How a single typo launched a 15-year sloth hunt

I was mid-way through reviewing some collateral for a new day spa that a friend of a friend was opening when my trusty red pen came to an abrupt halt – and my mind boggled.

“As you relax into your treatment, we’ll sloth away the dead skin cells.” Um, what?

The power of words in your marketing

A million questions came to mind. Was this a new beauty treatment craze like the feet nibbling fish? Did a rejuvenating sloth come out to help? How exactly did a sloth remove dead skin cells? Slowly, very slowly, licking them off? Although come to think of it, those long nails could deliver a brilliant scalp massage.

After joyously letting my imagination run wild and a solid case of the giggles, I realised their mistake. A typo that had inserted ‘sloth’ instead of ‘slough’.

What does a sloth have to do with marketing?

What that small typo 15 years ago could not have anticipated was the spark of humour it lit between two friends that resulted in an annual quest to find the perfect sloth-related gift.

✓ Stuffed toy sloth? Check. That was easy.

✓ Temporary sloth tattoos. Done.

✓ Sloth show bag? A veritable bonanza of gaudy sloth gifts.

✓ Christmas ornament of a sloth wearing a Santa hat? He hangs proudly on my tree in prime position under the star.

This hunt for the holy grail of sloth paraphernalia has drawn in the growing, broader family over the years. My husband, my friend’s husband, and now my kids. Those two have become eagle-eyed sloth spotters no matter what store we are in. But they are quite the discerning buyer. “No, this is too obvious.” “A toy sloth has been done before.” “It’s just not funny enough.”

I’m very proud of my little merchandise Padawans. In fact, my kids featured heavily in one of our best finds. Custom socks featuring one large sloth, and two smaller sloths that were embroidered with their names and the words “we love hanging around with you”. Comfy socks and sloth puns? Gold!

As fun as our sloth hunt is, it reminds me of something more important. It’s a clear example of the power of words. The importance of copy and content.

Great words are memorable

In this case, it was one wrong word that has delivered years of laughter between friends with no sign of sloth-ing down. And yes, any time one of us is having a facial, massage or any kind of beauty treatment, we still ask the other if their dead skin cells were slothed away. It’s never got old.

As a professional marketer and lover of words, I know the right words have the same impact. Think of all the branded slogans you can off the top of your head. You can probably sprout at least five without even trying. From Nike’s “just do it” to McDonalds’ “I’m lovin’ it” and Disneyland’s “the happiest place on earth”, great words are memorable.

There’s a certain happy buzz that comes when you know you’ve found a perfect word, phrase or description to eloquently and succinctly deliver your message. I will admit to some quiet fist pumps at the desk over the years when this is achieved. Okay…maybe there were some not-so-quiet “Yeeeeessssssss” shouts in there as well. For copywriters and content wranglers, finding the right words is the equivalent of finding the back of the net.

Strategic marketing content for your business

Whilst every brand may not need a five-word slogan or TV commercials with earworm jingles that stay with people forever, every brand needs content. The content that delivers the key messages about your product or service needs to be high-quality, well-written and deliver on your strategic objectives.

Whilst you may be an expert on your product or service, translating your knowledge and expertise into succinct and notable marketing content may not come as easily. That’s where we can help.

With over 20 years of experience, and a network of copywriters and content creators to support our clients, Ebony & Salt can help ensure your marketing content is delivered professionally, efficiently, and most importantly sloth free. Unless of course you really do have a head-massaging sloth. In which case, how do I purchase a gift voucher for a friend?