Have you noticed the guys on the busy street corners or intersections? The ones waving the signs for ‘Going Out Of Business’ or ‘Everything is 30-50% Off’? It seems like everyone is doing it these days. Here are some random thoughts on the topic…

1. Where do you get a job like this?
2. How much does it pay? (Can’t be more than $6/hour I’m guessing.)
3. What are they thinking when they’re out there with the sign?
4. The sign holders have no interest in the sign they’re holding or the company/product behind it. These are not the ideal customer ambassadors I’d want waving signs for my company. It’s not believable. Get the people who actually love your product to wave signs in front of all their friends. That would be believable.
5. Does this tactic really get people’s attention in a positive way? I admit I notice them, but I’m really wondering about the answers to 1-3 above.
6. If I did notice the company on the sign (and I sometimes do…. Quiznos, JC Penny’s, Kmart, and Cingular are a few I’ve seen lately) it in no way makes me more apt to purchase their product. I know that Quiznos exists. I see the building. Waving a sign that says ‘Mmmmmm… Toasty’ doesn’t help.
7. It seems desperate and sad. If sticking a guy on a corner with a cardboard sign is the best you can do, I’m not feeling warm and fuzzy about whatever it is you’re selling.

Should I feel guilty for not having anything to blog about? Wait, I guess I do have something to blog about. Now I’m really confused.

Whether they’re for movies or television, previews are not doing their job. They greatly distort, mislead, and/or ruin the very media they’re designed to promote. Do the people making the shows, movies, etc. get a say in the previews created?

3 Examples…(That’s the precise number of examples needed to make it true.)

1. House, M.D. - Totally my new favorite show. I love it. I didn’t watch it for 2 years because of the previews. They portray the show as a scary, bizzare medical drama, when in fact it’s the funniest show on TV. It took the regular harrassment of my friend Kacy to get me to watch. I’m so glad I did. (Hugh Laurie is my new boyfriend.)
2. That new Will Ferrell movie - You know, the one where he plays a guy whose life is being narrated? Well, I really wanted to see it. Then, I saw the trailer where they give away the entire movie. Beginning, Middle, End, Plot, EVERYTHING. What’s the Point?
3. V for Vendetta - Honestly my new favorite movie of all time, but I saw it only after several months of nagging by my friend Mike. I refused to watch it after I saw the previews. It was based on some comic book? What’s up with that weird guy with the mask? Gee that looks awfully violent. It gives you nothing about the actual plot or characters. I’m trying to convince other people to see it now and I tell them to completely ignore the preview and listen to me. I can understand that they were trying to appeal to those who had read the graphic novel and were in to ‘those kinds of movies’, but would they have gone anyway if they had made a more accurate preview? I think so.

(BTW - Watch House - Season 3 starts Sept. 5th. Rent V for Vendetta today. If you want to go see the new Will Ferrell movie, don’t watch the trailer.)