Here’s a perfect example of the power of the written word in advertising: Jane Hambleton’s splashy classified ad to sell her son’s car worked so well that now everyone knows she caught him with liquor in his car and sold it as punishment.

The ad said,

“Totally uncool parents who obviously don’t love teenage son, selling his car. Only driven for 3 weeks before snoopy mom who needs to get a life found booze under front seat. $3,700/offer. Call meanest mom on the planet.”

Hambleton told Good Morning America that she knew the ad would have to be different to stand out from the slew of other car classifieds. She told the Des Moines Register that she didn’t want people to think she was selling it because anything was wrong. We all know she really did it to show her son that she’s not to be messed with.

“The ad cost a fortune, but you know what? I’m telling people what happened here. I’m not just going to put the car for resale when there’s nothing wrong with it, except the driver made a dumb decision,” Hambleton said.

Steven Hambleton, a freshman business major at Briar Cliff University in Sioux City, obviously was not one of the callers. And he didn’t feel much like talking when contacted Tuesday.

“I don’t think you can print” his response to the ad, his mother said. “He’s very, very unhappy.”

Oh well, he got to appear on Good Morning America. That’s like YouTube for boomers.

“‘Meanest mom on the planet’ sells son’s car — after finding booze in it” [Des Moines Register]

RELATED
“‘Mean Mom’ Gives Son Public Lesson on Drinking” [ABC] (includes video interview)
“‘Mean Mom’ Sells Son’s Car After Misdeed” [Associated Press]
(Photo: Good Morning America)

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