Tag: advertising

Author promotes books with sandwich board!

When you self-publish, it can be difficult selling your book. Friends, coworkers and relatives are potential buyers, but reaching new customers in this great big world can be daunting. Author websites are numerous and precious few rise to the top of general search engine results. Most people scrolling through social media have short attention spans, and few are interested in purchasing a book. Conventional marketing requires money, and the result might be less than satisfying. So what is one to do?

Well, I met indie author Daniel X Ostenso (D X O) this weekend while exploring Balboa Park. He was strolling through the crowd wearing an advertising sandwich board!

What a great (albeit unusual) idea! Signed books for sale, a special offer, an outgoing personality, and the sheer novelty of his sandwich board immediately caught my attention.

His gumption in getting out there while appearing a bit strange is commendable. And you never know how gumption might be unexpectedly rewarded.

Check out the science fiction novels and other works authored by Daniel X Ostenso by clicking here.

He has traveled extensively with a beloved dog. Check out his YouTube video Kaylee’s Life in Five Minutes by clicking here.

Daniel donates money to animal shelters with every sale.

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Giant videoboard in Gaslamp activated!

A gigantic videoboard, installed in Gaslamp Square, has been activated! Two huge LED walls are mounted high in the air, attracting the attention of people near the San Diego Convention Center, Petco Park and the Gaslamp Quarter!

When I walked past the videoboard this morning, at least one worker was still up a ladder finishing the installation.

Bright videos that were running included promos for the Padres, MTS, and our beautiful City of San Diego. Mixed in were several advertisements, including one for a popular baseball video game.

Gaslamp Square, located directly next to the Gaslamp trolley station, has become a hub for many downtown activities such as Comic-Con. Now this outdoor space will be even more lively!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X (formerly known as Twitter)!

Getting a pirate ship ready for Comic-Con!

Pirates must be more conscientious than we think, because the Voodoo Ranger pirate ship is being carefully painted the day before it sails for Comic-Con!

This morning I noticed a volunteer at the Maritime Museum of San Diego touching up the beautiful tall ship. It isn’t really a pirate ship. It’s far more amazing. San Salvador is a working replica of a Spanish galleon built and operated by the folks at the Maritime Museum.

The Voodoo Ranger sails are already up, ready to unfurl for all of San Diego and Comic-Con goers to see. Early tomorrow morning the make-believe pirate ship will head down San Diego Bay to its place behind the San Diego Convention Center.

Landlubbers beware! Even not-so-despicable pirates might engage in a little mischief!

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I’m covering Comic-Con again this year. To see all my current and past blog posts concerning Comic-Con, click here and scroll down!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

An explosion of color outside Comic-Con 2023!

Everywhere one turns in San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter there’s an explosion of color. Building wraps and banners are now rapidly appearing for Comic-Con 2023!

This is some of what I saw late Thursday afternoon, with less than a week to go before the start of Comic-Con.

And there will almost certainly be much more to come!

After the big Esri User Conference concludes today at the San Diego Convention Center, huge building wraps will likely appear on the sides of Petco Park, and on the Hilton San Diego Bayfront and the Marriott Marquis hotels!

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I’m covering Comic-Con again this year. To see all my current and past blog posts concerning Comic-Con, click here and scroll down!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Historic Coca-Cola mural found in Encinitas building!

Look what I saw today!

Inside the Queen Eileen’s Gift Baskets shop in Encinitas, one wall features a fantastic bit of history: a Coca-Cola mural likely dating from the 1940’s! The vintage artwork depicts Coke’s sparkly old advertising character Sprite Boy!

The owner of Queen Eileen’s discovered the mural during a remodel a few months ago. In the 1940’s the building served as a hardware store. The brightly smiling Sprite Boy appeared when slats covering the old wall were removed!

If you want to learn more about Sprite Boy, who often accompanied Santa Claus, and who originated decades before Coca-Cola’s lemon-lime soda that shares the same name, here’s a great web page to visit!

I saw this cool mural late this morning during an Encinitas Historical Society walking tour of Encinitas, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Stand by for several more blogs and many more photographs from this epic walking tour!

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Fun art along a stretch of Turquoise Street.

A large face greets those heading east on Turquoise Street in Pacific Beach.
A large face greets those heading east on Turquoise Street in Pacific Beach.

Turquoise Street in Pacific Beach, from Mission Boulevard to Cass Street, is the home of a lot of fun street art.

Check out some photos!

Mural on parking lot wall by Treelogy Cafe Restaurant.
Mural on parking lot wall by Treelogy Cafe Restaurant.

These colorful flowers are at the center of the mural.
These colorful flowers are at the center of the mural.

Old-fashioned advertising artwork on wall of Cafe Bar Europa.
Old-fashioned advertising artwork on wall of Cafe Bar Europa.

The happy exterior of Blossoms Design Florist.
The happy wood shack of Blossoms Design Florist.

Mural in a narrow alley celebrates 90 years of Crystal Pier.
Mural in a narrow alley celebrates 90 years of Crystal Pier.

Bottom of the alley mural, with an octopus tentacle wearing a beach sandal. #octopier by @artanystef.
Bottom of the alley mural, with an octopus tentacle wearing a beach sandal. #octopier by @artanystef

Mural on the side of P.B. Yoga and Healing Arts.
Mural on the side of P.B. Yoga and Healing Arts.

