No More HomeMade Flyers

I didn’t even notice the bright yellow post-it-note on my windshield until I had already climbed behind the wheel and settled into the driver’s seat. Maybe one of my friend’s recognized my car in the Target parking lot and left me a note, or better yet, an invitation to join them next door for happy hour. Upon further investigation though, I found myself victim to a Passive Aggressive Note Attack. “Who taught you to park?”, the note said. A quick glance down revealed my tires slightly crossed the solid white line that neatly divides each space. The euphoric high I was feeling from a shopping spree at my favorite store quickly sobered and my good mood deflated.

Get your act together. Exercise some consideration when you leave your large hunk of metal in a public place.

If you didn’t already know, there is a popular website devoted to  passive aggressive notes. Cruise around the site and you’ll find a great collection of funny stories and a small disclaimer that says notes posted here “share a common sense of frustration that’s been channeled into written form rather than a direct confrontation. It’s barbed criticism disguised as something else — helpful advice, a funny joke, simple forgetfulness.” Now, imagine what would happen if our current residents and potential prospects began to leave us notes about our apartment marketing. What would they say?

MARKETING CITATION

• Now Leasing. “Seriously. Did you ever stop leasing?”
• Materials that are copies of copies of copies. “Cough up a couple quarters and pay for a color print.”
• Pictures of the community sign in advertising. “Is this sign really the best thing you’ve got going for your community?”
• Photos of empty swimming pools. “Is there something floating in the water?”
• Thanks for Popping In tag on a bag of microwave popcorn. “We can see that big, bulk-size box of popcorn every time we shop at Costco.”
• Hop on Over. “Did you mean to send this cartoon drawing of a frog to me or my five-year-old kid?”
• We Love Our Residents. “No you don’t.”
• Multiple signs with flags. “C’mon kids, everybody out of the car. It’s a theme park!“
• Balloons. “What time does the clown arrive?”
• Ignoring rants on ApartmentRatings.com. “If you close your eyes, they will go away.”
• Fliers on pizza boxes. “The 90′s called and they want their idea back.”
• If You Lived Here, You’d be Home by Now. “If I lived here, I would be dodging traffic in the median.”
• Microsoft Publisher. “I’ve seen that flier somewhere … the church bulletin board. No, it was a PTA meeting. And, the corner deli. Wait a minute, I have seen that flier everywhere!“
• Otis Spunkmeyer cookies. “Otis is better than 6-degrees from Kevin Bacon. Everybody knows him.”

After a list like that it’s time to give a shout out to The Apartment Expert – Lisa Trosien for opening a similar conversation on her Facebook Fan Page. Have you received a passive aggressive note about your apartment community? If so, share it with us.