The 99 Days Club

[hoyahoyasaxa]

I would be remiss if I didn't mention one of the biggest money wasters (and simultaneously one of the best marketing scams) that I ever came across.  I went to Georgetown and our home bar just a block from campus is Tombs.  Each March, the Tombs puts on a contest called the "99 Days Club".  It challenges seniors to make a purchase at Tombs every single day for the last 99 days of their final semester.  Those who do are rewarded by getting their name on the 99 Days Plaque for the Year which sits on the wall in the bar.

I can't even imagine how much money my friends wasted on the 99 Days Club.  I was certainly a frequenter of Tombs, but even if you are going in to just buy the cheapest beer they have each day, you're still throwing away close to $400.  And I know many of my friends instead would have lunch there each day for 99 days which probably amounted to close to $1500.

[Jack]

And I know many of my friends instead would have lunch there each day for 99 days which probably amounted to close to $1500.

$15 for lunch is ridiculous even if you only do it once!

[GuitarStv]

You have to admire the marketing strategy though . . .

[RoseRelish]

Agreed. Brilliant marketing. People love getting their face on public places.

[hownowbrowncow]

Go ahead and face punch me but my name's on that wall!  Most nights I  just did a cheap beer.  I believe a Miller High Life was $1.35/mug back then.  Oh and I had multiple jobs during college so my 99 Days experience was paid for with cash not student loans. 

I spent way too much time (and money!) at the Tombs but I def got $100s in free drinks and shots - even as an alum!  Could I have found a better use for the money spent at Tombs?  Of course!  But at that time,  that money would have gone somewhere else stupid - more booze, takeout etc.    While it was clearly a marketing scheme it was fun.

Years later I still have the memories and live a very comfortable life even having wasted all that money. As cheesy as it sounds some things are worth the money.  Don't regret it for a second.

[Trebek]

Agreed. Brilliant marketing. People love getting their face on public places.

Chuck Feeney was not one of those people. (A good read for those unaware who he is here.)

[scarab007]

I would be remiss if I didn't mention one of the biggest money wasters (and simultaneously one of the best marketing scams) that I ever came across.  I went to Georgetown and our home bar just a block from campus is Tombs.  Each March, the Tombs puts on a contest called the "99 Days Club".  It challenges seniors to make a purchase at Tombs every single day for the last 99 days of their final semester.  Those who do are rewarded by getting their name on the 99 Days Plaque for the Year which sits on the wall in the bar.

I can't even imagine how much money my friends wasted on the 99 Days Club.  I was certainly a frequenter of Tombs, but even if you are going in to just buy the cheapest beer they have each day, you're still throwing away close to $400.  And I know many of my friends instead would have lunch there each day for 99 days which probably amounted to close to $1500.

HAHA...My wife, Georgetown Alumni, was telling me about this.  I could see how for most this would be waste of money, but consider who the demographic is as well.  Georgetown is not city college and a good majority of students have very wealthy upbringing. 

[MrsPete]

A bar near us does something similar:  If you try X number of specialty beers -- and it's some monster-huge number, like maybe 400 -- you get your name on a beer stein up above the bar.  When I hear people talking about it, I start calculating the number of grocery-store six-packs that money could buy.