Cards Against Humanity has done it again. Many retailers competed to get the throngs of people into their stores first, with opening times between way too late and insanely early. Other product makers pushed and pimped their goods attempting to win a coveted spot on your ?must have? list. This company pulled off a Black Friday stunt to the tune of $180k. They didn’t even announce their amazing sale until 11:14 a.m. on the big day, and they did it via Facebook.
Last year this ?outside the box? company ran the ?Black Friday Blowout Sale? in which they actually increased the price of the game by $5. This year, it was a slightly different kind of blowout sale.
The ?Black Friday Bullsh*t Blowout? was a success and they completely sold out of their boxes of ?Bullsh*t?.
https://twitter.com/MaxTemkin/status/538429002898501633
The game co-creator Max Temkin told Time,
?We all really hate Black Friday, it’s just kind of a horrible day. It comes after this day where you’re supposed to be thankful for what you have, and then it’s just this whole huge media spectacle of people fighting each other to save $50 on a TV.?
Some consumers missed the very literal description entirely and thought the box would contain a set of cards, while others knew the box would contain excrement but hoped they would also receive a special edition card or bobble. However, everyone should have known the card makers would do exactly as?described and apparently, many did. Max Temkin made no secret about the contents of the box.
https://twitter.com/MaxTemkin/status/538378512382844928
The company provided a detailed description on Amazon and even issued FAQs about the product.
I’ve done my fair share of impulsive buying. I’ve purchased plastic crap for my children for years, often exceeding the $6 price tag of this box of hopefully not so plastic crap (I guess it depends on what the bulls ate). And each year, I do it over and over again, perhaps not always on Black Friday but certainly during the season; the rushing to the stores and selecting expedited shipping as I seek out more and more disposable consumables to place under the tree.
I wonder how many people out there have wrapped up little boxes of actual poop for their families, friends, and co-workers. I like to imagine the looks on their faces as the realization sets in,
?I got poo for Christmas.”
It makes the proverbial lump of coal look like diamond by comparison. If you feel the need to participate in the merriment and missed the original spectacular deal, you too may have a box of unopened bullsh*t if you seek one out on eBay. So far, the highest price one has sold for is $65.
Other than the simple enjoyment of mocking the gluttonous consumerism of our culture during the holiday season, the company also had a less foul-smelling purpose for the excrement.
According to the Time?article,
?Cards Against Humanity made 20 cents on each $6 box of holiday bullshit. The profits will go to Heifer International, a charity that aims to eradicate poverty and hunger by providing livestock to developing communities.?
I must admit. That’s pretty damn awesome.
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Elizabeth Preston is a thirty-something wife and mother of three living in Florida. She is a fierce liberal with a passion?for equality and justice. She is a skeptic by nature and often the Facebook friend that rains on the urban legend parade with fact checking. Give her?Facebook page?a?like, follow her on?Twitter?and check out her personal blog,?My Four Ha? Pennies.
