Good Sam Creep Out

Sometimes in life you come across things that really creep you out. For many, clowns fit in that category. Heck, even Stephen King wrote a horror film about one. Perhaps just as creepy is the modernized version of the Good Sam mascot. When I first saw it a few years ago, I thought it was a joke. I said out loud to my wife, “Wow, the dude looks weird! If you haven’t really thought about it, take a look at the cover of the August/ September 2012 issue of Highways to the left. I think you’ll agree that the pudgy, middle-aged dude looks odd, like he’s stoned, in a trance, or had too many botox injections. Remember that movie Invasion of the Body Snatchers? Yep, this guy is one of them.

Mascots are supposed to engender trust as the face of the company, but the last person I want helping me out when I have a roadside emergency is some goblin-looking dude who looks like he’s possessed or just got done toking on a massive doobie. With those spaced-out eyes and that Cheshire-cat grin the dude seriously gives me the creeps. Kind of like Batman’s arch nemesis, the Joker, played by Heath Ledger.

There are some great mascots in the corporate world today–the Geico Gecko, the Aflac Duck, the Pillsbury Doughboy, and Mr. Clean come immediately to mind. The Good Sam Corporation would be wise to rethink the effectiveness of their mascot and try something new. I don’t know anybody who really likes it. Not one! Now don’t get me wrong, I love Good Sam and what they stand for, I’m a card carrying member, but the doobie-smoking, botox lovin’ mascot has got to go. The dude seriously creeps me out and I don’t think that’s what Good Sam intended.