The Great Hot Dog Recession of 1979

Luigi lived by the side of the road and sold hot dogs.  He worked hard at getting ahead so he could send his son off to college.  Night and day he sold hot dogs and because his hot dogs were very good and he worked hard, business was good.

One day, Luigi bought some advertising to tell people how good his hot dogs were. He picked radio because he knew almost everybody listened…he could schedule his advertising to reach listeners at their hungriest moments…the personal touch of the spoken word could best endorse his quality product and create an image…he could reach everybody in their cars for immediate results…and the cost of radio meant he could reach more people more often than with any other medium.

Well, Luigi was right.  People came to try his hot dogs.  Lots of people.  Business really boomed.  In fact Luigi had to buy a bigger stove and increase his bun order to meet the demand.

Finally, his son returned home from college with a degree in business administration and said, “Father, haven’t you heard?  There’s talk of a recession!  Just look at the market, interest rates, spiraling inflation, international unrest and let’s not even talk about taxes.”  Whereupon Luigi thought “Well, my son’s been to college.  He reads the newspapers and subscribes to all the important business magazines.  He ought to know?”

So Luigi phoned the radio station and cancelled his advertising.  And alas, his hot dog sales fell almost overnight.  “You were right son,” Luigi said to the boy, “We certainly are in the middle of a great recession!”

If you’re the type of businessperson who believes that knowledge of the community, faith in your company and an aggressive marketing programme is a more positive hedge on any possible recession than the prophecies of Wellington politicians, we’ve got the advertising know-how, creative ideas and vast, responsive audience to keep you growing!