Occasionally a traveling salesman meets at the hotel or on the train the
head of some large house, who is making a trip for special reasons of
his own. Such a man is always sure to be affable with every one, but
he is especially conciliatory to the salesmen he meets on his route.
Perhaps this is due to the fact that he is a stranger and these old
travelers can help him, if they are so inclined, or it may be for the
purpose of leading them to be talkative with him, and in that talk he
can gather points that will be of value to him. Whatever the cause may
be, there is no question as to the fact. But the talkativeness is not
always on one side. I have met wholesale merchants on the road who would
talk freely and tell me more about themselves and their business in one
evening, while we sat in a country hotel, than they would have done in
five years of ordinary intercourse in the city.
The man who sits in the house all the year falls into several errors.
One is in thinking that people are anxious to buy of him, and that his
traveling men ought to find it very easy to get an order in almost every
store. Another error is in believing that the orders come solely because
of the firm's popularity, rather than of any merit in the salesman. I
suppose there are goods so well advertised that, in a large measure,
they sell themselves; but, outside of patent medicines, I can not now
recall one such item.
We were talking of this, half a dozen of us, while in the smoking-room
Sunday evening, and one of us said: “The best man to work for, if you do
your level best, is a man who has been on the road himself. Such a man
always knows where and when allowances must be made for dull trade, and
for cutting of prices. The man who always makes the most trouble, and
who was fore-ordained to be a dashed fool, is the book-keeper. The
balancing of his little gods of books is of more account, in his eyes,
than is the sale of a bill of goods. And having the ear of the firm he
usually gets permission to do any piece of dashed foolishness that he
suggests. But next to him is the merchant, who never steps out of his
own door to try to sell a bill, or the manufacturer who runs his little
shop in a one-horse way and never goes out to see what others are doing,
or learn what consumers are saying about his goods. I once traveled for
such an old block-head, and, as I started off on a trip, I advised him
to discontinue making a certain article, telling him it was out of date
and could only be worked off on greenhorns in business. I guess I was as
much interested in getting them off as if they were my own, and I lost
no chance of working in a few wherever I could. The same amount of work
on salable goods would have paid big money. Well, when I got home, may I
never breathe, if that old ass hadn't taken my sales as evidence of the
big demand for the goods and was piling up the store-house with the same
stock!”
“Yes,” said another, “but the man who sits in his office usually makes
the biggest mistake in supposing that he is a great deal smarter than
the men he sells. Because he is a peg higher in trade, as jobber,
importer, or manufacturer, he imagines he is also greater in ability,
and he has no hesitancy in advising these poor devils about their
business. I was selling scythes several years ago, and worked for
just such a man as I have been describing. He was a good mechanic, but
pig-headed; goods must be made and finished a certain way, because that
was the way they had been made for thirty years. The result was we were
losing our trade. I knew he was blaming me for the trade falling off,
so I persuaded him to make a flying trip with me to Buffalo, Cleveland,
Toledo, Detroit and Chicago. The dealers at Buffalo were rather old
fogy, and we got our order there from our regular customer, but when
we struck Cleveland I saw the old man open his eyes. It was one of
Blossom's off-days, so he didn't waste much time on us, but said he
didn't want any of our goods. Deming hadn't got into silver mining, so
we couldn't get an order from him by buying a share of stock, but Van
was about half-full, and he opened up on us. Then Toledo piled it on.
There were four jobbing houses there in our line, but not one would buy.
I knew one buyer pretty well. After we had been the rounds we came back
to his place, and I asked him to tell us frankly how we could get
some of his trade. He gave in detail the ideas that were current among
retailers and consumers regarding shape and finish of scythes, putting
it down in a clear-headed way, so that a baby could have understood him,
but showing the shrewdness of a man who was studying all the points in
connection with his trade. It did the business. We went up to Detroit,
and had a long talk with Charlie Fletcher, and the old man bought a lot
of samples and went home. On my next trip, you can bet, I had salable
goods.”
“You can study a man as he is only when you see him in his own store,”
said a third. “When a country merchant comes into Chicago, and walks
into your store, he is very desirous that you shall be pleasantly
impressed by him; so he puts on his best manners. You are on your native
heath, you are surrounded by your clerks, and you are considerable of a
man in a city of big men, while he realizes he is a very small toad in
a little country puddle. But just put the shoe on the other foot, and go
into his store. Now, he is on his own ground; you are asking favors of
him in the shape of orders, and all the petty smartness comes out, if
there is any in him. It is an opportunity that permits a mean man to be
his meanest, and draws out of a generous, kindly soul all the milk of
human kindness there is in his heart.”
