Packaging really does influence what we think about a particular product. Not just regarding the information it contains, but it sets the tone for how we feel about what we are going to end up with.
When I first saw this truck at a downtown Newberg gas station, I laughed! Putting a mural of Mount Hood, trees, and crisp clean air and on the side of a truck that is full of gasoline seemed like a huge stretch—an attempt to make the fuming fossil fuels seem pleasant!
Oooo – open up that spigot so we can all breathe in whatever is in THAT tank!
I snapped a few pictures while I fueled up (this is where I normally get gas), and admired the signage. The graphics really are well-done. Imagine if they had put pictures of oil wells, off-shore oil platforms or a giant refinery. Not very pleasant.
Later I went to the web site displayed on the truck. I wanted to see how they could spin petroleum into something clean and fresh like Mt. Hood.
After reading the details, I softened my criticism. The bio-fuels promoted by this roving billboard really ARE better for the environment than regular gasoline, so it is not entirely inappropriate or misleading. There are smart individuals and companies that really are trying to find new solutions. And they succeed in making people feel like they are doing SOMETHING.
Microsoft has a very cool site called Live Maps. You can look at your property or other sites from 4 different satellite angles! Google Earth is very nice, but with this you can view from 4 different angles—not just straight down.
Tip: Type in your city, in the upper right search window, or just zoom way in. Click “Bird’s Eye”, then rotate (Oooo!)
Here for your enjoyment, is Newberg Friends Church, and Friends Center (from the east):
Dundee’s famous Purple House (from the west):
And Dundee’s famous traffic bottleneck (from the east):
A few days ago I received a letter from Verizon, our internet service provider…
Thank you, Mr. Comfort, for being such a good customer. Effective next month we are raising your monthly DSL rate. It will be 47% higher than it is now. We really appreciate your business!”
Right after I read that letter (a few minutes), I got a phone call…from Verizon!
Hello, Mr. Comfort. Did you know that Verizon Fios is available in your area, and it is way better blah blah blah five times faster blah blah…”
I’m not interested. Thanks.
May I ask why, Mr. Comfort, when Fios is blah blah way better blah blah…?”
Yes. It costs more than I am paying now.
But, did you know that Fios uses less electricity than DSL? blah blah blah save the planet blah blah…”
I don’t care.
[Actually I do care about the earth, but I just wanted to get off the phone! I react negatively to people or companies using environmental guilt as a marketing tool to sell things, especially when it is such a HUGE stretch as this! Now I wish I would have quizzed him a bit more on his claim...]
Well, Mr. Comfort, if you change your mind, you can (speed reading, he rattled off an unintelligible 800 number and web address)…”
OK! [click.]
Now I know why they’re raising their rate for the cheap DSL plan. They’re having trouble stealing customers from themselves.
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