Call Sign November 2006 - Page 22 - ALLEN TOGWELL’S MARKETING PLACE

ALLEN TOGWELL’S MARKETING PLACE

For some unknown reason and since a very early age, I’ve had a profound interest in people. The human body (inside and out), procreation and later the way people think. In fact when I was 10, I could draw and name in Latin from memory a considerable number of the 206 bones and 656 muscles that make up the human body from the cranium, right down to the metatarsals - which I’m sure all football followers will know about.
   Being one of 11 children and from a very poor family, my parents could not afford to buy me proper drawing paper. So my dad, who was a builder, used to bring home rolls of ceiling paper - ideal on which to draw life size skeletons! Not that my mum or dad ever gave me any praise for my artistic efforts, just strange looks and hopes that my interest in drawing naked bodies covered with peculiar names would soon change to something more in keeping with my age - such as matchstick men. But it didn’t!
   In my late teens, I had a girl friend - Swiss au pair to a surgeon - who tried to get me a job as an artist in a UCH operating theatre that involved sitting on pendulum-type apparatus that swung back and forth over the top of the person being operated on. I was really excited at the chance of seeing live body organs as opposed to drawings, but unfortunately I failed to get the job because I wasn’t a medical student and with my lack of education, never likely to be.
   But the human form has continued to interest me and over the years I’ve done a fair amount of life drawing, male and female, using various mediums such as chalk, crayon, ink, charcoal and pastels. One such drawing of a nude female, which I have in my office, has an interesting story. The model was a hairdresser who did part-time modelling at an art college I attended several years ago and who, after a little persuading, agreed to cut my hair and afterwards pose for me privately. Unfortunately the arrangement only lasted a year or so before her husband, a strange chap, put a stop to it because he didn’t like being told to leave the room whilst she was posing, although I later learned that the real reason was because of all the bits of my hair he kept finding in his kitchen! It was sad really, because apart from being a very interesting model, she also did a very good haircut! You can’t get hairdressers like that now!
   I began by saying my interests included the way people think. And it was the way people think that drew my interest to an article in Call Sign last month by Richard Potter (T51) who, amongst other things, commented on the reasons why he was reluctant to join a taxi trade union. One such reason was because the leaders of these organisations appeared to be older than him and because of that age difference, he considered them to be long in the tooth - the definition of which is to be too old to do anything. That, apart from anything else, was a somewhat ironic statement to make during the very month the law on age discrimination came into force.

Ageism?
I’ve no idea of the exact age of the member in question and whilst photos such as the one submitted with his article can be deceiving, I would hazard a guess and say he looks to be in his late 40s (my apologies, Richard, if you are younger). So assuming I’ve guessed correctly, then by his reckoning anybody in their 50s onwards is bordering on senility. I have no argument with his reasons - if that’s the yardstick by which he uses to measure a person’s ability, then that is his right. Although personally, if I had a choice of two barristers to represent me in court, one wet behind the ears and the other of pensionable age, I’m sure I would choose the latter.
Another reason I found Richard’s comments interesting, or should I say concerning, was because they appear to be amongst many similar views of far too many drivers in our industry who consider it totally unnecessary to make any provisions whatsoever against any of the unforeseen circumstances

