They're Not Even Grey, They're White!

It happened yesterday. Not even 25 years old, and I looked in the mirror, and there it was. Sticking out on top, plain to see. Bright, vibrant, obvious. 

“It’s not mine,” I thought to myself. “It can’t be. It’s properly white. It must just be a bit of cotton.”

I bent my head closer to the mirror to get a better look at my hair, and brush off the cotton that was sitting there. Only, it didn’t brush off. 

It wasn’t a piece of cotton or some fluff. It was my first proper grey hair. And it wasn’t even grey - it was white. 

Pure white. 

And then I spotted another one, this one coming from the side of my hair, near my sideburns. I grabbed some tweezers and pulled them both out straight away. Could I pretend like it hadn’t happened? 24, nearly 25 years old, and already with white hair. Is life as I know it over? 

Thankfully, I have a girlfriend who’s a couple of years older than me, so I don’t need to worry about getting old. I just tease her instead. Unfortunately for me, she doesn’t look her age, and apparently, I soon might. 

Also unfortunately for me, my Dad started going grey when he was 19, so I guess I should count myself lucky that I got a few more years before looking in the mirror and seeing a shock. I always knew it was going to happen, but that doesn’t mean I was prepared for it! 

Full on, proper white hair. 

And it wasn’t just a tiny piece. It was huge. Easily the length of my finger. 

So, it looks like I might just have to accept it. I’m officially in my mid twenties, and on my way to being grey, or white even. It certainly makes you reassess your life, no doubt about that. 

One thing I can say though, is that I don’t have a receding hair line. Thankfully I did inherit some good genes from both my parents which means I’m showing no signs of going bald or getting a bigger forehead. Not anytime soon anyway. So I’m grateful for that. 

In the meantime, I’m going to either start researching dark brown hair dyes, or else have a think about whether I can pull off the silver surfer look…

One Secret Location, One New Drink, One Big Party.

It starts at 9pm. June 27th. Where? We don’t know yet. Somewhere in Manchester. That’s a secret, and we won’t find out until that very afternoon, if you’re on the guest list. If you’re not, well you need to be curious and inquisitive, and see what you can find out. 

You’ll know the place when you see it. A giant neon skull will be lighting the entrance. Are you inquisitive enough to want to know what’s inside?

There will be skulls, there will be rum flavoured beer, and there will be some amazing music. If you’re lucky enough to find the location, you’ll be given a mask upon entry and will unleash the spirit within yourself, entering a party full of unique experiences to try, sensational street food to sample and most definitely an interactive night out to remember. 

Or so I’ve been told. It certainly sounds interesting, and it’s gotten my attention and curiosity.

As a prominent copywriter in Manchester, I’ve been asked to spread the word about the brand new Cubanisto beer that’s just launched in the UK, and to write about the exciting launch party taking place in Manchester on Friday 27th June. 

If you’re looking for a unique night out, full of mystery and surprise, then this is for you. 

Of course, there will be world class DJs and delicious new rum flavoured beer on offer, but the Cubanisto lifestyle is about so much than just a good night out. It’s about experiencing something different, embracing the vibrant Cuban lifestyle, and going on a journey to unleash something inside of you. 

And of course, have an incredible time. 

Intrigued yet? 

It’s called the House of Mask. And you can register here. That’s all I can tell you. But that’s all you need to know. Because you need to curious and open-minded, and ready for some surprises. The rest is unknown. And that’s where the fun is. 

You’ll be hearing a lot more from Cubanisto soon. 

The Role of a Copywriter - Does It Ever Change?

The writer, whether it’s copy writing or creative writing, has been a role in society for countless generations now. Before Shakespeare was crafting his masterpieces, before the monks were writing bibles, and even before scribes were scripting the Magna Carta, there have been writers in the world.  

And in thousands of years, has the role really changed that much? Other jobs change over time, many are created new, whilst others disappear completely. But the role of the writer has largely been unchanged for centuries. 

