I am a huge sucker for the As Seen On TV products. I have a house full of them kicking around, but I have to say that I am pretty good at picking the products that work.

My very first clue as to which products will be successful, is who is promoting them. Sham-Wow and Slap Chop's Vince is a great salesman. He has high energy and does a fairly entertaining and believable demonstration during his commercials. However, there are subtle camera tricks that help his products seem much more impressive than they really are. Billy Mays, the loud, in your face, black-bearded man on the other hand, can sell me just about anything. I have had great success with all of the products that I have purchased that were promoted by him. If you had asked me two weeks ago why I have so much faith in Billy Mays, I would have no answer for you, except to say that he seemed to only put his face on producsts that actually worked. He built a rapore with me, without ever meeting me!

Now, after seeing the premier of Discovery Channel's Pitchmen, I understand exactly why I trust his endorsement. He promotes only the products that have a "wow factor"; products that he can physically show that will make people say, "Oooo, aaaaahhh." For him, it is strictly about the demonstration, which makes sense to someone like me. If I can see that it works, then I'm sold. If anything is left to question, then I am skeptical, and if you don't believe what I say about this guy...watch Pitchmen on Discovery Channel.

Like I said, I have a bunch of these products kicking around the house. I've even given several as gifts! I'm going to let you in on which products work and which one's don't!

Sham-Wow - I gave Vince a chance to reel me in with the Sham-Wow. I knew ahead of time that the infomercial looked too good to be true, but as I walked by them in the store, it was too hard to pass up the chance to avoid the shipping and handling costs. I brought them home, and what do you think was the first thing I tried? Obviously it was the bowl full of water test. It worked about as good as I had anticipated. The Sham-Wow did indeed soak up a large portion of the water, but it was not nearly as magical as on TV. No surprise there.

The second big test was when we brought the new puppy home. Inevitably, he let it go all over the carpet, which left me the opportunity to put the Sham-Wow to the carpet test. I was extremely eager to see if it would soak up the liquid all the way through the carpet. It didn't. It didn't even really soak up all of the liquid in the carpet, but it helped, and it did indeed save me the use of paper towels, which is one of the selling points of the infomercial.

Overall, if you are going to buy a Sham-Wow, do so with low expectations. That way, you won't be disappointed! I am happy enough with the purchase because I didn't expect too much. They make great dish towels, and they probably work great for washing a car. (I don't bother washing my car, so I haven't tested it.) As for Vince...his newest product, the Slap Chop, looks great. The infomercial makes that little chopper look like a gift from God, but I would be weary to purchase something that he promotes. Should I ever come across the Slap Chop on a store shelf, I will most definitely give Vince another chance to impress me.

Pasta Express - This product is a dud. The only reason I bought it was because I found it at a yard sale for $2. I decided it was worth the shot. I had seen it advertised, and it looked alright, but again, I was skeptical. The selling point of the Pasta Express is simply that it cooks pasta in only a few minutes. What they neglect to tell you is that you still have to boil water and it takes about the same amount of time to cook the pasta using the product as it does cooking pasta in a pot. The ONLY good thing about this product is that it comes with a built in strainer, so it allows you to eliminate one extra thing to clean.

Hercules Hooks - These little hooks, brought to you by Billy Mays, are a simply useful product. The live up to their name and can hold many pounds of pictures, clothing, mirrors, and shelves. They leave only a small pin hole in the wall, can cause no residual damage! Hercules Hooks are cheap, effective, and one good reason to trust Billy Mays.

Aqua Globes - I bought a set of these for my mother and all of her household plants. They work just fine. They are relatively inexpensive, and they get the job done. The only problem I see with them is that they need to be refilled fairly often. This problem can be solved by ordering the larger sized Aqua Globes. If you have a lot of indoor plants, and have trouble keeping them properly hydrated, this product will work great for you!

Mighty Putty - This stuff is truly amazing. It is a soft doughy material that hardens when its mixed together. You can hang pictures and shelves, fix furniture and ceramic, and you can plug holes in pipes! I have used this stuff for each one of these examples with success each time. Yet another reason to trust Billy Mays.

The Vidalia Chop Wizard - This is by far my favorite and most used product I have ever purchased from an infomercial. It chops vegetables in on easy motion, into tiny pieces of delicious flavor. You will never have to chop vegetables again. It is easy to use, and the best part about it, is that once you're done, you can just stick it in the dishwasher! If I had to pick just one product to promote, it would be the Vidalia Chop Wizard. Hands down.

If i had a need for more products that are advertised, I would certainly purchase them. Some of my recommendations would include the PedEgg, the Awesome Auger, and the Swivel Sweeper. I would also recommend the Topsy Turvy tomato planter if you are not crafty enough to do it yourself. The product would definitely work, however it can just as easily be done with a few cheap products from Wal-Mart. Like I said before, I trust Billy Mays to sell me the products that work, so if you see him yelling at you while you are zoning out on the couch...snap out of it and pay attention! He may be selling you something useful, and I can almost guarantee you that it will be worth the $20.