Making reference to Call Sign in two
consecutive issues is likely to give the impression that I’m Alan Fishers PR
man, but it’s purely coincidental and prompted by comments made at this year’s
AGM (my goodness it’s only two months ago - it seems like ages)! Both
comments relate to reading matter being sent to our members, which made me
wonder how much of it is actually read…
There has been a debate for years over how
many of our members actually read Call Sign. Be it from cover to cover or
selected articles such as the Chairman’s report or perhaps just the
contentious issues in the letters pages and in particular, any inserts relating
to marketing literature to generate new business.
As someone who has contributed a missive or
two over the years and a great admirer of the Editor’s ability to repeatedly
produce what is without question the best publication in the taxi industry, I
would like to think that the vast majority of our members who whilst they might
not be among those who eagerly await the arrival of the postman delivering
their copy, at least make a concerted effort to read the various articles
submitted by Board Members, especially those articles that appertain to
important items of news, policies and changes in procedure etc, because to
ignore them could have serious consequences.
The most common and one that rarely
receives sympathy is when a driver on complaint for a misdemeanour pleads
ignorance on the pretext of not having read the warnings in Call Sign.
The AGM comments in question relate
firstly to a proposal allowing those standing for the Board to distribute to
all members an A4 page, maximum 2000 word written CV. Secondly a suggestion
that before certain policies are implemented by the Board of Management, they
(the Board) should seek the members approval first.
That evening, those comments kept running
through my mind and conjuring up all sorts of questions and scenarios. By the
time I had got to bed, those thoughts had turned to nightmares just thinking
about the mountain of paper going back and forth, the administration and then
the cost involved. I even had visions of sending out 2000 copies of every
tender I receive throughout the year. Tenders, in some cases comprising of
50/60 odd questions and stipulations and getting back 90,000 varying replies!
Crazy maybe, but where do you draw the line
on what should or shouldn’t be decided by the members? And more to the point,
how many are actually interested, hence my first question – how many members
actually read everything that comes through their letterbox from DaC?
For example, at the AGM I spoke to a long
established and very pro-DaC subscriber who if I said he was as Jewish as the
Western Wall and with a baritone voice of such resonance as to not need the
assistance of a microphone when addressing the meeting, most of you would know
who I meant… and if you don’t it’s Sid Nathan (K88)! It was the
fact that I had made reference to Yiddish in my last article that I made a
point of asking him what he thought of it. "I didn’t read it,"
he said, "I read everything else in Call Sign accept yours, because
your articles are too long!"
Now whilst I didn’t expect that remark
from Sid, I wasn’t surprised because it’s a comment I hear quite often.
Which prompts another question: ‘Why?’ I, and I’m sure the Editor, would
be interested to hear your views.
Comparing our present magazine to 20 years
ago, the Sales or PRO report consisted of a quarter page of bold type
repeatedly complaining about the poor coverage in the west. The Treasurer’s
report was of equal size and the Chairman’s report only slightly bigger.
Today all Board members have a bi-monthly column. You are constantly being made
aware of who they are, the job they are doing, their personal views and their
value to you as a Board member.
During my time on the Board, I’ve always
tried where possible to avoid internal politics, but on the subject of Board
elections I question the view that two thousand words are necessary for a
prospective Board member’s CV. In marketing, the golden rule is to say as
much as possible using the minimum of copy, so the same should apply to an
individual. And I say this from experience. When I stood and was elected to the
Board, it was mid term. I was a complete stranger to the circuit, was competing
against six well-known faces from the control room and my CV was less than 150
words…
Japanese Marketing Techniques…!
On a lighter note but still on the subject of literature, we placed a free ad
recently in a Japanese travel magazine and on receiving the proof, I naturally
could not understand a word of what was printed. It reminded me of a marketing
project I did some years ago. I decided to target every Japanese company in
London offering our services and thought it would be novel if all the
literature I presented were written in Japanese. The response, surprisingly,
was quite good. The reason I used Japanese text was because I wanted it to go
to the person at the very top who I assumed would be Japanese and who hopefully
in turn would pass instructions down to the relevant department to contact me.
That is what happened in many instances, but not always to plan…
There was one occasion where a request was
made for me to make a presentation. On arrival, I was led into a Board-room
full of in unison as I entered and bowed, |
which I
did in response together
with a confident smile – something that
quickly faded to be replaced by panic when I
discovered not one could speak a word of
English! Needless to say it’s a marketing
project I’ve never repeated and a lesson that
when putting pen to paper, to try not to be
too clever!
