Show I a Ridiculous Day Promotes Local Business Pays Off for Community's Alert Merchants The Dollar Day ilea idea i. i is a common and 1111 annual tion lion in ill hundreds of cities and 1111 towns across the country It is isa isa isa a solid and 1111 acceptable local merchandising stunt slant universally popular because it benefits both the tIre buyer and lIml the seller The consumer gets the bargains he lie is seeking and the merchant mer mer- chant moves a normal bigger volume of stock front from his shelves By Dy the very nature of their stability and lInd acceptability however Dollar Days as CIS such can bog down in the public mind by becoming too commonplace commonplace common common- IJ place 1 an nit institution I. I over t the l w years I A Any nY alert group merchants of merchants a f c can I I counteract such a trend by adapt adapt- adapting H I m ing the basic bargain day clay daYco canI concept con can n to fit in in with fresh and imaginative imaginative native promotion procedures and giving the old standby stand a new n name I 1 and a el new nets approach I FEATURE A popular and card varia variation effective tion on t the l Le t theme l. IS isa is a community community- wide merchandising program carried car car- rued ried out successfully in Washington Washing Washing- ton Iowa under ender the appealing title of Ridiculous Day Ridiculous Day has come to be an annual event in Washington The entire business district cooperates in putting putting put put- ting it over Staid and 1111 respect respectable ble businessmen resort temporarily temporarily temporarily tem tem- to buffoonery dressing acting and aneZ selling in ri ridiculous ridiculous ri- ri I manners A Ridiculous Parade is staged during the morning of the eventful event day clay which keynotes s the activity and in theory at least puts the prospective local laced buyers in a happy and receptive frame of mind And according to the Wasll Washington merchants the trick works Prelate Predate enthusiasm among the tire townspeople is stimulated by advertising in the local paper The ads litIs as a general rule try to set in advance the slightly zany any note which characterizes character character- izes bes Ridiculous Day As a good example of this unorthodox unorthodox dox advertising slant lets let's take a look 1001 at an lIll ad sponsored by T. T R. R Phillips a Washington drug store proprietor He lle uses three columns by 10 inches o of f space for the ad acl which is designed in the form of a mock newspaper page complete with headlines and stories The banner heading gets the whole thing off to a properly proper proper- ly ignominious start by announcing that Weve Been Brunt To This This- Immediately below the banner banter line there is an explanatory explanatory explanatory ex ex- paragraph think a guy like me with 40 years experience inthe in inthe the drug business would have more sense than titan to buy these cats and dogs clogs so come cane on all and take tal-e advantage of me me me-I'm Im I'm not perfect either cither Then Mr Phillips goes on to say say Ive I've sure caught Hail Columbia from rant my clerks for buying this junk and now Ive I've just gotta golla have some help from front you I The rest of the lIte ad Mr Phillips devotes to exposing specific specific SIJe- SIJe instances of his sorry ineptitude lord and how the shoppers can Call take advantage of him One Olle story is headed Heres One Example of My Dumbness Dumbness Dumb Dumb- ness and amid reads like this Quite a CI lot of Box Stationery the clerks s say I bought these to sell for but you can sure get em cm quick for 29 9 cents ea each J and they'll RIDICUlOUS DAY be just fine fUle for writing to your our blind friends i Another bears the t If II 1 You Get a Burning Sensation in Your Home and aneZ the sales talk all under it goes like this Weve sure got a quick remedy for it I Weve We've bought a CI lot of Fire Extin good Rood ones alles too that didn't did dill nt t sell like hot cakes for S tit that's ats at's what the salesman said liar Rift But we Ive couldn't find many sunny folks I who were Iverc to have n a so fire we Ive still have havo havethe I the tire extinguishers and they're yours ours without a struggle for jor 29 cents each Is that a f bargain 29 cents might save you yon 2000 and 29 cents r. r Mr r. Phillips administers the coup CaUl do de grace to the Tte story of his Itis utter titter failure lailure as a businessman with this closing para paragraph puri- puri graph Bra Now tre have a tl lot o of f other foolish foul faith halls bulls that we Ive have muffed fed in our aur bungling not buying mentioned here but Ice we are going Baing to put pUI them hem out on a table tuMe in 11 the he center of tile the store where you can grab grul II them quick i t were we're not looking Ig but take lake a look looh at the Trice price Irice first Maybe you yon can buy Vm ells cheaper than you c cast ford afford to steal them U 1 4 I j ju |