Virgil Winston:Marketing Guru
I woke up late this morning and nearly missed a brunch date with my in-laws. Although my wife thinks otherwise, my tardiness was entirely unintentional and due solely to that yearly change we call Daylight Saving* Time. Personally, I hate it. It’s not that I have anything against daylight, or savings in general; I just don’t believe that setting our clocks forward one hour accomplishes anything but sleep deprivation and lateness…not the most desirable results.
I realize that I am probably in the minority, since most people seem to enjoy the additional hour of sun Daylight Saving Time affords them at the end of each day. After all, it’s much easier to enjoy summer barbecues when you can see what’s on the grill. I also enjoy a good barbecued chicken wing and an early evening walk about; I just find it more convenient to knock off work early than to change all of my clocks (I have forty-seven of them, including my 13 wrist watches) and get used to a new sleep schedule. Mrs.Winston thinks my hatred of clock changing and refusal to acknowledge the joys of springing forward in time contributes to my curmudgeonly reputation but I vigorously disagree.
I also realize that, like it or not, and thanks to Ben Franklin who was the first to conceive of the notion of saving daylight, the biannual time change is here to stay. So, as I often do, I have turned my annoyance into a marketing opportunity. This year, I sent out fifty Shiny Chrome Desk Clocks (imprinted with my name) to my most important clients. I included a pithy quote about the importance of time to ensure that my gift would be well received. Sometimes giving a gift that is “on the nose” is just the right way to get your message across. It may be too late for you to capitalize on Daylight Saving Time, but a beautiful desk clock with Roman Numerals and a chrome finish is never out of style and at 4”X6” this one is the perfect size to remind your clients that you know what time it is.
Well, I’m off to make dinner for the family—it’s my penance for this morning’s belated brunch. Until next time, remember the wise words of my old friend Harvey MacKay, “Time is free, but it’s priceless. You can’t own it, but you can use it. You can’t keep it, but you can spend it. Once you’ve lost it you can never get it back.”