Weekly Round-Up

From the Pre-Blog Archives

1. GRABIT ($19.95) is a two-sided drill bit that removes damaged screws and bolts. The offer includes four bits in different sizes. Comments: Great item, tough sale on DRTV. For one, damaged screw removers are available at retail for lower prices. It's also hard to make four drill bits look like the kind of value necessary to get people off the couch. And then there's the problem this solves: It's painful when it happens, but how often does it happen for the everyday Joe?
 
2. HEALTHY TAP ($4.95) is a small filter bag that improves the taste and quality of a gallon of tap water. According to the makers, "the ingredients in the filter bag immediately drive off the chlorine, improve the taste, and add trace minerals to the water." The offer includes two packages of 30 filters (60 filters total). The bonuses are a slim-line water jug for the refrigerator, a book on healthy water and a one-year newsletter subscription. Comments: Prediction? Bomb. The commercial is terrible. The product has a major credibility problem. And no one cares enough about water to want a monthly newsletter on the topic!

Weekly Round-Up

From the Pre-Blog Archives

1. ROLL-A-QUE ($29.95) is an aluminum cylinder for cooking hamburgers on the grill "rotisserie" style. You stack the burgers in the cylinder and separate them with aluminum spacers. Then you roll them on the barbecue until done. Comments: Prediction? Bomb. Where to begin? One, it's a seasonal item. Two, it's too expensive. Three, it doesn't solve a real problem. Four, it's only practical for one type of food (hamburgers) -- even though they try to claim a few more uses. And then there's the credibility problem. The commercial never shows an "after" scene of the food coming out of the device. Something tells me it wasn't pretty.
 
2. ONE TOUCH JAR OPENER ($19.95) is an automatic jar opener that looks and works like the One Touch Can Opener. It's compact and battery powered. You place it on a jar of any size, and it clamps down on the lid and then twists it off. Comments: We have a winner at last! This product gets high marks in every category. The only weakness I can see, which was shared by the item's predecessor (and didn't seem to matter), is credibility. People may find it hard to believe something small and battery-powered can open tough jars.
 
3. ODOR XIT MAGIC ($9.95) is an odor-eliminating spray that works on the toughest odors imaginable. The offer is a delayed billing: The customer pays the S&H and tries it for 30 days, then pays the $9.95. Comments: Putting aside the horrible name (sounds like a treatment for malodorous acne), it might just work. This is a crowded category, to be sure. But the positioning is interesting, and the demos in the spot are well done. Actually, the demos also double as testimonials.
   
   Here's how it works: A blind-folded person is asked to identify a bad smell, such as a dirty litter box. The camera captures their repulsion. Then the person is asked to identify a new smell. They sniff cautiously but can't smell anything but a fresh scent. When they take the blindfold off, they're shocked to discover it's the same litter box! The product has been used to kill the odor ... And that isn't even my favorite part. That comes later. Supers flash on screen: "Urine." "Feces." "Vomit." Then they cut to a scene of a messy kid's room. Huh? Who are these parents raising? The girl from The Exorcist?
 
4. AB ROCKET ($14.95 Trial) is a spring-assisted ab rocker that provides resistance on the way down and assistance on the way up. The back also has massaging rollers. Comments: Every year, there's another ab product success story. This year, it's Hip Hop Abs. Can this item also break through? Unlikely if it's only a short form. Other than that, it fits the profile of its predecessors, so it should appeal to those crazy folks who keep buying ab products. (One funny gaffe: The guy in one of the before-and-after photos not only loses his flabby belly, he grows a few inches taller!)

Weekly Round-Up

From the Pre-Blog Archives

1. REDI LITE ($19.95) is a stick-up LED light that's motion sensitive. The bonus is an item similar to IdeaVillage's Purse Brite light. Comments: Great item, bad timing. The "stick-up lighting market" is too saturated right now for this item to have a fair shot.
 
2. QUICK CONNECT ($29.95) is a clip-on Web cam. The pitch is that it's easy to install and use. Comments: Great value, but a tough sell to the DRTV buyer, who is older and less tech savvy. The price is also high for DRTV, further decreasing the odds.

Weekly Round-Up

1. TRAX SCOOTER (4 pay, $74.95) is a personal transport vehicle that positions itself as a competitor to the Segway. It has a four-wheel upright design and goes up to 15 mph. Comments: Prediction? Bomb. The Segway, a much cooler vehicle with tons of positive PR, failed. Why would this succeed? The only argument is the price. But $300 might as well be $5,000 to the DRTV buyer -- especially when the item doesn't solve a problem.
 
2. HUGGABLE HANGERS ($19.99) are velvet clothes hangers that increase closet space and prevent "shoulder bumps." Joy Mangano, the inventor and original HSN pitchwoman, is the spokesperson. Comments: This is a proven winner on HSN. But will it translate into a short-form DRTV winner? I don't know the answer, but this is an excellent case study. If anyone can succeed, Joy can. If she doesn't succeed, this should lay to rest, once and for all, the simplistic idea that anything that shows great numbers on home shopping is a guaranteed DRTV winner. Incidentally, the item gets high marks from me. The only potential weakness I see is the uniqueness of the product. It's somewhat different (thin velvet as opposed to thick wood or plastic), but nothing earth-shattering. Plus, hangers aren't very exciting to begin with.
 
3. DR. FOOT ($14.95) is a foot-repair kit consisting of a cream, a spray and a pedicure lotion. The bonus is an electric callus remover. Comments: Unlikely to succeed. Ontel's Miracle Foot Repair, the hit that this product is trying to copy, was a retail hit not a DRTV hit. And this product isn't nearly as good. Plus, it's probably too early to bring the idea back. Also, the offer is confusing. There are three different products with overlapping benefits. Confusion hurts sales.
 
4. FRESHINI ($19.95) is a food-storage container that claims to keep things fresh up to four-times longer than a regular container. The container also has a locking lid. Comments: Prediction? Bomb. Several variations of this idea have been tried. All have failed. I think the problem is that: a) containers have a low perceived value, b) the problem isn't painful enough, c) the solution isn't credible enough, and d) containers are boring!
 
5. SABRR MARK & CUT ($19.95) is a measuring tape, utility knife, straight edge, compass and marker all in one. The offer includes free pencils and extra razor blades. The bonus is a metal extension for the end of the measuring tape. This is an Incredible Discoveries product. Comments: (High pitched whistling sound, growing in intensity) -- Bomb! Some many reasons, so little time! Aside from the fact that the product is awful, the spot is confusing, the offer is weak and the URL is terrible ... I like it.
 
6. BATTLE MAX ($99.99) is a safer paintball product for kids. It includes a gun that shoots soft balls instead of hard pellets, a magazine and a protective facemask. The bonus is a water-soluble paint kids can soak the soft balls in to create a paintball effect. This is an Incredible Discoveries product. Comments: Great idea, wrong channel. It's a niche item that's way too expensive for DRTV. But it could do well in other channels since younger kids always want to mimic what the older kids are doing.
 
7. ONE TOUCH MARINATOR ($19.95) is a manual device that uses vacuum pressure to marinate meat instantly. The vacuum pressure expands the meat and sucks in the marinade. The bonus is a large tap chopper. Comments: Could work. There is only one weakness, and it could be a killer: The product is very difficult to explain. They try, but they don't really succeed. But if people get it, they will buy it. On a side note, I saw an electronic version of this item several years ago at the Chicago Housewares Show and loved it. The "expanding meat" demo was magic. Unfortunately, that demo wasn't captured well in this spot.