Even more truth in advertising

 
In my last post, I wrote about a terribly misleading postcard. While doing some research about truth in advertising, I came across some interesting examples.

 

They needed to clarify this because people were walking into this Iowa store hoping to catch a train to Grand Central Station.

 

 

At last, no more embarrassing questions to the store workers asking if they carry the XXXL Depends adult diapers.

 

 

I called this number and told them they had won a million dollars from the king of some nation they’d never heard of. All I needed was their credit card number for a “transaction fee.”

 

 

Yes, that’s the reason a lot of men go to the gym—to see ugly women.

 

 

 

Do the watches tell time, or do you have to look at them?

 

 

 

I was once told the same thing by two muggers.

 

 

Figures, I had them come to my house at 11:00 last Monday.

 

 

 

Little known fact: "Dutch's" was the original name of Walmart.

 

 

 

 

This is what I’m looking for in a lawyer.

 

 

 

 

Strangely enough, this was posted outside a hardware store.

 

 

 

 

Part of a less-than-successful chain owned by the brothers “Yu,” “Soon” and “Your Mom is.”

 

 

 

Amen.

Truth in advertising?

Times are tough.

Everyone is looking for a bargain, while at the same time, companies are fighting over consumer’s limited funds.

I’m constantly receiving letters and emails trying to convince to me buy something I didn’t know I needed.

And then there are companies who go the extra mile—they offer contests, give-a-ways and promotions. Heck, I’m all for that. In fact I’ve done a number of promotions with my books to help spread the word. As long as it is a legitimate deal, I’m all for it.

Sadly, often that isn’t the case. A while ago, I received the following postcard in the mail:

I knew I was going to be flying out to Utah in 2013 for the LDStorymakers conference, so I was curious. So, I flipped over the postcard to look at the “fine print.” A few things caught my attention right away.

First, was the word “most” and “Major” in front of the word “Airports.” Even though I live fairly close to the capital of North Carolina, the airport wasn’t considered “Major” enough. Where were the closest airports to me? Washington D. C. or Atlanta—each roughly 6 hours away.

Oh, and the hotel? They were roughly an hour away from the airports—and you had to pay for your own transportation to the hotel.

But goofiest of all, and the biggest warning sign was the small print in the corner:

It kind of bends the rules of “truth in advertising”, doesn’t it?