Planes, Trains and Water Taxis …

It’s fair to say that my most significant lightbulb moments rarely if ever occur when I’m sitting behind my desk.

And so it proved during 36 hours away from the battlefront.

Lightbulb moment No. 1. We were at a memorial service recently which was held in the Long Room at Lord’s Cricket Ground in North London.

The instructions were brief and super-clear, so it was a little irksome that the start was delayed because two people had turned up at the Oval – 44 minutes across town by tube.

Lightbulb moment No. 2. That same day, Newcastle United played Borussia Dortmund in a Champions League game at St. James’ Park. But missing from the club’s home stands was rabid Toon fan, Paul Draper.

Why? Because instead of travelling into Newcastle with the rest of his mates he’d flown to Germany to watch the match that Newcastle United were due to play TWO WEEKS LATER.

Two fixtures, two weeks apart. The first in Newcastle and then the return match in Germany. And he’d got the dates the wrong way around.

Lightbulb moment No. 3. Travelling home after the memorial service we took an Uber water taxi along the Thames.

Apart from the dramatic sights from the river what struck me was the supremely casual attitude to safety.

After each stop, a member of the crew dutifully made the same announcement politely urging passengers to read the safety instructions in case of an emergency.

Over about 10 stops I never saw one single person comply. And our lives depended on it!

The thing is none of us like reading the instructions. Even if our lives depend on them.

Surely a lesson when we’re crafting new copy for a new web page or marketing piece.

Lesson number 1: appeal to the heart.

Lesson number two your heart has already decided before your brain kicks in.

Lesson number three, keep it brief. Lesson number four, make it as simple as you can.

Until next time.

Alec