Entitled to Have a Good Title

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Grabbing attention. Giving someone a jolt, like those silly devices some of us had as kids that gave your new acquaintance or a friend a tickling sting when you shook their hand. Zap! What gets your blog initially noticed?

It’s your title! 

When you tweet a blog, you’re at a disadvantage.  There's nowhere to include a brief summary to inspire tweeps to read further. 

It HAS to be the title that does it. So it has to be a really good one!

I admit that I struggle with titles at times though now that I’ve written a couple hundred blogs they come to me a lot easier than they did at the beginning!

Here are a few ideas. Try the ones that apply to your style of writing.

A twist that ties in another subject. I love doing this. Recently (blushing) I read 50 Shades of Grey and saw some themes in the book relating to the marketing realm. So I called my blog Fifty Shades of Social Media. For anyone who has read this book I’m hoping they are curious enough to click on the link and see how far an imagination can really stretch.

Shock them! Make them say “What????” It can be a little scandalous or suggestive in nature. 50 Shades of Social Media also applies to this approach. Zing them! Another example: Stripping on Facebook: Do You "Like"? This one WAS about stripping and was a “dare” of sorts from a clothing company. How far would the campaign and the model go to sell garments?

Make it humorous. We all need humor. We all crave humor. It lets us let go for a moment. Why not add a chuckle right in your blog? If people are grinning from the title they’ll assume there’s more laughter to be had and click on that link. For this blog I used examples from my Groovy Reflections Facebook page to drive home a point. Toasters, Cooties, Gas Prices, and You. By throwing things together that wouldn’t necessarily be together, the idea was to bring a smile to your face. And it really was a post about the game Cooties!

Speak directly to your readers. There’s nothing like the word YOU. What? You’re writing this to ME? I must find out why so I’ll click on the link. Example: Boomers, Brains, and You. While this post was more about me and a discovery I made about myself, rest assured that I’m not the only one that has had this particular revelation. Anyone can relate to it.

Ask a question in your title. Folks will want to know what the answer is. Is There an App for That? is a recent blog post that marvels at the dizzy array of what's available to us and pokes fun at what isn't (yet).

Make sure that your title is relevant and on subject. Don’t let your reader down. There has to be a tie-in to what you’re saying in the blog. If there isn’t, you may alienate the reader.

Barclay James Harvest sang about titles in the 1970’s (see below). You are entitled to stop by and say hello! Twitter, Facebook, Google+, or the website. 

The World’s Funniest Airline? Ha!

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Seriously, have you ever heard a pilot crack jokes during the flight? Do you think flying is funny? Kulula Airlines wants you to laugh in the clouds.

Information on their history is vague. Wikipedia states that the airline started flights in August of 2001 and they’re owned by British Airways franchise Comair. At least we learn a little more via their mission statement; in a nutshell, it’s safety first, simplicity and hey, lighten up!

However, this is an airline that has taken on a most casual twist in a serious people mover business, going beyond the happy, oopsy daisy flight attendants at Virgin that hand out ice cream bars and little rubber duckys.

The “good humour” goes much further. It’s all intended for you to have a good laugh when traveling. And who doesn’t need that? Flights not on time, people pushing to board  (what IS the rush?), being interrogated like you’re entering Fort Knox, taking off your shoes, waiting on lines…need I say more? You already know how unpleasant flying can be.

So, what’s so different about Kulula?  Several unusual twists contribute to their unique branding strategy.

Their planes LOOK funny; actually, the paint job does. One variation cheerfully depicts every element on the plane you need to know about, including “The Big Cheese”. Suspicion arose in 2010 that these planes aren’t real; however, there is evidence on a few sites that indeed, these planes do exist. Their cars look funny too:

The story gets better. Passengers are treated to some rather unusual commentary when the crew communicates with them. Oh, they get the information they need, and much more:
• "Ladies and gentlemen, we've reached cruising altitude and will be turning down the cabin lights. This is for your comfort and to enhance the appearance of your flight attendants."
• "If you are caught smoking, you will be asked to leave the aircraft".
• "Your seat cushion can be used for flotation; and in the event of an emergency water landing, please paddle to shore and take them with our compliments."

Sadly, one review was found where the passenger complained that the humour was toned down. They speculated that perhaps they have flown the airline too much and perhaps have become accustomed to a certain level of laugh factor.

On a positive note, Kulula’s website is one of the cleanest and easiest to navigate that I’ve ever seen. Helpful information, such as the weight of carry-ons is right on the home page; how many times have you gone fishing for that information on a major airline site? The question and answer page, “Flying 101”, put it straight: “We're gonna attempt to answer all those niggly questions that you have everytime you fly.” Have never seen an airline use such laid-back language before!

They have a presence on Facebook and Twitter too.  Their Twitter account appears to be a magnet for complaints; each one is cheerfully responded to.

Unfortunately for us in the States, and Europe and Asia, Kulula only flies to a few cities within South Africa, Johannesburg and Cape Town to name just two. Looks like folks are clamoring for them to fly to London, though.

Oh, as to be expected, their ads are funny. For a sample, click here.

So the question is…does Kulula really exist? Is it a local marketing experiment that may perhaps expand to a more well known airline? Is South Africa simply a test market? Or are all those planes actually the result of someone who is well rehearsed in Photoshop?

The good news is…Kulula is real. Kudos for having a most original brand that invokes excitement and smiles. They may be the only airline that has accomplished that. Kulula understands differentiation; entertaining us while maintaining all those rather somber elements that being an airline requires. Are you ready to pack your bags and fly with them?

Kulula’s very sensible mission statement 

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