Dial-a-Cab
Awarded TaxiCard Contract Again
As you all now know, Dial-a-Cab have again
been awarded the Westminster TaxiCard contract
for a further five years. I mention this as a
reminder that as from 1 April, the new terms
comes into operation, which includes a
gratuity being no longer applicable. I’d
like to emphasise that forfeiting the gratuity
was not a proposal on our part to be
competitive, it was a stipulation in the
tender that was not negotiable and one that,
being in common with most government
contracts, was a condition of acceptance to
every service provider who chose to tender.
I would ask all of you to
continue to give this account the same
excellent service that you, the drivers and
our management team, have given during the
past twelve years - a service that was no
doubt paramount in the minds of the decision
makers and one of the reasons why we have
successfully retained this most worthy and
prestigious account for so many years.
Many of the
disabled and handicapped rely heavily on
licensed taxis for transport for numerous
reason’s including that they are wheelchair
accessible, are easier to get in and out of
than a private car and of course, apart from
the subsidised cost, there is the knowledge
that the vehicle is safe and the driver is
exceptionally competent.
We should all be forever aware
that apart from the fact that commercially a
handicapped passenger is as equal as an
able-bodied fare, morally we all have a duty
to help make those less fortunate than
ourselves as mobile as they can be. I am aware
that sometimes, particularly in inclement
weather, assisting with a wheelchair can be a
minor inconvenience and occasionally extra
patience is needed when communicating with
perhaps the deaf, blind or those that are a
little slow both physically or mentally.
I’m also aware of the problems compounded by
unsympathetic traffic wardens and rulebook
police officers. However I’m sure that if
this work is approached in the right frame of
mind, that these difficulties can be overcome
and the journey be rewarding.
A
copy of the Westminster information booklet
plus an example payment guide that we send to
all Westminster TaxiCard holders will be sent
to each of our members. I would ask you to
please keep these in your cab as they may be
useful in the event you encounter a problem
with a TaxiCard passenger over the cost of the
fare.
Following
our success in retaining the Westminster
TaxiCard contract, regrettably we were
unsuccessful with three other Westminster
contracts that we tendered for. Most notably
the ‘Home to School’ contract, which we
lost to Mountview two and a half years ago
when they beat us considerably on cost.
Unfortunately we were once again
uncompetitive, in fact our quote on this
occasion was the highest of the three
circuits, with ComCab being the successful
supplier. The other contracts were won by two
private hire companies, where our quotes out
of a short list of four suppliers were second
and third highest respectfully.
Unlike the
TaxiCard contract which operate on metered
fares, the above contracts are all fixed
prices. Having had previous experience of the
work and in many instances the enormous
difficulty with coverage due to journey costs,
we were mindful of the problem and diligently
studied every trip and costed each one as
competitively as we could without jeopardizing
the service. Needless to say it’s always
disappointing when failing on a tender bid,
even when the account is not ours -
particularly after the considerable amount of
work involved. However I feel sure that many
of you will agree that it’s far better to be
unsuccessful than undercutting costs to the
point where the service suffers together with
our reputation.
Health and the
Male Body
Many of our longer serving members will know
me from my relentless campaign against sloppy
dress and whilst I’m not going to dwell on
the subject now other than to say I honestly
believe it’s improving, there is however
another issue that I feel is worth
highlighting, which is akin to appearance but
the part that is usually hidden – the body.
There has
been a lot of publicity of late regarding the
rise in obesity in this country. Having been a
skinny runt all my life, being overweight is
alien to me! In fact having started my
formative years during a period when a certain
"Charles Atlas and don't let the big guys
kick sand in your face" was big business,
I spent a small fortune trying to put on
weight all to no avail. Nowadays in England,
where over 50% of the nation are reported to
be obese, there is obviously little need for
outside help to build body bulk when sloppy
eating will do it for you. Those of you who
have visited America would have seen how
prevalent obesity is in that country and the
reasons why - when you see a typical breakfast
consisting of three big Macs followed by six
waffles covered in maple syrup and a litre of
coke! I don’t think we have yet reached that
stage, but it appears that we are heading
rapidly in that direction and not just with
obesity and eating unhealthily, but more
alarmingly
the health problems associated
with being overweight: High
blood pressure, diabetes, cancer,
thrombosis DVT, gout, gall |
bladder, liver problems
and back pain just being a few examples.