Of course, the tools and instruments are most certainly different. The raw material has changed from writing on the stone walls of caves, to papyrus paper, to typewriters and now mobile phones and tablet PCs. Mediums have come and gone too, and you no longer get your hand covered in ink when writing something, but the role has pretty much not changed. 

For a copywriter that means writing the words other people won’t. Telling the stories other people can't. And creating copy that people want to read.

It’s about filling a need, and serving the requirements of your audience. Be that the Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt, British royalty or your neighbours who want to find a good plumber.

The way we devour words has changed, and you'll no doubt find people arguing that the public don't have as much time for reading copy anymore, or don't pay attention to words. But they're wrong. We’d be lost without words. Because they are everywhere we look, and subconsciously, we devour them consistently throughout the day - on products, in newspapers, on the sides of buses, and now, most often, on our phones. 

By the same token, thanks to these new tools and mediums, more and more people are writing themselves. The explosion of blogging is testament to that, but think also of the number of emails your write each day and the time you spend texting people. 

Almost everything is still writing based. And just because more people are able to do it, doesn’t mean the need for copywriters is any less. 

That’s because, whilst technology has revolutionised the ease of writing, it’s also amplified the mistakes made too. Bad writing gets much worse, when you can just bash out anything you want, trust a spell checker to do the important stuff, and then fire it across the world wide web to millions of people. 

Emails are a prime example of this. They are meant to be so quick and impromptu, communicating things simply and effectively, and yet, they are now so important for companies. They are are a place of business. A tool to win and lose clients. An electronic letter which could earn you thousands, or lose you millions. So much damage, both financial and personal has been done because of mis-written emails. 

So when you think the role of the copywriter is dead, or that it’s not important to have a copywriter, think again. We know the importance of words, and the power they have. And just think, we’ve been doing this, in one capacity of another, for centuries. We’re likely to be around for many more too. 

Writing Testimonials & Reviews To Promote Your Business

One great way to build trust amongst perspective clients and new customers is to have a testimonials page on your website, or some snippets of reviews from your current customers in promotional material. 

It shows people who don’t know much about your business exactly what you can do, how you do it, and why you’re good at it, three key things to help them make the right decision and choose you. We’re all creatures of habit, and we prefer an easy life. So whether it’s buying a new suitcase for holidays, a TV for the house, or a plumber to fix the bathroom, we want to know we’ll pick the right person, first time, without any hassle.  

It’s been proven that whatever the product, almost all of us will have a look around first before we commit to buy, checking out our options and comparing different possibilities. And we want to read reviews and see feedback from previous customers, so we know exactly what it is we’re getting in to. And testimonials, well, they make researching a lot easier, because we can identify with previous customers, trust in them, and so trust in the business.  

But getting testimonials and reviews can be really hard. A lot of people don’t have the time to write a testimonial, and many people feel like they couldn’t even find the words to write one if they wanted to. And if it’s going to be used online or in promotional material, it needs to be grammatically correct too.  

I’m a copywriter, and when I asked my clients around Manchester to say a few words about me for my website, many of them, whilst happy to give some amazing feedback, said they couldn’t write it themselves, and they’d rather I did it. After all, that’s why they pay me! So, I just had to have a quick chat, and write what they said down myself.  

It’s hard writing about yourself. I don’t know if you’ve ever tried it, perhaps on a CV or resume, but writing about yourself is one of the hardest things you can do. Most of us are modest at heart, but in these situations, you have to sing your own praises, and really big yourself up.  

That’s why you should think about getting a copywriter to write your testimonials for you. Many of my clients have been in the same position. They have lots of customers willing to give a testimonial, but none of them want to write anything, and my client isn’t good with words. So, they just get the copywriter in to do it instead. It’s a great way to get those important reviews and testimonials which help to promote and sell your business, and you don’t have to be all arrogant and boastful in the process. You just leave that to me.  

