According to this Prolific North piece, "See it. Say it. Sorted." is one of the most successful public information campaigns of all time. Really? Apparently so. According to this, “Since the campaign’s launch in 2016, reports to British Transport Police’s 61016 text...
Speak human: Clearer language = better customer experience
What do you tend to do when/if you get rubbish customer service? You switch allegiance as soon as humanly possible, and probably tell your friends. ‘Your message/call is very important to us’ ‘We are experiencing a high volume of calls at the moment’ ‘Please do...
A 5-minute plain English test for your emails
If your email inbox is anything like mine, (or FAR more likely, your spam/junk folder) it potentially contains the odd business email that reads like it was written by a bot. A generic opener along the lines of "I trust this email finds you well", or "I'm reaching out...
Plain English Website Audit – A how-to for clearer communication
I’m currently looking for a very specific service provider locally. I found a most excellent candidate via his most excellent website. It was written in plain English. It directly addressed my needs. I instantly knew he offered the services I needed. Unfortunately,...
Why did it take me so long to discover B Corps?
TL;DR
I thought I was doing my bit for the planet. And then I discovered B Corps—a game-changer for conscious consumers.
Cleaning up our streets?
If we can nudge behaviour on bottle returns, can we apply the same thinking elsewhere?
The greenwashing playbook
(Not a how-to but rather a please don’t) I unapologetically loathe fake grass/fake lawns. It is my personal view that not only do they look unsightly, but they are truly awful for the environment on many levels. Gardens should be mowed (or not), not hoovered. And they...
Accessible digital content – Alt text
Alt text, or alternative text, is a brief description of an image or other visual content that's read aloud by screen readers to help people with visual or cognitive disabilities understand the content. Alt text is an essential part of making digital content...
QR codes – why?
TL;DR I’m not saying don’t use QR (quick response) codes, I’m saying provide alternatives as well. Personally I’d put QR codes in the marketing box of tricks labelled ‘just because you can doesn’t mean you should’. So what are QR codes? They are like a square barcode...
Venn diagrams, the Euros and Jane McDonald
It IS important to know your audience