Tic-tac (also tick-tack and non-hyphenated variants) is a traditional method of signs used by bookmakers to communicate the odds of certain horses. Until the turn of the 21st century it was a very common sight on racecourses in the UK, but with the advent of mobile technology it is now seldom seen. In 1999, only three practitioners were noted to be still working on the southern UK tracks – Micky 'Hokey' Stuart, Billie Brown and Rocky Roberts.[1] A tic-tac man will usually wear bright white gloves to make his hand movements easily seen.
A few simple examples of signals:
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Within the UK there are some regional variations in the signals, for example in the south odds of 6/4 are represented by the hand touching the opposite ear, giving the slang term 'ear'ole', whereas the same odds are indicated in the north by the hand touching the opposite elbow ('half arm').[citation needed]
Some of the signals may be called out verbally too. These names have evolved over time in a mixture of Cockney rhyming slang and backslang. For example, 4–1 is known as rouf (four backwards).
Essentially, bookmakers use tic-tac as a way of communicating between their staff and ensuring their odds are not vastly different from their competitors, an advantage the punters could otherwise exploit. In particular, if a very large bet is placed with one bookmaker, this may be signalled to the others as a way of lowering the price on all the boards.
British racing pundit John McCririck used tic-tac as part of his pieces to camera when explaining the odds of the horses for the next race.
While this method of communication is used less frequently than before, many of the terms persist.
| 1 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 10 | 30 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Levels (you devils) or Major Stevens or Straight up = evens | |||||
| 2 | Bottle | |||||
| 3 | Carpet | |||||
| 4 | Roof or Rouf | |||||
| 5 | Ching or Hand or Handful | Face | Wrist | |||
| 6 | Exes or Xis | Ear'ole | Sais a wang | |||
| 7 | Neves or Nevis | Neves to rouf or Shoulder | ||||
| 8 | TH | |||||
| 9 | Enin | Shoulders or On the shoulders | Top of the head | |||
| 10 | Cockle or Net | |||||
| 11 | Elef | Elef a vier | Up the arm | Tips | ||
| 12 | Net and bice | |||||
| 14 | Net and rouf | |||||
| 15 | Double tap | |||||
| 16 | Net and ex | |||||
| 20 | Double net | |||||
| 25 | Macaroni or Pony | |||||
| 33 | Double carpet | |||||
| 100 | Century | Burlington Bertie or Scruffy and dirty |
SWOT analysis of Tic Tac analyses the brand/company with its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities & threats. In Tic Tac SWOT Analysis, the strengths and weaknesses are the internal factors whereas opportunities and threats are the external factors.
SWOT Analysis is a proven management framework which enables a brand like Tic Tac to benchmark its business & performance as compared to the competitors and industry. As of 2020, Tic Tac is one of the leading brands in the food & beverages sector.

The table below lists the SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats), top Tic Tac competitors and includes Tic Tac target market, segmentation, positioning & Unique Selling Proposition (USP).
Tic Tac | |
| Parent Company | Ferrero |
|---|---|
| Category | Mint/Mouth Freshner |
| Sector | |
| Tagline/ Slogan | The 1½ Calorie Breath Mint; Refreshment to be shared |
| USP | Sweet mint tablets |
| Tic Tac STP | |
| Tic Tac Segmentation | People looking to have sweet after mint |
| Tic Tac Target Market | Youth from middle and upper class |
| Tic Tac Positioning | Low calorie mint for everyone |
| Tic Tac SWOT Analysis | |
| Tic Tac Strengths | Below are the Strengths in the SWOT Analysis of Tic Tac: 1.Good packaging and advertising 2.Good taste |
| Tic Tac Weaknesses | Here are the weaknesses in the Tic Tac SWOT Analysis: 1.Too sweet 2.Not too many flavors |
| Tic Tac Opportunities | Following are the Opportunities in Tic Tac SWOT Analysis: 1.Introduce newer flavors 2.Tap growing markets |
| Tic Tac Threats | The threats in the SWOT Analysis of Tic Tac are as mentioned: 1.Threat from local candies 2.Threat from chocolates |
| Tic Tac Competition | |
| Competitors | Below are the top 3 Tic Tac competitors: 1.Mentos 2.Mint-O 3.Nestle Polo |
This article has been researched & authored by the Content & Research Team. It has been reviewed & published by the MBA Skool Team. The content on MBA Skool has been created for educational & academic purpose only.

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