Scott's Turf Builder - Shame Marketing - BITTER

Scott's is running a commercial for its Turf Builder product right now which I really don't like. It falls into a category of ads I called either "stigma marketing" or "shame marketing". (Dan and Chip Heath did a great piece on this concept in Fast Company last year.) These ads try to create a problem to make the viewer feel ashamed or embarassed.

In this particular commercial, a husband and wife are discussing the tradgic problems they had with their lawn. It was riddled with dandelions and they were the bain of their neighborhood. They felt awful because they never wanted to be "that neighbor". Finally, though, after using Scott's Turf Builder, their lawn was cleaned up and perfect. They profess that, "now the neighbors wave at us" as if prior to "perfecting" their lawn they were treated like the scum of the earth. Its the equivalent of trying to make all women think they need to be a size 4 to be accepted. Truly ridiculous.

At what point did someone decide that dandelions were the worst things in the world? I have small children and, at one point, was a child myself. These were actually the greatest things in the world at the time. Free flowers you could pick and attempt to cultivate in a paper cup. Spores you could try to blow out like birthday candles. This is living to a child. When did the lawn become the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel?

When I eventually do have a front lawn of my own, I fully intend to go natural with it. No chemicals fertlizers or weed killers. Just hopefully a lawn without any big missing patches and hopfully a few of mother nature's beauties for the kids to bring in to their mother.

Scott's, for trying to make all of us feel criminal, you get a BITTER.

No Turn Signals - BITTER

While I'm on the subject of driving, what's up with nobody using their turn signal anymore. People don't use it making a simple turn and they don't use it when they change lanes at 80 miles per hour in front of you. I've recently heard this regarded as the single biggest danger on the road today.

There's a great scene in the film, "Shoot 'em Up", with Clive Owen where someone cuts him off without using a turn signal and he instantly goes into a tirade about it. It's what we've all felt I think. Unlike the rest of us, he catches up to the guy and runs him off the road. If only.....

A BETTER Traffic Light

Is there anything worse than sitting at a red light at midnight for a minute or two when there isn't a car in sight? OK. Of course there is. But when you think about it, the whole thing is really silly. You, sitting there at midnight, with no cars around. That's not why they put the traffic light there is it?

They put it there to manage traffic at rush hour most likely. If you drive the road any other time of day, you'll just be inconvenienced a little.

There isn't one person reading this who hasn't contemplated running the red light if only they knew they wouldn't get caught. Why? Because we all know it's ridiculous to sit at a red light when there is clearly no danger.

I'm of the basic opinion that all traffic lights, at least on purely 2 lane roads, shift over to blinking red and yellow signals after say, 10pm. One side is typically the busier side, so it gets the flashing yellow. The less travelled way gets a blinking red, which means drivers have to stop, but then can go if there is a clear roadway.

Sure, some traffic lights do this. But doesn't it seem like this is a rather arbitrary decision when the light is put in place? I'm just asking for a little coordination and a standard policy. It could make life just a little bit better for people who actually have to be out driving late at night.

Service Charges and Tipping - Better or Bitter?

Here's just a very quick post. When getting food via delivery, many restaurants now charge a delivery fee. I'm not sure if this started when gas prices were spiking, but it's here to stay. At the same time, I still tip anyone who delivers food to my house.

The question is, should you tip someone if there is a service charge? We have become accustomed to tipping people like waiters and waitresses because their pay system is primarily based on the tips. Would you feel the same way though if you got the check and there was a line item for "Food Service Charge"?

I tend to feel that the delivery charge has nothing to do with the delivery person, so the tip is still necessary, but I just thought I'd reach out for your take on it.