My kids like to give me prank gifts at Christmas time. This is the first of two articles I am writing on prank gifts. This one is about a gift that I got which was not real but I wish it were, the next will be about a gift I got that was real and I wish it were not.

As you can see from the pictures in this article, this first item is called Coffee Talkies. First, a little background. My wife and I travel a lot. Like most couples, she likes to go off shopping while I prefer to do some sightseeing. We also take a lot of cruises which offers significant opportunity to get detached from each other. About a year ago I decided it was time to buy a set of walkie-talkies, since cell phones do not work aboard ships or in many locations to which we were traveling. Now, I am also a big coffee drinker and I always take a thermal mug with me so I could carry enough coffee, keep it hot, and not spill it everywhere. My son got wind of this and he found me a gift that supposedly combined these two devices into one.

Coffee Talkies theoretically combined my coffee mug and the walkie-talkie, providing some interesting features, such as a detachable handle that doubles as an earphone (see graphic at right). I must say that, when I opened it, I was really excited and looking forward to something truly unique. It seemed like a gadget whose time had come. When I opened the box, the tabs said “prank you!” It was just an empty box to be used to package other gifts. Boy did I feel robbed!!! I do hope somebody comes up with cool device like this in the near future. If so, I will be the first to buy one.

This is a great example of packaging. Keep it in mind as you build your business. However, I suggest having something inside the box if you want to stay in business.