There’s a reason copywriters exist. Because when we stare at a blank page, we think, “Okay, how can I get more sales? What can I say to make these people buy stuff? What will get them to sign up for my newsletter?” And our answer is usually “Tell them how great the product is. Tell them to buy. Tell them to sign up.”
One of the biggest things that we THINK we need is to look professional. And to do this, we fill our websites with corporate-ese. It’s logical to us, but why isn’t it working?
Why corporate lingo sucks
You may be a corporation. And that’s cool with me. Bigness does not always equal suckiness. (Think Trader Joes…I had to wait in line for 15 minutes just to GET INTO the store on their grand opening day. And you won’t find one instance of corporate-ese anywhere on anything they produce.)
Ditch the corporate lingo at whatever level you are. It’s tired, it’s boring, it says “My company is no different than any other nameless company on this earth.” It decreases your credibility. Here’s some stuff to delete from your website right this instant:
- World-class customer service (or anything “world-class”)
- Seasoned professional
- “We” when you’re only a “me”
- Industry standard
- Made-up acronyms (aka: “We call this the ‘Customer Satisfaction Quotient’, or CSQ”)
- Unique opportunity
- Service provider
- Results-oriented
- Nationally-recognized
- Consumer-driven
- Proven results
- Key deliverables
- Strive (as in “strive to deliver”, “strive to serve”)
- Policies and procedures
- Paradigm shift
- Fast-paced
- Competitive prices
- Effective, effectively
- Extensive experience
This list is by no means exhaustive. It’s just to get you started in trimming the fat. I’m curious…what corporate speak have you guys encountered lately? (I’ll add it to the list.)
12 Comments
I’m going to keep adding here as I find things (ironically, Twitter is a treasure trove of corporate-ese).
Part of the problem/part of the solution
Leverage your assets
Maximize success
Boiling the ocean is my personal favorite. The result of working hard without focus or purpose. “All she’s doing is boiling the ocean.” Also known as “spinning your wheels” and “running in place.”.
Hi Sarah,
I’d like to ban anything with the word “synergy” or a variation of it. Most annoying term since the 1990’s.
Keep at it!
dm
you forgot “Customer Focused”… like you’d be anything else
You know what, JJ…I think ‘boiling the ocean’ has got to be the coolest thing I’ve heard all day. I think I’ll go do it now.
David, that reminds me of that movie that had the guy from That 70s Show in it. And Steve Martin. What *was* that movie?
Steve…oh yeah. Because who would say “we’re money-focused.” Heh.
Totally right on, sister! The curse of “professionalism” as it shows up in language is killing small businesses around the globe, argh!
Have you seen this site? Fight the Bull. If only we could talk like human beings, perhaps we would act more like human beings, too.
Crum! Now I’ve got to go look at my website and see what junk I’ve possibly written. I’m asking myself, “do I do that?” Probably. As my sister would say, “I hope not, cause then I’d feel losery.”
I’d like to add any sentence beginning (or ending) with the words “Now, more than ever…”. Gah!! My local public radio affiliate just adopted that phrase as their tagline. It’s a serious road hazard since it makes me want to drive into a ditch every time I hear it.
My major hate is “solutions” online marketing solutions, logistic solutions, legal solutions etc etc etc
The only companies that can legitamately use this are ones that sell oil, or cleaning products – a solution is a liquid!!! arghhhhh
Jac
I didn;t see “outside the box”. I always think to myself, just because it’s “outside your box”, doesn’t mean that its “outside my box”. Get a bigger box, you know?
You’re right David…that one’s huge!
Here’s a great list of ‘em: http://www.randsinrepose.com/archives/2009/07/13/the_words_you_wear.html (Thanks, Rands)
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