Touch it, see it, taste it

Getting hands-on, seeing the light and losing the attitude

Where’s the year going? It’s Copycam time again. Who would have thought it? I’ve been snapping away with my trusty Nokia when cheeky marketing, bright ideas and clever copy tickle my fancy. So what’s tickled?

Touchy feely

When I was in London recently, I dropped in on the new Apple store in Covent Garden. I’ve been there before – or rather, I’ve been to what was there before before. The folks from Cupertino, you see, took over a restaurant and refitted it to create the world’s largest Apple store. Before you start lamenting the loss of another eatery in the maw of a voracious multinational, let me tell you that as a restaurant, it was never that good. I ate there once, and it was a classic West End tourist trap: overpriced, bad food, even worse service. And punishingly hot patio-heaters that made me feel like I was in a sauna. Once was enough. So out with the cheesy pizzas and glutinous pasta, and in with a big helping of Apple.

And what a feast: iPods, iPads, iTouches and Macs appetisingly laid out for punters to taste test. Which I did. And I almost ended up buying a new Nano. And an iPhone 4. And an iPad. And then I remembered my resolution not to snack between meals. But the takeaway wasn’t lost on me. Lesson 1: let people try out your product or service. Nothing, but nothing, you say can conjure up the feeling of really letting them have a go. So let them have a go.

Switch and bait

How do you feel about low-energy light bulbs? Yes, me too. I know I should like them, but I don’t. That deathly greenish glow they emit, combined with the odd shapes they come in, is enough to put me off. In addition, you can’t dispose of them as you would with normal waste. Instead, the advice is to go to the local dump and put them in a special skip. Except my local dump is four miles away, and I’d have to drive. So there’s my low-carbon footprint gone up in smoke. Also, if you break them, the recommendation from the Department of the Environment is to vacate the room for 15 minutes. So dangerous and difficult to dispose of? My politically incorrect attitude is looking more sensible by the minute. And I’m obviously not alone. Now that the EU has banned 100w incandescent bulbs, they’ve become a sought-after item. Which a lighting shop down the road from me has realised.

So an otherwise unprepossessing shop on a busy road with no parking has found a clever hook to attract customers. Who might just buy something else. You pop in for a light bulb – and come away with a light bulb and a rather expensive Art Deco lamp. Clever. Lesson 2: find a difference. Shout it from the rooftops.

Hola boys

Time and time again, I have to tell people to lighten up. In their attitude to the written word, that is. Yes, we’re serious businesspeople – all of us. And no, insurance-premium tax or IT support or web security isn’t a laughing matter. But that doesn’t mean that you have to go all formal on people. After all, which would you respond more to in a meeting – a starchy, unsmiling, sanctimonious suit or an open-collar, first-name smiler? As long as the smile was backed up by bright ideas, solid solutions and good service, it’s a no-brainer. People do business with people, not businesses. And what’s more, with people they like.

Like those cheeky chappies at Nanna Mexico, an eatery in Cambridge that probably doesn’t have an apple in sight. Big ass burritos. Don’t you just want one? A big burrito, I mean, not…well you get my drift. You see this and you think good service, great food, lots of fun. And you haven’t even been inside the door, let alone sampled the fare. So it’s already set itself apart from the Pizza Huts and Bella Italias of this world. Now not everybody is a funky, happening, off-the-wall Mexican joint. So if you’re a City-based wealth-management company, you can’t talk about big ass portfolios, for example. But you can take a leaf out of the Mexican book. Just look at the How’s my driving? question. How many times have you seen that before? Lots, I’ll bet. But usually, it’s followed by a bland, anonymous email address – info@, contact@, reply@. I once even saw one that said noreply@, which was funny and tragic at the same time. But luis@ makes me feel it’ll go to a real person. A real person who cares. And that matters. Lesson 3: lighten up, get personal and connect with customers (however big and important you are). Find out more:

See the light. The EU’s characteristically inaccessible press release on low-energy light bulbs.
Buen apetito. If you’re heading up Cambridge way, why not grab a big ass burrito at Nanna Mexico? Tell Luis I sent you.
Forbidden fruit. Something’s bound to tickle your tastebuds at Apple’s new Covent Garden store.

Kevin Copycam.