Mike and Music

Just wanted to provide a short update on my Jack in the Box focus group session last night.  Of course, I’m bound by rules of confidentiality, so no details about what we looked at, but I can speak generally and share my impressions.

The group was devoted to “design elements,” meaning we didn’t do any food tasting.  Sadly, while they did provide dinner, the dinner was Round Table pizza.  Yuck!  They also had Costo cookies, though, and that’s not a bad thing!

Six people and I sat around a table in an incredibly well-lit room.  It was almost like being on the sun, that’s how bright it was.  One wall was entirely mirrored– that was the wall the observers sat behind, watching and listening to our thoughts.  The session was also videotaped and audio recorded.  I felt a little bit like a lab rat…

It was interesting to see the type of people who participate in focus groups.  One girl was a relatively young (30-ish) wedding planner.  Another- the person I found most annoying- was a woman who I later saw leaving the session in a big truck.  She just rubbed me the wrong way, and her suggestions didn’t help.  I think I disagreed with everything she said, and she disagreed with everything I said.  There was a 30-something guy who said if he hadn’t attended the focus group, he would have been playing with his computer (he also passed time in the waiting room by reading “PC Gamer” magazine).  Another guy was also a computer geek, and he said Jack (the round-headed guy in the commercials who is the “owner” of the company) reminds him of a cross between Bill Gate and Donald Trump.  Uh-huh, sure…

At first, people were a little hesitant to share their opinions.  That’s not really my style, though, and soon enough, I was offering my thoughts freely (”I don’t like it,” “It tries too hard,” “Very nice- clean and refreshing” and so on).  I wasn’t obnoxious about it, but I’m definitely opinionated!  When I totally disagreed with one of my fellow focus group members, I said so, but tried to be respectful and descriptive in terms of explaining my differing opinion.

After an hour and a half, we were released.  Filing out, we stopped at a table in the lobby of Jack headquarters and were each given a sealed envelope.  Opening the envelope, I was happy to find a crisp $50 bill.  Part of me wants to save the money- maybe put it in a frame with a picture of Jack- and part of me thinks that’s dumb and that I should desposit it.  Or, even better, spend it on something fun!

All-in-all, my time as a guinea pig for Jack in the Box was incredibly enjoyable and fruitful.  Some of the people in my group had been Jack testers before, so I think they re-use people.  Hope they call me again!

I made my yearly order from burpee today!

53835A Pumpkin Prizewinner Hyb 1 $2.25 $2.25
(These are those “county fair” kind of punkins!)
52746A Sweet Pepper Carnival H 1 $3.20 $3.20
(Four different colors of peppers, one low price)
61382A Rosemary - 1 Pkt. (100 1 $2.45 $2.45
61556A Oregano, Greek - 1 Pkt. 1 $2.45 $2.45
66567C Sweet Summer Delights C 1 $11.75 $11.75
(That’s corn, canteloupe, watermelon, and cucumber — one packet of each, not all mixed into one big packet!)
52936A Tomato Fourth of July H 1 $3.20 $3.20
(Hear that? We’ll be licking ‘mater juice off our fingers by Independance Day!)
52027A Tomato Super Sweet 100 1 $2.25 $2.25
99007C Free Seeds with $25 ord 1 FREE! FREE!
(Some kind of dorky flowers and foo-foo lettuce)
36025A Sunflower Kong Hybrid - 1 $3.20 $3.20
(Fourteen foot tall sunflowers… for the novelty value.)

I’m thinking of planting one of the giant pumpkins in the front yard, for the “gee whiz” value. Also, if enough of the Sweet 100 seeds germinate, perhaps I’ll put one of those in the strip between the sidewalk and the street. Not only will it be a tasty treat for the hoodlums who walk by the house, but it’ll keep the dog walkers from crapping there.

It’s my biggest order ever… I don’t even know if I’ll have room for all that stuff!

My dreams have finally come true. No, Mike didn’t ask me any sort of Important Question (ha ha)… Even better! Today I got a call from a woman at Jack in the Box asking me if I wanted to be part of a focus group!!!

Several months ago, Mike sent me a link you could use to put your name on a list to be a JITB focus group member. Of course I instantly signed up. They called me when I was in Washington, D.C., in November, and never called back, so I thought I’d missed my chance.

You have to understand that I LOVE JACK IN THE BOX. I love their food, I love their commercials, I love the people who work at the JITB on Harbor Blvd. in Garden Grove, CA…

This evening, a woman called and asked for me. Normally I don’t take those kinds of calls because they’re just trying to sell something. This time, however, Jahare was here and answered the phone and passed it to me before I could make fervent “I’m not here!” gestures. Once I took the extension, the woman identified herself as a JITB caller, and we just went from there. After answering three simple questions:
1) Have I seen any JITB commercials in the last 6 months? (YES! “Ciabatta- c-i-a-b-a-t-t-a, ciabatta. peace out!”)

2) On a scale, do I think they’re very funny, somewhat funny, or not funny (FUNNY!)

3) What’s my favorite car and why (um… that one was hard. I went with the stylish and hip “Toyota Corolla. Because that’s what I drive!”)

Anyway, after answering two simple and one random questions, I was given a time and a date to appear at the Jack in the Box headquarters. It’s like the mothership calling me home!

I’ll write after Tuesday, March 14, at 8 p.m. to provide more details. Unless, that is, the proceedings are confidential, in which case I’ll have to focus on the FREE DINNER and $50 payment I’ll receive!

PEACE OUT!