Lindsey’s Daily Deal: Still a Virgin, and Not So Good

By Lindsey Campbell, Captains of Industry

Hey Captains’ readers,

Here’s your Friday Deal:

1. Still a virgin?

That’s unfortunate. But thankfully for you, there are billboards all across the U.S. with a toll-free number that can provide you help for your, uh, situation.

According to David Griner of AdFreak, all this fuss about handing in your V Card is due to Sony Pictures’ latest comedy that’s coming to the big screen—The Virginity Hit. Due to lack of recognizable actors and the low budget filming, this movie was barley hitting the Richter scale of “must-sees.” But now that Sony has taken out a few billboards and some transit ads to promote the movie, everyone from the purest of virgins to the sauciest of sex pots will be lining up to see The Virginity Hit.

Why? Well, if you saw a giant billboard with the line, “Still a virgin? For help call 1-888-743-4335 toll free,” you’d want to know what gives, too. In fact, I’ve never been one to curb my curiosity, so I gave the number a dial. As soon as the line connected, I was directed to an automated messaging system that provides you with options like, “Hit 1 if you’re a virgin, hit 2 if you’re friends with a virgin and want to help, hit 3 if you DON’T KNOW if you’re a virgin.

Of course, I pressed three. Here’s the response I got: “Wow. Um, you’re in BIG trouble. The fact that you don’t know what it means, MEANS that you’re a virgin. Press * and go back to the main menu.”

I LOVE this. Rather than relying on a movie poster and coming attractions, Sony decided to actually connect and engage with their audience. Not only are people across the country sharing pictures of the billboards via cell phone, but they’re hitting the Facebook and Twitter feeds as well. I’m definitely buying a ticket to this movie.

2. Not so good

Whenever I get aggravated at someone, I try to remember that everyone out there is fighting their own battle, has their own priorities, and is probably doing the best they can. Mind you, this mantra doesn’t always work, but it’s kept me from going ballistic on a few innocent bystanders who don’t deserve to feel the wrath of my molten spew of fury. For instance, whenever I visit the doctor’s office or a hospital, I’m usually more than annoyed that I sometimes have to wait hours to see a doctor. I’m in pain, I don’t feel good, and the last thing that I can maintain is my patience. But, I do. Why? Because those people have to deal with so much pressure and stress that the last thing I want to do is piss them off. Especially when I need them to do me a solid and whip out their prescription pad.

Which brings me to Bill Green’s recent post on Make the Logo Bigger. It’s about GE’s new project called, “The GE Show.” It basically explains the life cycles of the various systems people use everyday. One game they created, “Patient Shuffle,” illustrates the complexity of the health care industry by having players mimic a day in the life of a hospital caregiver. Each patient has to go into the right room in less than three minutes or they bleed out and die. No pressure.

Green reported that he lost a few patients, and my “Overall Patient Mood” was rated at “Not So Good.” Also, when you receive your score, the copy that appears reads, “In real life, this isn’t a game. In real life, caregivers have to solve each problem, for every patient, every day. That’s why we’re making a real change in today’s hospitals.”  It’s a really awesome way to show how difficult people’s jobs can be, and how lives depend on their efficiency.

Take a shot at the game and see how well you do. Or, check out a video the Captains created called, “First Do No Harm.” It was created to show how small errors can build on each other and lead to tragic results.

Knock back a few Hurricanes in honor of Earl,

Captain Lindsey