Christmas is coming: Why brands should stop nagging
At this time of year I feel like I’m being grabbed by the elbow and propelled towards the Christmas I am not yet ready for. Sainsbury’s ‘know Christmas is more than just one day. It’s about a whole season of days’. Apparently it’s not enough to panic buy for one day, and we must cater for the entire duration of the festive season. And to fail to act now means to risk being left behind. So it comes as a welcome change when a keen salesman suggests I take my time, and promises he won’t keep on...
Why ‘it’s been an amazing journey’ should be banned
This week saw the world premiere of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, a film telling a story where characters go on ‘a journey’. At the start Bilbo Baggins is just like us, living his ordinary life, but by the end he will have become a hero. As he moves through his journey he is transformed by the challenges he must face. For Bilbo these threats are much more serious than whether his pastry will have a soggy bottom. But that doesn’t mean every competitor in Professional Masterchef isn’t ‘on a...
Why isn’t fact checking easy?
Get your facts right, they said. All the companies featured in the publication I was working on were multinationals and household names. And their top people had been interviewed for the accompanying worldwide TV series, so it wasn’t like I was being asked for investigative journalism. A quick cross checking, was all that was required for a ‘fast facts’ sidebar, to break up the page and draw the reader into reading the longer piece. Double checking or double crossed? What should have been a...
For fax sake: on inappropriate communication
It was when the HMRC call centre worker said ‘we can fax them through’ that I was briefly pulled up short. Until then I’d been OK. I had my 10 digit personal reference number and password, I even had a print copy of old statements. Fax? I looked wildly round the room. There’s a printer that doubles as a scanner and photocopier. I even have a combined cooker and dishwasher (really). But no fax machine. Back in the day I worked for a publisher whose magazine empire may have been entirely...
Turn words into wants: Making sense of comfort buying
No matter how bad things get, How to Worry Less About Money offers comfort, a book to sit and stroke as the bailiffs step over your prone body and carry the furniture onto the street. The series by PanMacmillan has the most strokeable covers you’ll meet. I was seduced in Waterstones. Rationality flew out of the window, as I ran my fingers up and down its spine. I had no need of the book, but I wanted it, with a primitive urge, a base desire to make it mine as quickly as possible. I could...
If it’s so simple, why don’t you say so? How to be concise and to the point
Give Me Tap was described by the Sunday Times as a ‘bottle that can be refilled with tap water free of charge at participating restaurants’ erm...like any other bottle or those old fashioned things we used to call a glass? Turns out it was a more innovative and enterprising product as the BBC explained: “Give Me Tap is a business that enables people to fill a special aluminium bottle with water at eateries across Manchester. The 25-year-old founder will then put 70% of his profits into...
Desperately seeking a shagged out shih tzu
Until recently anyone intending to adopt a dog only had one choice – to go down to the local rescue centre. The choice was limited to what was available in the immediate community. Today, there are local, national and international organisations offering to match dogs to owners. Demand for shagged out Shih tzus may be met by a supply of ex-breeding dogs in Ireland. How do we know? Because we grew up with the internet. We use technology in our daily lives to book travel or bank online, we bring...
Have you met a Sue? Every writer, editor and proofreader has
“You must meet Sue,” the friend says “she’s taking early retirement and is going to be a proofreader. Perhaps she could lend you a hand.” “Is she trained? How much experience does she have? ” I ask, keen to have a go-to-person for times like this when I’m too busy to stay for longer than a coffee. “Oh lots, she’s published books and everything.” Every proofreader, editor and writer knows a Sue. In this day of redundancy and early retirement there is always a Sue. On this occasion Sue has been...
Ticking Twitter Off Your To Do List with Automated Tweets
Have you got your homework? Are you going to spend Sunday evening scheduling a week’s worth of Tweets before retiring to bed confident that no matter what else happens at least you have maintained your social media presence? Automating tweets leave you free to get on with work without pesky interruption. This is fine if you are adding value but more often automated tweets are easily identifiable as such, distinguished by such features as a link to an article or your blog post. I’ll probably...
Let’s tessalate: See mum, this word DOES exist! All right?
Finding the right words can be difficult. Make it easier by keeping the right company. Surround yourself by people who love words. Look out for: People who don’t waste words. These people don’t talk about ‘the incredible journey’ and ‘great place they’re at right now’ because they aren’t filling hours of reality TV. They talk honestly and openly when they have something to say and the rest of the time they shut up. It’s worth waiting for their considered contribution; you may learn a thing or...