The Old-Fashioned Way

SELLING The Old Fashioned-Way

To pep up sagging refrigerator sales this summer, Joske's of Texas, a subsidiary of Allied Stores in San Antonio, went back to old-fashioned selling methods. Sales Promotion Vice President Jim Keenan plugged Frigidaires in splashy newspaper ads, cut out down payments and sent his 80 salesmen out to ring doorbells. Some used the old trick of following an ice wagon down the street to find householders still using iceboxes. One man stayed out so many nights selling that he finally decided to take his wife along: she talked to housewives while he cornered the husbands.

An added spur was a four weeks' "Dress Yourself" contest. Salesmen got clothing prizes (ties, shirts, etc.) depending on what they sold, with the top prize a suit. At meetings once a week, salesmen could wear only what they had won. At the first meeting, some were barely decent. Last week. Joske's totted up results of the contest. In a month, $232,000 worth of Frigidaires had been sold--and 20 suits given out. Since the campaign started, Joske's has sold $750,000 worth, more than most big stores sell in a year.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.