Enjoying a hot beverage with a dog. Mural by artist Gloria Muriel on the side of The French Gourmet.
Enjoying a hot beverage with a dog. Mural by artist Gloria Muriel on the side of The French Gourmet.

A fun blue character painted on another nearby wall by Gloria Muriel.
A fun blue character painted on another nearby wall by Gloria Muriel.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!

Marketing and fun, combined into one.

I’m sure most people know the truth. Comic-Con is mostly about marketing. Movies, television shows, video games, toys, collectibles, even lunch–all swirl before the eyes of excited fans.

And yet–it’s all so much fun!

How does one draw the line between the calculated marketing and the unabashed fun?

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Whiskey Cavalier trolley for 2018 Comic-Con!

A trolley wrap for 2018 Comic-Con promotes ABC's upcoming drama Whiskey Cavalier. Lauren Cohan costars with Scott Foley. Both are CIA operatives.
A trolley wrap for 2018 Comic-Con promotes ABC’s upcoming show Whiskey Cavalier. Lauren Cohan costars with Scott Foley. She’s a CIA operative; he’s with the FBI.

I was completely wrong! In a recent Comic-Con trolley post, I surmised that ABC wouldn’t have a trolley wrap this year. Look what I spied this morning! Whiskey Cavalier, a show that’s coming to the ABC television network, is being promoted in San Diego.

A quick check of the San Diego Comic-Con Unofficial Blog shows there are two additional Bob’s Burgers wraps debuting, as well. There are so many trolley wraps now I can hardly keep track of them!

Now I have to keep my eyes peeled for those new Bob’s Burgers trolleys! And who knows what else?

What fun!

Another cool trolley wrap for 2018 San Diego Comic-Con spotted at the Fifth Avenue station downtown.
Another cool trolley wrap for 2018 San Diego Comic-Con spotted at the Fifth Avenue station downtown.

Whiskey Cavalier is coming soon to ABC television. Two CIA agents deal with relationships and office politics while occasionally saving the world.
Whiskey Cavalier is coming soon to ABC television. An FBI and a CIA agent deal with relationships and office politics while occasionally saving the world.

The face of agent Will Chase played by Scott Foley. Opposite him, Lauren Cohan plays Francesca "Frankie" Trowbridge.
The face of FBI agent Will Chase played by Scott Foley. Opposite him, Lauren Cohan plays CIA operative Francesca “Frankie” Trowbridge.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!

The Simpsons trolley wrap for 2018 Comic-Con!

Marge Simpson has found herself in a sugary mess on a San Diego Trolley wrap that promotes The Simpsons during 2018 Comic-Con!
Marge Simpson has found herself in a sugary mess on a San Diego Trolley wrap that promotes The Simpsons during 2018 Comic-Con!

I can’t believe how quickly trolley wraps are popping up for 2018 San Diego Comic-Con. The past few days I keep seeing new ones! And Comic-Con is still over a month away!

You might have already seen the three Syfy trolley wraps I’ve photographed, promoting six of their shows with fan art. If not, you can see them here.

Today I spotted a humorous wrap that promotes one of the most popular television shows of all time: The Simpsons! FOX seems to have pretty entertaining trolley wraps every year.

Meanwhile, I’ll keep on looking for more new Comic-Con stuff!

The Simpsons, Sundays on FOX. The animated family has been making television audiences laugh for almost 30 years!
The Simpsons, Sundays on FOX. The lovable animated family has been making television audiences laugh for almost 30 years!

Homer Simpson is in sticky doughnut heaven! A colorful FOX trolley wrap for San Diego Comic-Con!
Homer Simpson is in sticky doughnut heaven! A colorful FOX trolley wrap for 2018 San Diego Comic-Con!

UPDATE!

I spotted another Comic-Con trolley wrap featuring Bart and Lisa!

Bart Simpson floats on donuts!
Bart Simpson floats on donuts!

Lisa Simpson swims in sweetness.
Lisa Simpson swims in sweetness.

UPDATE!

I’ve found a third Simpsons wraps!

Santa's Little Helper helps Snowball II cough up not a hairball, but a whole donut!
Santa’s Little Helper helps Snowball II cough up not a hairball, but a whole donut!

Maggie's pacifier is stacked high with doughnuts.
Maggie’s pacifier is stacked high with doughnuts.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!

Amusing photos taken around town.

If I agreed with you, we'd both be wrong.
Funny sign in a shop window: If I agreed with you, we’d both be wrong.

As I walk semi-randomly about town, I’m always looking for amusing or uniquely interesting scenes.

Here are some fun photos…

We have coffee from Peru! But we also really really wanted to paint a llama on the sign.
We have coffee from Peru! But we also really really wanted to paint a llama on the sign.

Budweiser banner in window shows Will Ferrell in a Padres baseball uniform. You stay classy San Diego!
Budweiser banner shows Will Ferrell in a Padres baseball uniform. You stay classy San Diego!

A top hat perched oddly atop a lamppost on the Cabrillo Bridge.
A top hat perched oddly atop a lamppost on the Cabrillo Bridge.

Lots of exotic destinations. Grab and Go Subs seems to be the nearest.
Lots of exotic destinations. Grab and Go Subs seems to be the nearest.

A street art chicken spray paints graffiti on a restaurant door.
A street art chicken spray paints graffiti on a restaurant door.

Riding a fish with wine glass raised high.
Riding a rodeo fish with wine glass raised high.

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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!