SEASON'S GREETINGS from ItrEl m@\ /s&vficws

JIM NORTON executive vice president of the Lumber Merchonts Associotion sf Norlhern Coliforniq

THE LUMBER Merchants Association r of Northern California was well represented at the recent annual meeting of the National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association at Phoenix by LMA presidents Homer Hayward, Art Masters and Ham Knott, LMA vp. Lyle Schafer and treasurer Bob Butcher.

One of the highlights of the well-run meeting was the application of the final stamp of approval to the Visual Information Program which is expected to provide dealers across the country with a most important in-store selling tool.

You may recall that this program was born here in northern California with LMA acting as midwife. Since that time, the program has been presented to our national association's marketing committee which has selected a Pennsylvania advertising agency to produce the program.

Several publications, see The Merchant Magazine, Sept., p. 43, have carried reports on VIP (Visual Information Program), explaining how the self-contained, automatic super 8mm projector will be used to show dealer customers lO-minute do-it-yourself films on a broad range of projects. The films will be backed up with take-away literature which will enable the homeowner to undertake such jobs as application of prefinished paneling, interior and exterior painting, installation of acoustical or decorative ceiling tile, etc.

The overall importance of VIP is yet to be determined, but those involved in our marketing programs for LMA have pushed extremely hard to get it going. Lyle Schafer, for one, says that our members are losing sales dollars every day we go without the program.

Offcials of NLBMDA told dealers in Phoenix that this pro. gram will be available for use sometime in January with the completion of films now in production. A single projector has been selected for the program and it is expected that manufacturers and other trade associations will jump onto the band. wagon by producing other films for dealers.