Deceptive flower sign

Picture 3-65
A sneaky flower dealer near Sunset and Vermont in Los Angeles has a sign on the sidewalk that tricks drivers into thinking it sells roses for $4 a dozen.

But if you get down on your hands and knees and use a magnifying glass, you can see a tiny "1/2" in front of the large "DOZ,"and an equally miniature "99" above the dot after the "$4."

That said, the sign's design and colors are quite attractive. Link (Via Museum of Hoaxes)


Discussion

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#1 posted by Anonymous , September 13, 2007 10:54 AM

Sign painting/lettering is becoming a lost art. As a kid the grocery store windows always had these huge butcher paper "sale" signs with bright red and blue lettering. Now everything is machine printed and kind of sterile.

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That 99 cent marking is looking pretty tiny as well.

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Design's so pretty on this sign that I can't be mad at it!

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#4 posted by Anonymous , September 13, 2007 11:16 AM

I don't know how it's regulated in the US, but many countries have laws regarding the size of text in advertisements. So that sign may in fact be illegal.

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It's hard to be mad. Plus, even with the sneaky stuff, they're still selling roses at $10 a dozen, and that's a pretty decent deal.

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This reminds me of a sign I saw in a grocery store back home: Jumbo cantelopes were available at "2/3.00", which would be 1.50 a piece... but below the big, bold numbers was a tiny li'l "EACH". That meant the two cantelopes were 3 bucks a piece, 6 dollars for the pair.

There's a pic of the offending sign here.

I should mention, though, that I didn't confirm the price by getting myself some cantelopes, and it's likely some kid just screwed-up when they printed-out the sign. But even if this sign isn't as intentionally deceptive a $4 dozen of roses that'll cost you $10, it's still pretty confusing.

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I completely agree, if they've gone to so much trouble in marketing their flowers....I'd get my boyfriend to go and pick up a dozen for me too !! :))

Sia - THC

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#8 posted by Anonymous , September 13, 2007 11:52 AM

Most cities have regulations on signage to prevent this situation.

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Damn. What a cheat.

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Ha! I drive right past there almost every day. Never even noticed that...

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#11 posted by Anonymous , September 13, 2007 12:11 PM

Huh. I'd be willing to bet that they're in violation of some California consumer protection law. Small print that's used to be purposely deceptive would seem to fall into that category.

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#12 posted by Anonymous , September 13, 2007 12:17 PM

I bet the car hire industry is very interested in hiring the people behind this.

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#13 posted by Anonymous , September 13, 2007 12:18 PM

Well, that's still not as bad as getting your hair cut in Cambodia, then being shown the sign hanging behind the door: "FOREIGNER HAIR CUT $3"

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I'd go out of my way NOT to buy from Mr./Ms. Floral Fine Print. That's pretty lame.

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#15 posted by Anonymous , September 13, 2007 1:35 PM

It's street spam!

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that's right by my house! yay silverlake!

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#17 posted by Anonymous , September 13, 2007 2:25 PM

The Large Print Giveth and the Small Print Taketh Away

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down the street from me is a Pizza parlor with a sign that says:

(huge type) FREE
(big type) PIZZA
(small type) DELIVERY
(tiny type) after 4:00 pm, $10 minimum

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#19 posted by Anonymous , September 13, 2007 3:02 PM

In the UK they'd be fined by the Advertising Standards Authority and made to change the sign so it's more clear.

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Yes! After seeing this entry, my friend and I biked past the sign last night. It's still there and totally hilarious.

I think I'm going to go stop by the shop today and tell the owner he's been spotted on the net.

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What's so funny about this? The dealer's a scumbag. And I've seen better "design" on "Will Work for Food" signs held by homeless veterans on the side of the road.

OK, maybe I'm humorless, but I just don't find con artists funny. Sue me.

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