The Big Issue Pisses Me Off
I see ads on the sides of trams, with a picture of a wizened ex-bikie ex-crim with a Gandalf beard. He’s saying “You buy it for $5. I get half.” Why does this piss me off so much? The circular logic of it baffles me. I’ve never heard of anyone discuss what’s actually in the Big Issue, only that, by buying it, you are supporting the homeless.
Well, great. So basically the value proposition of your product is that I can give to a bum. Thanks. That’s wonderful. I don’t know if you noticed though, but giving to a bum is normally free – you don’t have to pay an additional premium of $2.50 for the privilege.
“But Kurt,” you say. “You’re giving to a bum that’s actually doing something for himself.” Is he really doing something for himself? He’s selling a product, which the only purpose of buying is that you’re supporting him. So really, there’s no value proposition at all. I really have to applaud the people who came up with it though. Middlemen can put a brand on anything and make money from it. They put a brand on bums, and get a cut when you give to them.
