Although I still don’t have any idea how much I’m going to be paid,
I’m not too bothered. I am quite willing to be opinionated for free! Somehow I’d
signed up to be part of a focus group for a new website aimed at pilots. I sign
up for a lot of stuff, especially if it is flying related! RTH and I used to
end up doing a fair bit of market research in the UK. Our local high street was
a haven for people armed with clipboards asking for your opinion on the latest
product/ TV commercial. A lot of people were rude to them. We weren’t. Consequently
we used to get asked a lot. So much so that they recognised us and would
actively seek us out. You’d often get some small token for taking part,
vouchers or office supplies. I kept an entire classroom in free pens.
When I got the phone call asking me to take part, I was mildly surprised
that they still wanted to talk to me. The call didn’t exactly get off to an
auspicious start; they probably thought I was trying to be funny with them.
Before I tell you the details, you need to know that RTH and I have cell phone
numbers that are only one digit different. This was the case in the UK as well.
Occasionally I forget which number is mine and which is his. It isn’t inconceivable
that one of us has given out the wrong number. It isn’t helped by the fact that in the UK
mine was the first number numerically, in Canada RTH’s is. The call went
something like this
Person calling: Hello, can I speak
to Mr. WMAP
Me: You are speaking to
Mrs. WMAP, can I help?
Person calling: Oh I’m from xxxx
company, Mr. WMAP signed up to take part in a focus group
Me: Actually that was
me, Mrs. WMAP
Person calling: Oh, so you’re the
pilot then?
Me: errm , actually no.
Mr. WMAP would be the pilot. I’m the student
pilot. But it is me you want!
Things got slightly better after that. I agreed to take part in a
phone conference thingy, evaluating a website and content. It was kind of
interesting to be on a call with other much more experienced pilots, just to
get a different perspective on what they consider to be useful. For instance
they were very keen on the interactive course being offered for various inflight
emergencies, as it was something they felt they were rusty on, whereas I’m thinking
I do forced approaches or engine failures or something every fricken week. It’s
a tame lesson if something doesn’t “fail” on my plane. I forget that “normal”
flying doesn’t actually involve stalls or precautionary landings. When learning
to fly you spend 90% of your time practicing the stuff that only happens 0.1%
of the time! It is though, a very nice feeling, knowing that you can hold your
own in a conversation with the big boys!
I think I had some pertinent stuff to contribute. I feel I made a
valid point about some of the rebadged AOPA content they are promoting. As a
student I get nervous when I see anything that comes from the States, as I know
enough to know there are differences in the way things operate, but I don’t really
know enough to know what all the differences are. Consequently I tend to avoid
anything that is blatantly American. I think I was also able to offer some constructive
and professional points of view with regard to video length, pacing and clarity
from a pedagogical point of view.
The website isn’t quite fully functional yet. There is a
placeholder with some “coming soon” content and some articles at http://www.smartpilot.ca/
I’m not being paid to plug this, but it does look promising, especially if they
take on board some of the points we raised last night.
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