppose 200 sales were made. You would make $300 on
the one store. When you complete the sale with this store you ask them
to give you a letter recommending the plan to other stores. Each store
you sell you secure a letter of recommendation. After you secure these
letters from five or six good stores you will have no trouble in selling
the best store in each city you visit. Remember, we furnish samples of
advertisements to you. Each one of your customers can copy these
advertisements in their daily papers.
The girl or woman who is willing to study our free course in
salesmanship can make from $150 to $300 for two or three days’ work in
each city she visits.
How can you get started? What must you do to get this free course in
salesmanship? We want you first to read every one of these plans. When
you finish reading, we will explain how simple it is to get started.
Have you ever known a crowd of girls who went around together, to
dances, parties, shows, etc., and then one day one of these girls was
promoted to a position where she superintended a number of other girls?
Did you notice any marked change in her, or in the attitude of the
other girls in the crowd? You know very well you did! You know very
well that something about that girl commanded more respect and more
attention than any other girl in the crowd. Of course, you said a lot
of things behind her back, but just the same you were only too glad
to have her invite you for a walk or to a show. You never failed to
mention the fact that Margaret called you up, and you went to the
show with her. You might have said some nasty things about her having
a “swelled head,” etc., but you said these things just because you
envied her. What a difference this promotion has made in Margaret’s
life. Everyone is anxious to cater to her. When she speaks every one is
silent. When there is a prominent or honorary office to be filled in
your clubs, Margaret’s is the first name mentioned.
How pleasant life must be for Margaret. What a difference it makes when
one is invited out to meet a young man or a set of girls, when they have
all been confidently informed that “Margaret is a remarkable girl. You
know, she is at the head of the Smith Company and has complete charge of
the entire force.”
Surely, you must have wished to occupy a position that would command
respect. You must have dreamed of filling a position where people would
look up to you and feel dependent upon you. Perhaps you have even
dreamed of having your own office with your name on the door, your own
bank account, two or three assistants and a score of girls working under
you. You have even thought of the thrill it would give you when your
friends paid you a call at your office and saw how successful you were.
Who would not be happy under these circumstances? Who would not enjoy an
automobile, pretty clothes, a circle of cultured friends, and all the
other luxuries which this position would offer you?
If you are a 100 per cent American girl, if you possess a drop of
imagination or desire to be something more than an ordinary girl, you
surely have pictured yourself managing some of the plans which we have
told you about in this book. You must have seen yourself as you would
appear under these new conditions. You, but an uplifted, radiant _YOU_.
Yourself, but as different as the drab moth from the beautiful
butterfly. For a few moments your thoughts took you to a new and
wonderful world, and then—and then you became your ordinary self again.
You thought how foolish it was for you to think for one moment about
doing such a thing. How could you? You didn’t even know where or how to
begin such an undertaking. You didn’t have any experience, nor the
necessary education, and besides it took money to start such things, and
you didn’t have any money. And then what would your friends think, and
suppose you didn’t succeed? And then you thought of everything you had
read, and the things that seemed so simple to you when you read them,
all ran together and loomed up like a huge monster. They now appear a
great, big knot, and you never could unravel it. The office, the bank
account, and everything seem like a dream to you. You have allowed
yourself to be carried away with a story. You were trying to live the
part of the heroine.
If your mind is not working about the way we have pictured it, you are
indeed a remarkable girl, for ninety-eight girls out of one hundred
think and act just as we have related, and this is why most girls are
tied down to miserable routine work earning barely enough to exist upon.
This is why girls who are capable of making their mark in the world
become discouraged and think that their ability is not appreciated.
What happens?
Rather than continue on these meager earnings with no prospects of
advancement, they marry.
And whom do they marry?
They try to marry a promising young man who is making his mark in the
world, but, naturally, a young man of this type is associating with a
more progressive circle of friends; therefore they decide to accept the
first offer that appears like a fair prospect of a home.
What finally happens to these girls? Unless you can look ahead twenty
years you can not answer this question. Ask your parents or a friend who
has reached the age of fifty to make a list of twenty-five of their
schoolmates. Ask them to tell you what has happened to them. How many of
them are able to retire? How many are self supporting? What kind of
homes are they living in? How many of life’s luxuries have they enjoyed?
And they too were once pretty girls! They too were considered clever.
They too dreamed of the same kind of future you are dreaming about. But
this youthful dream never came true. They patiently waited for the
opportunity which never came. The aggressive, successful young men whom
they dreamed of married the “Margarets” who had somehow dropped their
old crowd and had become favorites with prominent people. Be honest with
yourself! Why should you think you are so different, that through some
mysterious good fortune, everything will turn out all right for you?