A month or so ago, I posted something here about my willingness to accept advertising. The idea I put forward was pretty simple – for $100, I’d post a coupon here on the site for a locally-owned business. I’d post the coupon once, and I’d link to it a couple of times after that. My thought was that the money could pay for the hosting of this site, and, more importantly, that the ads could motivate people in my audience to check out locally owned and operated businesses. All I would ask from the business owner (in addition to the $100) was that they’d offer our readers a great deal on something they might actually want… So, a few business owners wrote in and said they’d like to participate. The first was Ypsi’s most historic restaurant, Haab’s. (That’s their coupon above.) They’re offering their most well-known and loved entree, Chicken in the Basket, for just $6!
So, if you’re from Ypsi and haven’t been to Haab’s in a while, here’s your chance. And, I should add, this offer isn’t just for Ypsi folks. If you live in Ann Arbor, San Francisco, Houston, or anyplace else, you’re more than welcome to take advantage of the offer. (I’d suggest flying into the Northwest terminal, as the other one is full of rats.) And, for that matter, you don’t even have to be a reader of this site. So, feel free to copy and distribute the ad widely. Print out a few copies and hand them out to your fellow coworkers at the Jiffy Mix factory, or whatever.
And, assuming this test goes well, and the folks form Haab’s get over $100 in value, you can expect to see this as a regular feature here on MM.com. Just come back the first of every month for a new offer.
OK, so print this out, and get your ass down to Haab’s before all the chicken’s gone… I’ll see you there.
24 Comments
Wow, Mark, you are becoming a true capitalist!
What next?
Yeah, at $100 a month, I’m going to be rolling in dough.
And, not that I need to explain myself to you, ytown, but I do put in a few hours a night on this blog, and I’ve been doing that consistently for the past six years. Even if I just valued by time at $10 an hour, this site would owe me over $43,000. So, no, I don’t feel bad about making a small fraction of that for my time.
And, for what it’s worth, I don’t think I’ve ever said on this site that I wasn’t a Capitalist… I’m just not a very good one.
And, enjoy yourself now, while you can… Next I’ll be rolling out the asshole troll tax.
Poor mark, he’s not a good capitalist. Let’s take a collection, we owe mark 43k for his insights.
For a guy who trolls this site so much, ytown, I’d think you either owe Mark for the entertainment value or would give us all a break!
I say we tar and feather Mark for getting us half-off chicken! Who’s with me?
Ytown, I beg to differ. I’ve been doing some calculations of my own and by my figures Mark owes us each one chicken dinner at Haab’s, per day, for life! This fucking coupon is the LEAST he can do!
I can’t believe I’m seeing negative comments here at all. Ingrateful, fickle mush-heads. This is the best blog post ever!!!
I’m going to eat all your chicken, wretch.
This just in, apparently Richard Nixon is innocent!
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4159/is_20070520/ai_n19165443
Instead of bicycles, you could power your outdoor film festival with chicken grease. Or both. They could eat discount chicken while pedaling.
Great coupon – I’ll be going this week!
All your chicken are belong to ytown.
?
And, not that I need to explain myself to you, ytown, but I do put in a few hours a night on this blog, and I’ve been doing that consistently for the past six years. Even if I just valued by time at $10 an hour, this site would owe me over $43,000. So, no, I don’t feel bad about making a small fraction of that for my time.
I have to say this makes me laugh. Even in a joking/rhetorical way, it would never have occurred to me that the hours I put in on my blog could somehow actually *pay off*. Or that I might charge my blog $10 an hour for having created it and written on it. haha. Your blog didn’t ask to exist! It doesn’t care if you watch crap on tv instead of writing on it. It would rather pay a Starbucks barista $7 an hour and get coffee for its trouble.
Btw, I like your blog and don’t have an axe to grind (like ytown seems to) but sometimes boys’ egos do get outta control! Then again, i know a dyke who figured out how much time she spent on her blog before asking readers to contribute money for her insights (she figured she was worth $15 an hour at least). She was also butch though so maybe it is a boy thing…
I’m not against coupons either, though I don’t eat chicken. (wait, maybe i do have an axe to grind!)
Just eat your damn chicken and say “thanks!”
Turns out I like your advertising thing better than I thought I would.
First off, I didn’t say I was entitled to $10 an hour for my insights. I do this because I have OCD and I can’t stop. There’s no reason to expect that people should pay me. At the same time, however, it’s a lot of work. All I was saying was, no, I wouldn’t feel guilty if this site, somehow, magically began laying golden eggs. I put in well over 15 hours a week at it, and my time’s worth a hell of a lot more than $10 an hour.
And, for all I care, the lot of you – minus a few exceptions – can choke to death on delicious, succulent fried chicken. (Not that such a thing would happen at Haab’s.)
And, yeah, I knew that a few assholes would complain, but I can deal with it. It’s a good deal all the way around, and I know it. The store owners get increased traffic, my hosting gets paid for, and my readers that want to avail themselves of the special offer, in this case, get cheap, delicious chicken. Only an asshole would complain. It’s not like I’m just running adds for Target, which, by the way, I’m sure would be more lucrative.
And, if you or a loved one has ever choked to death at Haab’s, I apologize. My comment was insensitive.
I’d suggest flying into the Northwest terminal, as the other one is full of rats.
That made me laugh out loud. Probably true, but it seemed especially inappropriate in the middle of a discussion about fried chicken. Hee hee.
Unfortunately, I will not be able to use this coupon because a) I don’t live in the area anymore and b) I am completely unable to order anything but the London Broil when I go to Haab’s. Even this lovely coupon can’t convince me to order anything else. Mmmmmm.
Thanks, Mark. I’ll be sharing the fried chicken love!
I get a lot form this site, insults, and now good food! Yum! If see Mark there I will buy him a beer.
Just got back from Haab’s. It was really great – much better than the last time I was there. $17 for two people for dinner including a brew? We are going to use these coupons ever damn day.
Also, on the receipt it says “1 OBERON / 2 MARK MAYNARD,” which I thought was funny.
http://cactusk.com/receipt.png
That’s cool. I think the ratio of Oberons to Mark Maynards is way off though.
I mentioned this coupon to some friends in Plymouth who got excited about it. I guess the chicken dinner at Haab’s is pretty well known around there even, and it’s already considered a great deal at the usual $12. It’s cool that you were able to get them to do the thing at half price. I’ll definitely be swinging by Haab’s to check it out.
This fucking coupon is ruining my chances of destroying this blog!