to occur--these are all pertinent and may furnish the strongest kind
of selling arguments. And it is equally desirable to have inside
knowledge of the methods in the sales department, in the receiving
room and the shipping room. It is necessary for the correspondent to
know the firm's facilities for handling orders; when deliveries can
be promised, what delays are liable to occur, how goods are packed,
the condition in which they are received by the customer, the
probable time required in reaching the customer.

Another nearby source of information is the status of the customer's
account; whether he is slow pay or a man who always discounts his
bills. It is a very important fact for the correspondent to know
whether the records show an increasing business or a business that
barely holds its own.

Then a most important source--by many considered the most valuable
material of all--is the customer himself. It may be laid down as a
general proposition that the more the correspondent knows about the
man to whom he is writing, the better appeal he can make.

In the first place, he wants to know the size and character of the
customer's business. He should know the customer's location, not
merely as a name that goes on the envelope, but some pertinent facts
regarding the state or section. If he can find out something
regarding a customer's standing and his competition, it will help
him to understand his problems.

Fortunate is the correspondent who knows something regarding the
personal peculiarities of the man to whom he is writing. If he
understands his hobbies, his cherished ambition, his home life, he