And remember, besides promoting your business to other customers, reviews are becoming increasingly important in the way in which Google ranks websites, so if you’re looking to reach or maintain that number one spot on Google, you should really be thinking about reaching out to your current or previous customers for feedback. 

Travel Cups Not Suitable For Travel

So on a recent long trip back home down the M1, we had to make the obligatory services stop. They joys of service stations would make another great blog post, but this is not the place for observations on some of the eclectic visitors there. 

No, this blog is about how it was late evening and it’d been a long day, so coffee was required. 

Now these particular services had a Costa Coffee franchise, but I’ve been to others with Starbucks, and for the purposes of this blog, the two are interchangeable. We don’t need to be pedantic and differentiate here. 

Of course, first up, you have to take a big gulp and swallow the prices. Luxury convenience coffee prices are extortionate at the best of times, but at a service station, they’re almost indigestible. £3 for a standard cup of coffee is just incredible, but, we live in a free market economy and people are willing to pay that price. At the service station, there’s less competition, and demand is greater, which therefore, hurts my pocket even more than usual. 

But when you need some caffeine for the journey, it’s the price you have to pay. 

I bought it of course, and then I would’ve liked to start drinking it then and there, but there was a slight problem. Too damn hot. Obviously, coffee should be hot and not luke warm, and you can’t argue with the fact that you’re warned numerous times by the cup you’re sipping from, that this beverage you’re about to drink is hot. But there’s hot, and there’s hot. This coffee was scorching. I added some milk to try and cool it down, but no such luck. 

So it was that I had to carry a full cup of coffee back to the car with me.  

I’d like to rant here about how the cups never fit in the cup holder in my car, but I think this is more of a design flaw with Pedro the Punto. Underneath the radio means that you can’t really have anything taller than a can in there, and even then, it’s a snug fit. So coffee cups don’t fit there.  

That means either burdening the passenger next to you with holding a cup, and serving it to you when you require, or balancing it between your legs. Kirsty doesn't take well to being my slave, and she’s often asleep anyway! Therefore, it’s option number 2.

There’s only one problem with option 2, and it’s a pretty big one. The dreaded groin burn!

I’d tried to drink as much as I could of the coffee in order to reduce the spillage possibility, but as I said, the coffee was damn hot, and I didn’t really fancy burning the taste buds off my tongue. 

So as we set off back down the M1, I was in a pretty precarious situation.  

I’d got a good grip on the cup, so it definitely wasn’t going anywhere. But here’s where the problem is, and where this post is heading to: The lids on travel cups are absolutely useless. Seriously, I always thought those plastic cups must have been designed with a mind to the traveller who wants it for a take out. You know, to prevent spillage.  

But they don’t work.  

OK, so maybe they’re better than just an open cup, with the coffee sloshing around everywhere, but I think with all the money in Starbucks and Costa, they’d be able to direct their research teams to come up with a better solution. Because as it stands, their lids don’t form any kind of cover on your coffee. There’s still an open hole for it to come streaming through. So not only are you faced with a small hole to drink from when you want some (and a hole which you can’t blow through to cool your coffee down), but when you don’t want to drink, there’s no way of closing anything.  

And with that hole at the top, if you do go over a small bump in the road, your coffee goes up a bit, all the liquid jumps up to hit the roof of the lid, and everything is funnelled up to the drinking hole. And out it spurts up into the air, and over anything nearby. Notably, my hand, shirt, and groin.  

It happened when my cup was in the holder, in my lap, and in my hand. It’s happened when I’ve been walking with a cup in my hand, and I’ve taken too vigorous a step. And it’s happened when I’ve set a cup down on the table a little too enthusiastically.  

Basically, it’s a lid that’s not suitable for travel. And since it’s an expensive coffee which is nevertheless very nice, I’d prefer to enjoy every last bit of it. My clothes don’t appreciate it as much as my mouth does. 

Come on Starbucks and Costa. Sort it out!