Lately I’ve noticed something on the side of the road – less-than-desirable people trying to get my business. And when I say “less-than-desirable,” I mean people whose appearance is such a distraction, that not only is it impossible to divert my attention to whatever it is they are advertising, I also can’t imagine that by their dress or “talent” that I would want to spend money with their advertiser.
The first was a couple of guys who are always on a corner down from our offices. They are dressed in crazy, over-sized outfits that show their clothes underneath. Which, by the way, underneath they are dressed like absolute hicks. They appear to be unkempt and unshaven. Once while I was stuck at the stoplight, I watched them argue until one of them stormed off.
The other was a guy in Portland, Oregon, and he was a sign flipper – a really bad sign flipper. Every time he tried to flip the sign up in the air, he dropped it. When he tried to….twirl it in his hands, he dropped it. He even threw it up in the air only to have it drop on his head! When it hit the ground, he threw his hands up in the air as if to say, “What happened?”
When I see stuff like that, all I can think about is, “Who hired these guys?” Somebody is spending money on these folks, hoping to get business. The whole time they are giving the advertiser a black eye. Actually, now that I think about it, due to their incompetence, I’m not really sure who these guys were advertising for, so maybe they aren’t hurting them. They surely aren’t helping either!
Here are a few things you as an advertiser should do when you hire someone to represent you:
- Make sure this is a reputable company. Ask for a list of clients you can call to see how well their campaigns have worked in the past. If they’re not willing to do that, I would stop the process right there. A solid company has no problem giving references.
- If this is a street marketing campaign, ask to see the actual people who will represent your company and your brand. If you no likey, don’t use them. If you’re paying them to twirl a sign, make sure they can actually do it with the skill needed to attract the attention of people who want to learn more about your brand instead of people who see a joke and blog about it. 😉
- Either go yourself, or send someone you trust to check frequently that your expectations are being met. You have a responsibility to make sure that your marketing is working. As we say here at Dave Ramsey‘s, “Inspect what you expect!”
The important thing to remember is this is your money! Another way to look at it is found in Matthew 25: 14-30. God blessed you with the talents so you could make more. Steward it well, Leader.
Leave a comment on either advising more or silly road-side marketing that you’ve seen.
I have always wondered why in the world anyone would pay someone to stand on the corner to advertise their business. It didn’t look like it could possibly be worth how ever much the company was forking out. Glad to know I am not the only one who has wondered about the dorks on the corner.