Hey, if the Bronx Zoo’s escaped cobra can Tweet, then why not a figment of some Intuit software writer’s imagination whose sole purpose in (fake) life is to post rave online reviews of contractors that worked on the 50 homes he owns.
In yesterday’s NY Times, the Haggler column introduced Lucas Fayne, a character who, amazingly, owns homes in 50 different communities around the country, and who, even more amazingly, has had nothing but phenomenally good experiences with roofers, remodelers, and other contractors that have worked on one of his homes.
It turns out that all of the small businesses Fayne is a fan of have websites created with Intuit software, the Times explains:
A spokeswoman, Elisabeth Gettelman, said Lucas Fayne was indeed an invention of a software writer, one who worked at Homestead Technologies, which Intuit acquired in 2007. “Lucas Fayne” is part of a Web site template for small-business owners, one that has been bought by thousands of companies over the years. Obviously, companies are supposed to swap out the fake name and fake blurb with a real customer and a real blurb.
Inevitably, LucasFayne took to Twitter, where he seemed puzzled by the idea he was a fictional customer—and where he, of course, has nothing but glowingly positive things to say about the NY Times story and just about everything else.