“Well,” said a dry-goods man, “there are a good many kinds of men in the
world, but the man who makes me fighting mad is in Pittsburg. He's most
infernally polite, but he never wants anything. As I go back to his desk
he is either reading or writing. I say: 'Good morning, Mr. Blane,' and
hand him my card. He scarcely looks at it, but in the most solemn and
dignified way says: 'We do not need anything in your line to-day.' Then
I open up on my leading items: 'I have a very nice line of novelties
in so-and-so.' He looks off from his paper to say: 'We are full of
so-and-so to-day,' then goes to reading again. 'I have some desirable
patterns in new goods in silks.' He looks up to say, 'We have enough
silks for the present.' 'I can give you special prices on hairpins.' He
looks up again to say: 'Our stock of hairpins is full.' And then I bow
myself out. I asked the boss one day if he ever sold the firm when he
was on the road. He said he did once. Blane was out of town and he sold
his partner. Still, I call on him every time I go to Pittsburg.”
“Pittsburg? Oh, that's where Joe Horne hangs out.”
“Who's Joe Horne?”
“Why, Joe is the man whose orders are as well known in the west as
Willimantie thread. Every New York drummer stops at Pittsburg, and every
dry-goods man sells Joe Horne, or says he does, so that now, west of the
Mississippi, the first greeting given a drummer is, 'Show us Joe
Horne's order.' Joe must be a very good fellow to give his orders so
impartially.”
“Did you know Luce?” one dry-goods man asked the other.
“Luce, of Toledo? I should say I did.”
“He was a tough man to tackle unless he felt just right. They tell of a
put-up job on a drummer who used to call on him. He couldn't manage ever
to get an order out of Luce. One day he said to a friend, who always
sold Luce, 'How is it that you succeed and I fail? I sell the best trade
in the country and to a good many men that you don't sell; now, why
is it I can't catch on to Luce?' The other asked, 'Do you ever talk
politics to him?' 'No.' 'Well, that's his soft side. He's a regular old
moss-back, Vallandigham Democrat. If you want to succeed, go in on that
line.' His friend thanked him, and the next time he went to Toledo he
felt better. Luce wanted no goods, as usual. Then Mr. Traveling Man
opened on politics. He remarked that all over the State there was a good
show for burying the d--d Republicans that election. Luce glared at
him in speechless wonder. Then Mr. Drummer launched out on the infernal
meanness of the Republican leaders, but by this time Luce was ready for
him, and the way that poor devil was talked to would make you sorry.
When he next saw his friend there came pretty near being a fight, but
the friend thought it too good a joke to keep and told Luce. No one
enjoyed a joke better than Mr. Luce, and, by thunder, the next time the
man called on him he gave him a good order, and they were the best of
friends afterwards.”
“I often wonder if any one ever fools a man equal to the way he fools
himself. I always laugh over a customer of mine in Cincinnati who always
insists he must have 'a leetle adwantage.' The boys on the road like Old
Pap and laugh over his 'leetle adwantage.' He says: 'I must haf a leetle
adwantage ofer New York and Philadelphy. They ton't pay no freight. They
get their goods at their door; I must haf a leetle adwantage to cover
the freight.' The old man has this so firmly fixed in his head that we
have to humor him by giving him 'a leetle adwantage.'”
“Some men think that in giving an order all they need to do is to state
their own terms and time, and every one will dance to their tune. A
concern in the Northwest that failed (and they ought to), used to write
their orders on a blank that was headed:
All prices guaranteed. Privilege of increasing,
decreasing, or countermanding
No charge for boxing or drayage.
“How was that for smartness?”
“You say they failed?”
“They did.”
“They ought to have got rich!”
“Yes, they are a fair type of the average buyer; it's cut here, screw
down there, pare over yonder. No matter what your price may be, it's
always, 'What are you going to do for me?' as if he must have a special
cut. I showed Hibbard & Spencer's buyer a new tool the other day, and
gave him my price. `What's the best you can do?' I told him that was
the best I could do. 'But what is your price to Hibbard & Spencer?' As
though every salesman must have laid away in a snug corner, a special
price for that important firm! `I have given you my price; it is the
best I can do with anyone.' They are not willing anyone shall make a
cent but themselves; they want the whole apple, and are not willing to
give the manufacturer the core.”