Go-on, I know you’re hovering. ‘What would make their perfect map title? ‘, I observe you thinking as you pause over the most intimidating part of the map making process.
Though we’ve made child’s play of map location, design and even upgrades, our analytics picks out some very pregnant pauses when confronted with the “wearable map title” box.
But pause no longer! Thanks to an avalanche of personalised map customers during November, we’ve come-up with the perfect formula for their perfect map title.
Panic can set-in when you realise the lucky recipient will live with your choice on a map they’ll keep for life! You ask yourself the questions ‘How much emotion? How many characters? How do we share a memory?’. Well panic no more. Here’s the formula for their perfect map title.
There’s a 50 character title limit, but remember, less is more. I’ve enjoyed picking up the phone to customers who want help with their perfect map titles. My favourite one was simply “For my boy x”, a map of a new home for a distant son based in Canada. A title from a mum that says so much in such little space!
You can’t go wrong by including the name of the place on the map! 27% of our customers include a recognisable place name. But the great ones try something more personal. If there’s a shared love of a place why not show it? Maps with a title including “home” will stand out to your lucky recipient, and this appears in just 5% of our orders. Want to take it to the next level? How better to show you know someone than identifying their place, them and why it’s important. My favourite perfect map title like this is, “Alex’s Old Stomping Ground”.
Another 5% feature “adventure” in the tile. “Adventure awaits…” is a great title as it highlights the mystique of a yet-to-be explored trail. But why not specify it for someone’s own personal challenge? “The shrinking president” defines Ed’s challenge to lose 3 stone by summer 2019. But my favourite in this category is “A thousand things I haven’t done”, which I assume is a call to action!
We all know that a great map is an antidote to getting lost. “Lost” features in the titles of 5% of the maps. It’s interesting to see how people use that word. It can be used optimistically “I’m not lost”, cautiously “In case you get lost” or even philosophically “Not all who wander are lost”. Define the benefit succinctly, then make it suit your friend.
An increasing trend is to simply have a name and a mobile phone number on the map. Not only does this make a great id check if your giftee runs into trouble in the mountains, but it’s a great way to get re-united with the map if it gets left in the pub after a boozy post mortem of a rugged day’s challenge.
So stop gnawing those nails and nail their perfect map title! These 5 simple steps will help. And should a SplashMap be on your list this year, you’d better share this article to all your friends and relatives!
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