that can strike at any moment,
resulting in financial hardship or distress. For example, loss of income through sickness or fighting bureaucratic injustice.
   On every occasion I use a taxi, I try to engage the driver in conversation and invariably lead it onto the subject of sickness insurance, pensions, union representation etc and I’m truly amazed at how many say they can’t be bothered, don’t think it’s necessary or a multitude of mundane reasons why they shouldn’t make the necessary
provisions. When I first joined the Board and for many years afterwards, I tried relentlessly to convince our members to join the DaC health scheme, especially during the period when work was on the downturn and the Board were continually being approached by members wanting to withdraw their roller bonds well before they was due, usually because of financial difficulties caused by time lost through sickness. Yet no matter how often I wrote articles in Call Sign warning members of the need to make provision for these situations, they were continually ignored. And even to this present day when talking to drivers, it appears that little has changed. Yet as always, when there is a problem, only then do they look for those with experience to resolve it.
   To emphasise this point, at the time of writing I have had a considerable number of calls from DaC members concerned at the closures, and impending closures of some streets in the City’s square mile and wanting to know what I or the Board were doing to prevent these closures happening? I explained that we are in discussion with the relevant authorities, but as a company we have limited power to influence these decisions, even though these closures will undoubtedly affect the service we are trying to supply to many of the UK’s largest corporates.
   I also suggested that in addition to what the DaC Board are doing, drivers should take the issue up with any of the trade unions they may be members of, with emphasise on the fact that collectively they have many years of considerable experience and knowledge of the cab trade and issues such as those in question (needless to say, none of those that spoke to me were members). I also suggested they write to their MP. When making that last suggestion, I was somewhat surprised or perhaps disappointed by the number of drivers who unashamedly admitted they were incapable of composing such a letter and suggested I (supposedly a man of senile age) should publish a draft letter in Call Sign for them to copy. I’m still undecided whether to praise their courage in admitting their inability to write or annoyed at the possibility of it being due to typical cab driver apathy. Whatever the reason, I honestly believe that if every driver wrote to their respective MP regularly on any problem issue concerning the cab trade, it would eventually pay dividends.
   I feel it prudent to mention that over the years I too have had run-ins with the various trade organisations, usually over comments they made about our Society. But whatever our differences, I have never once questioned their commitment to the cause of defending the cab trade and their respective member’s rights. I agree there has been the occasional bickering between the various taxi trade unions, as there has been between the various radio circuits over the years, but that shouldn’t be a reason to avoid becoming a member of these organisations, particularly at a time when driving a cab in London is becoming ever more difficult. And neither should the reason for not joining be due to the age of their union representatives. It is said that there is no substitute for experience and experience usually comes with age. In fact talking of age, at least the age discrimination law that came into effect in October is one small comfort for the cab trade. At least TfL / PCO wont be able revoke cab licenses because of age and thereby an excuse to give yet more power to PH.

The AT advertising survey…
If any members recognised me standing on a pavement, glancing into the back of your cab and was curious at what I was doing, it
was a little survey I was conducting on the percentage of our members that were carrying our ads on their tip-up seats. The reason for this goes back a month or so when I had cause to use three of our cabs and on each occasion, noticed the seat ads were not advertising the services of their Society. On politely enquiring why, I was told they replaced them with ads being sold at Waterloo Station for Ł15. Now whilst it’s a condition of entry that all new members must carry your Society’s door ads - and all but 10 of our 2000 plus members do so - there is no rule, or should I say no rule necessary, on what you display on your passenger tip-up seats. I say no rule necessary because I would have thought that as each and every one of you is a shareholder of Dial-a-Cab, YOUR radio taxi circuit and one that is fighting daily to procure new business away from our competitors both from within our own industry and PH, but also the public at large, that you would all be bending over backwards to play your part by assisting us in that fight by displaying YOUR Society’s ads. I started this article on the subject of how people think. Well the thinking behind you not carrying YOUR Society’s ads to my mind just doesn’t make sense. Is there no understanding of why these people stand at Waterloo and other places hawking these ads to cab drivers for a few bits of silver? They are earning a fortune at your expense. WHY? Because the people who want advertise their wares in licensed taxis - and we are not talking about Mickey Mouse firms either - can see the power of putting their ads in front of a
captive audience and are prepared to pay good money to do so. I get enquiries all the time from blue chip companies asking about advertising on the exterior and interior of our fleet of taxis and when I say we only carry our own advertising, they fully understand and also say how lucky we are.
   The following figures do not apply to us, but give an indication of the power of advertising on a fully liveried licensed taxi in London. Just 25 vehicles on a 12-month contract reach an audience of approximately 25 million people. Now it’s not for me to comment on what the drivers are paid compared to the revenue received by the advertising companies, but simply to have you judge the power of advertising in or outside of public transport in London and licensed taxis in particular and why there is a demand for that type of advertising.
   Wherever I go in the country and whoever I speak to, when I am wearing my peak cap, polo shirt, sweat shirt or jacket carrying the DaC branding, I’m told they recognise the logo as being on the side of a London taxi. That’s the power of advertising. So please, before taking that paltry few quid to display somebody else’s ad, consider first all the money you could be denying yourself by not advertising your own business.
   Finally another article in last months Call Sign also caught my interest, something I thought to be a very good idea called ‘Call Sign’s Springboard to your Portfolio’. The article itself centred around having skills that could be used for obtaining temporary positions within Dial-a-Cab. However I would like to go one further and say I’ve always believed that with a membership the size of ours and their families, there must be much hidden talent such as IT skills, graphic, art, languages etc including various relaxation techniques that could be used to teach other members who I’m sure would be interested, at just the small cost of hiring a room and the tutor’s time.
   Bye for now…

Allen Togwell
DaC Marketing
allent@dialacab.co.uk

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