TIMES have certainly changed from the days when we could put up a tent or tabernacle on a vacant lot and get about all the advertising we needed from the crowds of curious spectators, young and old, who stopped to watch us at work. Perhaps the advent of television has done more than any other one thing in the past twenty years to cause us to apply ourselves more diligently to our advertising program and methods. Those of us who are on the firing line for campaign after campaign know it is not easy to pull folks away from the easy chair where they have been enjoying a free show.
And so we think and ponder and wonder what we can do to compete with all the new attractions and thus secure our share at least of audience interest in the community. I have been asked to set forth some of our methods, and this I am glad to do, humbly confessing we are not the last word in the matter and that we are still seeking new methods and better ways to attract attention to our wonderful message.
For our Portland campaign, which opened September 12, 1959, we endeavored to secure all the names of the loved ones and friends of our own members in this area. By using one sheet for detailed information about backsliders and relatives particularly, and another sheet for names of friends and business acquaintances, we were able to secure hundreds of names for our mailing list. We wrote a letter of invitation, telling about our meetings in general and the opening night in particular, and sent this together with a handbill to all our local members and to everyone whose name was on our list. We also got a list of names of subscribers to the Signs of the Times from the Pacific Press. And in another list we had the names of many people who had attended previous campaigns but who had not taken a stand for the message. We hoped to rekindle the interest of this group. Altogether we sent 7,500 letters and handbills through the mail. Another 22,500 handbills were given to our people for distribution.
We had one hundred large posters made for our churches, the doctors' offices, the sanitarium, and other business places. The sanitarium staff also cooperated in giving out handbills, and hundreds more were given away from our beautiful booth (sponsored by the Oregon and union conferences) at the Oregon Centennial.
Some very attractive bus cards were made for half the buses in the city and these remained on the outside of the buses for three weeks. We organized a telephone brigade of 160 women and sent each of them a suggested conversation and a page from the telephone directory. If each of these ladies made one hundred calls the week before the meetings started, this meant 16,000 people were reached by telephone.
Seventy good spot announcements were taken on three radio stations during the week before we opened and we used some TV spot announcements for a "shot in the arm" just before the Sabbath and testing truths were given.
We ran four small ads in each newspaper and a little over one-half page in each paper to advertise the opening meeting. Also, Elder Lyman, our public relations secretary, ran a fine series of articles in our union paper, the North Pacific Union Gleaner, which helped immensely in acquainting our own folks with the campaign.
We were fortunate in securing the Orental Theatre, seating 2,000, for our meetings. It is the second largest theater in Portland and is well located on Grand Avenue at the end of Morrison Street Bridge. The use of the large marquee for advertising purposes was included in the price of the building. On the opening night we were competing with the last night of the State Fair at Salem, the great "Oregon Story" at the Centennial, the Cadillac Show, the Chevrolet Show, the fall opening of Youth for Christ at Benson Auditorium, the Atlantic City Miss America contest on TV, and yet our building was packed and hundreds were unable to find seats. Our crowds continued to hold up well, and our lowest offering was $150.
Our hearts are full of gratitude to the Lord for His goodness to us in permitting us to work for Him, and for giving us these fine audiences. We wish also to thank all the district pastors of this large metropolitan area, who have been so kind and gracious in giving us their aid. They have opened their pulpits to the members of our evangelistic team time and again; they have announced our meetings in their bulletins, and above all they have shown themselves friendly to us and our program.
It is a great privilege to be living and working in this terrific hour of the world's history and it is also a great privilege to work with such fine brethren. We covet the prayers of our brethren everywhere, that our humble efforts here in this great city may be rewarded with many souls for the Master.