Oak Afloat leaflet at Cowley Lock

While my water tank was filling at Cowley Lock the other day, and I was inside filling a bucket with water to wash the boat, someone left a leaflet tucked under the breast rope on the roof. 

I didn't notice until I splashed a clothful of water on top of it.  How irritating.  You know, it's like those leaflets they stick under your car windscreen wipers. 

(The leaflets on your car always look formidable; at first glance you think they are fines, or notes ticking you off for parking there.)

The leaflet on GrannyB seemed like that sort of litter at first.  Then I saw it was for Oak Afloat (www.oakafloat.co.uk), a boat carpentry and joinery business, and I relaxed slightly.  This, I realised, was relevant.

They could probably tell Granny needs a bit of care and attention, and perhaps knew I wasn't getting back to Streethay for some weeks.

The leaflet doesn't have an address or location, just a couple of mobile phone numbers (Matt and Dave), and if the photos they showed on their leaflet were examples of their work, it was too small for me to get any idea.  (Still, well done, guys, for pushing out the word, even if the word got a bit damp!)

I do need some interior work doing on Granny Buttons – bookshelves, some interior steps at the front and back, and a few other bits, and I might get it done on the way back to the midlands.

But if you are going to leaflet for my business, I can't emphasise enough just how much store I set on a physical address – a workshop or an office, or even just a corner of someone else's boatyard – full names and prior examples of work. 

Maybe other people will phone a mobile cold, but I never would.  Too shy, I guess. And it really helps if there's a full physical name, nowadays with a short biog/CV.

Actually there are some carpenters, joiners or cabinet makers who work from boats.  A couple of these have boats that look just magnificent and are superb examples of their craft.  If Oak Afloat are like that, I'd be really tempted.  And the name's pretty good – oak is a good wood to use indoors in your boat.

Comments

[Bob Wilson]

Hi there,
I'm looking the for Oak Afloat carpenters to see if they can do some joinery on our narrowboat. Does anyone actually have that mobile phone number..?

Thanks

Bob

[craig]

i actually know the people who own oakafloat, very well trained men, who do actually both live on boats themselves... there work is amazing, ive heard many brilliant reviews... if ud like to have work done on ur boat, i can only suggest u call there phone numbers, as they live on boats, so other access to them is hard to get hold of, as u probably know yourselves...

[Peter J Walker Argyll]

Bit rich of you Andrew, seeing as you are a travelling man with therefore only a mobile number yourself. IMHO there are quite a number of boat re-fitters (skilled craftsmen all) who work long hours within very confined spaces aboard boats. Most of them therefore do not use their "landline" telephone for business, simply on the basis that they are rarely there...

All of these people are able to furnish a business address AND as important to any prospective customer, examples of where their work may be viewed / examined and /OR various notes from satisfied customers.

BTW all my jobs were from "word of mouth" sources; I was lucky to have never needed to advertise.

Best Wishes

Peter ( near Crinan, Scotland)

[Lynne and Paul]

Sorry we missed you yet again will probably catch up on the way to lock 64. Regards Paul

[Sven Latham]

"I can't emphasise enough just how much store I set on a physical address"

Agreed!

A few weeks ago we got a leaflet through the door. It was for a pizza delivery service, just a mobile number and no sign of an address. The website just had a copy of the leaflet!

No thanks - I want to know my food was prepared somewhere the Health inspectors can get to, just as I'm sure you'd like to find a door to knock on if the work was a bit dodgy!