Do you like your name?
Do you like your name?
I like mine. It’s unusual though, which is why, as a child, I’d be ecstatic if I found a mug / room sign / brooch (collecting brooches was big in the 80s ok?) with my name on it (and not preceded by ‘Gotta have’.)
It felt extremely personal. A rare find. To use modern parlance: I felt seen.
Fast forward to 2022 and personalisation is everywhere.
Seeing our name in an email subject line no longer feels revolutionary. Today it’s a natural part of the online experience.
Any Tom, Dick or Harry with a decent email platform can make that happen.
But not everyone can provide a truly personal product or service.
This is very much still seen a thing of real value.
It’s a reason people pay more for things when there’s a cheaper alternative.
Take pet food.
This week, Rupert, my dachshund, won a month’s supply of dog food. But not just any old dog food. These lumps and bumps have been freshly blended to order and tailored to his weight, temperament, and star sign.
The last one’s an exaggeration.
But it’s truly bespoke. The packet even had his name on it. And was still warm when we got it.
I don’t know how much the raw ingredients cost, but by mentioning the words 'bespoke', 'tailored' and 'diet plan', they can charge a lot more than sad-old Pedigree Chum.
Personalisation enables firms to communicate what they deliver in a way that makes sense to people. And makes sense of the cost.
So talk up your personalised service, make a meal of it, because people know what the alternative is like: being treated as a number, or fed some off-the-shelf product that's not been created especially for them. Why put up with that?
Article of the week
40 years ago, Ann Barr and Peter York wrote The Official Sloane Ranger Handbook, a guide to the characteristics of a particular subset of the British upper-middle classes. What’s changed? This article discusses the modern version.
Silver surfers
Oldies aren’t scared of tech: research by Intelliflo shows that clients aged between 50 and 60 use their portal the most – and they’re almost twice as active as clients in their 30s.
Breathe easy
This domestic air purifier uses plants and biodegradable filters to remove pollutants from the air in your home. It has the equivalent air purifying power of 3,000 house plants.
Favourite Twitter account
How do you take a photo of your mirror without getting yourself in the view? @SellingAMirror is full of funny images of people trying to sell their mirrors online.
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