b'Below: NERSICA convention concluded with NERSICA "Oscars" to C.O.T.Y.SeeBelow. W HITE CARNATIONS in their button holesenhancedthe sombrehue of their garmentsasthepall bearerssilently shouldered the weight of the coffin. Asthecortegemoveduptheaisle therewasasubduedmurmurfromthe shockedcongregation- anoteofinquiry in thewhispers whoseearthlyremainswereshroudedwithintheflowerlesscasket. Aclergymancladinfuneralblack, lightenedonlybyaglimpse ofstarched linen at his throat, stepped with measured tread in front of the sombre parade.wasTheSalesman At the end of theaislethe casket laidtemporarilyatrestwhiletheministermountedtheplatformtoreadthe funeral service. ShakespearewroteoftheburialofDeadl Caesar. "The evil that men do liveth afterIS them. The good is oft interred with their bones." This was the text chosen by the minister denounced the corpse that once was a manI whoinsteadofeulogizingthedeceased,HALLELUJAH -that once was a salesman. TherewasnosignthattheoccupantLongLive of the casket was turning in hisconfined quarters, as well he might for the minister roundlychargedhimwithavarietyof crimes against the American home owner. Thiswasno"unknownsoldier\'s"re theSalesmanl mains,butthoseof an"unknown salesman"whohadleftalegacyoflarcenyto get past the door, how to make appointbehind him.ments, how to interest the homeowner in He was accused of engagingin a num ademonstrationandhowtoclosethe ber of rackets-the switch racket, the baitsale. racket,thecompletioncertificateracketRegardingthelatter,attheclosing and others.session, Dave Yoho after warming up his The ministerhadn\'t agoodwordforaudience with aflowof dialect anecdotes thedeceased.Infacthetookovertheput on an amazing performance. He kept prerogativeoftheDeityandconsignedhishearersgluedtotheir seatsforthree thesoulof the"unknownsalesman"cohours, part of which was devoted to rapidHell.fireansweringobjectionstoclosingthe Whowasthisclergymanwhoappar sale gleaned fromthe sad recollections of ently had no qualms at vilifying the dead?lost salesby members of the audience. Temporarily he wasthe ReverendHarryThis report isonly acapsule summary Quirico, pastpresident of NERSICA andofanentertainingaswellaseducative presidentofDomesticConstructionCo.,trioof seminars,organized,notbyproLouisville, Ky.fessional sales lecturers, but by real profesQuirico is a versatile individual. Beforesionals,contractorswhohadprovedthe he donned the clerical garments he, alongvalue of their thesis by the financial success withpast-presidentPeterJohnsonandof their own enterprises. President Saul North, deckedhimself out in"south of theborder"sombrerosand colorful capes. There werethelightermomentsof a trioofseminarswhichreachedahighAbove:In runningforC.O.T.Y. point in the art of selling roofing, siding,was Powers Roof Co., Arkonsas insulation andhomeimprovementprod City,Ark.,representedabove ucts to the home owner.by Bill Powers (R)andWayne Brougher(L).Asecondaward Included in the presentations organizedwasmadebyPeterJohnson, by the imaginative Dave Yoho, were howNERSICAPastPresident. to get prospectsthrough advertising,howC.O.T.Y.standsforContractor co contact the prospect by direct mail andoftheyear,annualaward. personal selling, how to overcome the resistanceof areluctanthome-owner,how MARCH,196315'