Page 252 - One Thousand Ways to Make $1000

customer had to be protected by every safeguard.

Another policy which probably originated with Mr. Sears was that of placing
emphasis on the personal element in all his advertising. Letters were always
phrased in a personal tone and every letter was signed by his name rather
than by the name of the company. He wanted every customer to feel that he
was dealing with a flesh-and-blood person rather than an institution. He
addressed customers in their own language, in a simple, neighborly way that
they could easily understand. Each letter breathed honesty and sincerity, and
a genuine desire to serve.

He knew that country people were not used to writing and found it difficult to
express themselves easily. He also knew that the mental inertia of people,
generally, prevented them from sending for goods. He had to get these
people, who did so little writing, to send him an order. To overcome all these
obstacles he originated the “Do This” style of advertising. Advertisements
read: “If you want this catalog, simply write us a letter or a postal, and say
‘Send me your big catalog,’ and it will go to you by return mail, postpaid.”
He also knew that there was usually a scarcity of writing material in the
average country home, so he would say in his advertisement: “Write to us in
your way, in any language; we will understand and will fill your order
correctly. If you haven’t an order blank handy, use any plain paper; use
pencil or pen—it makes no difference. Don’t be afraid of making a mistake.
We will take all the risk and will return your money immediately, including
whatever you paid for freight or express charges, if the goods are not
perfectly satisfactory.”
Mr. Sears believed that after a man had accumulated a fortune in business, he
had earned the right to retire. With this idea in mind, he began early in his
business career to build up an organization which would be able some day to
carry on without his guidance and management. It was in 1908 that he
withdrew from the active management of the business. He died in 1914.

A One-Man Business with a MillionCustomers

B