My office is on the third
floor and quite often I have drivers wanting
to see me who, rather than waste time waiting
for the lift, decide to use the stairs. When
they finally arrive at my office - and ‘finally’
being the operative word - I’m amazed at how
many are on the verge of collapse as though
they had just run the London Marathon! Red in
the face and gasping for air, in fact so much
so that I’m thinking of installing an oxygen
cylinder to reduce the recovery time and
possible fatalities! What is equally
concerning is that the majority of these
drivers are still relatively young…
It goes
without saying that sitting all day without
exercise, breathing in exhaust fumes and
living on junk food, make driving a cab not
exactly the healthiest of occupations - and
even worse if it includes smoking.
Unfortunately, because of the manner of the
job making it difficult to take a break at
regular times or finding the appropriate
places to eat, many find it easier and
convenient to stop at a fast food chain like
McDonalds. Now I’m sure that not all of you
eat junk foods and are unfit, but I’m
speaking from what I see and hear. And
frankly, what I see is really disturbing…
I’m truly surprised
that those of you who are overweight, unfit,
who eat junk food and smoke cigarettes do not
take greater responsibility for your health
and consider what the consequences to your
family could be in the event that you should
become seriously ill. How many, I wonder, of
our members under the age of 50 know what
their blood pressure and cholesterol levels
are? Less than 10% I bet. And on the
subject of percentages, how many over the age
of 50 have had a PSA test to check for
prostate cancer or an enlarged prostate,
particularly those amongst you who are
suddenly finding yourselves needing a pee more
often than normal including having to get up
in the night?
On that
subject and as further encouragement to have
it checked, it is now 7 years since I was
diagnosed with prostate cancer. Mine was
discovered early following a routine PSA test
which I have each year. I had the necessary
treatment and to date thankfully everything is
OK. I know the majority of men prefer to
ignore issues relating to health, but to
ignore the following facts could be to your
detriment:
Today one
man in 20 is diagnosed with prostate cancer,
around 20,800 every year (equal to 90 out of
our total membership), and it has now become
the most common cancer in men - overtaking
lung cancer. This is largely due to a
likely increase in the number of cases
diagnosed through the greater use of PSA
tests.
About
10,000 men a year die from prostate cancer in
the UK, which makes it currently the second
most common cause of cancer mortality after
lung cancer. It makes depressing reading but
if it jolts you into doing something about
having a regular blood test or your GP doing a
simple rectum examination, then it has solved
the purpose.
When I
drove a cab full time (yes, I do remember
when), I occasionally met up with cab driver
friends at a particularly café, but only
because it served reasonably good food with
fresh vegetables. But more often I would buy a
packed lunch, for example from M&S, which
included salad and fruit and would park up
somewhere in Hyde Park to eat and read a news-
paper. After that I would take a brisk walk
for a little much-needed exercise. I took
every opportunity to cover delivery work as it
got me out of the cab and I rarely used a lift
preferring instead to use the stairs
irrespective of how many floors I needed to
climb.
Personally,
even though I eat quite a lot, I probably
spend less than most because my choice of food
such as oily fish, which I eat at least eat
three times a week, is not only cheaper than a
fry up, pie and mash or a Big Mac and fries,
but a dam sight healthier. I eat white meat
and red within moderation but always with at
least five different vegetables. I like a
glass of red wine and a pudding, which I
assist in burning off by regularly each
evening taking a medium jog around Greenwich
Park for 30 minutes. This I still do
plus on Sunday mornings, weather permitting, I
have a session with a tennis pro who has me
running all over the court non-stop for 40
minutes. My tennis is still crap even
though I look the business in my white Boris
Becker shorts and top of the range graphite
racket. But it’s great fun, it’s good for
the cardiovascular and I’m out in the fresh
air.
I’ve
never considered myself to be exceptionally
fit, but the more I see of our members getting
in and out of their cabs like doggery old men
and struggling to climb three floors - guys
who are a lot younger than me - it makes me
realise how much worse I could be.
I
only mention the above as an example to show
that it isn’t difficult when driving a cab
to follow a simple discipline, to eat sensibly
or to get a little regular exercise. It doesn’t
necessarily stop you from becoming ill, but it
at least reduces the chances and increases
your well-being. Fit body-fit mind, makes you
less tired and raises self esteem, all of
which are ideal attributes when driving a cab
in a busy and stressful city like London…
Allen Togwell
DaC Marketing
allent@dialacab.co.uk |
