One of the things I love the most about being a copywriter - other than being able to work in your pyjamas and be 2.5 metres from the fridge at all times - is how many random things you learn with each project. I don’t ‘specialise’ as such, meaning there isn’t a particular field that I stick to (although I do have extensive marketing experience in the food and chemical sector FYI), so my client base is extremely diverse. From dog food manufacturers, to garden designers, polymer distributors to personal trainers and more, I often need to do a fair bit of research to understand my clients’ businesses, their briefs and how to communicate with their audience.
For a bit of fun (yes, fun), I thought I’d put together 10 of the best things I’ve learnt or come across so far. Every day is a school day as they say!
1. During the Victorian era, they used to SEW fake eyelashes to their eyelids and eat TAPEWORMS in a bid to stay slim. I know that beauty is pain but that really does take the biscuit.
2. Trees never die of old age – trees are only ever killed by elements outside of their control, including insects, diseases and people. This one got me a little emotional I must be honest.
3. There are 24 botanicals in Silent Pool gin. Yum. *Immediately raids the cupboard for gin*
4. ‘Agrum’ is a term which refers to the flavour of citrus fruits. Although doesn’t quite have the same floral tone to it when you say it out loud. Quite an angry word really.
5. Oxygen has an E-number (E948) because it is pumped into bags of salad (and veg) to keep it fresh. Not even out beautiful, life-creating oxygen can escape European labelling.
6. Some people pay other people thousands of pounds to tell them how to live their lives! Life coaching… honestly, I’m in the wrong profession. *Googles how to be a life coach*
7. You can clicker train a chicken. Not sure what you would need to do this for, but I guess it’s always nice to remember that if you can clicker train a chicken, you can get through potty training with your youngest.
8. A sunflower is not just one flower. Both the fuzzy brown centre and the classic yellow petals are actually 1,000 – 2,000 individual flowers, held together on a single stalk. I mean – mind = blown.
9. They have invented a plastic that is dissolvable in water (PVOH). I don’t want to get political or controversial – but surely this is a good thing?!
If you feel that you have a weird and wonderful business that could teach little old me a few things about the world (and you happen to also have the need for a copywriter), then you know what to do.
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