I was already half awake when my alarm went off the other morning, but there was something about the pitch and tone of the sound it made that went straight into the part of my brain responsible for actually getting me out of bed. (The smell of freshly-brewed coffee generally has the same effect). And it got me thinking: words, like sounds and smells, have that power too. They can get people moving and motivated. They can prompt action, shut us down, turn us on – and turn us off. Here are 5 things to check when choosing the right words for your purpose.
1. Does it have an inherent meaning?
There are certain words – and phrases – that mean something to all of us. Passion, mother love, good, evil, sexy, drab. So when we see them written down, or hear them spoken, they immediately conjure a thought, a feeling, a memory. It won’t be the same for everyone, but you can be certain we all know what these words ‘mean’ – and I’m not just talking about the dictionary definition. Do the words you’re using to describe your business and what you do have a meaning? Or are they ‘dead’ words like program, facilitate, success, approach, value? Words which distance the reader rather than draw them in?
2. Does it sound right?
It can be tempting to use impressive-sounding words to talk about our business, but in the end, it has to sound right – it’s all about tone of voice. If you’re selling jams and jellies, then words like ‘yummy’ or even something made-up like ‘scrumptilicious’ may well be appropriate. Not so much if you’re a financial planner. But that doesn’t mean you can’t use emotive or playful words – say, for instance, promising your clients a ‘fabulous financial future’ if that suits your style.
3. Has it been overused?
There’s an unspoken rule in fundraising that the phrase ‘make a difference’ should never be used – and yet you see it everywhere. You can understand why. It’s a great short-hand way of describing what a donor’s $20 is going to do for a stray puppy or a homeless family – ‘make a difference’. But I’d argue that it’s so overused, and by so many different charities, that it has actually lost a lot of meaning. If everyone’s saying the same thing, maybe it’s time to move on.
4. Is it jargon?
Ah, jargon. So tempting to make ourselves look erudite and expert by throwing around a few choice acronyms like SEO, W3C, and SMSF. But you know what – not everyone knows what these mean. Much better to show you know what you’re talking about by never assuming your audience also spends half their time worrying about web accessibility or self-managed super funds, and making an effort to use Plain English wherever possible. They’ll thank you for it.
5. Is it clear?
This is closely related to point number 4 – are the words you’re using in combination with each other jargon-free, not too wordy, and doing their job, i.e. conveying a clear meaning?
Take this gem I came across:
Wealth management isn’t a process; it’s a philosophic approach that combines professional asset management with partnership and advice – not sales. This enables our team to deliver services that create tangible value.
Where do I start? I think I kind of know what they mean, but actually I don’t. They’ve used all the right buzzwords – approach, partnership, tangible, value – but it’s as though, Nostradamus-like, they’ve just thrown them into the air like confetti and used them in whatever order they rained down. Word have power. Words are precious. And we’re bombarded constantly with words at every second of the day, right from when that alarm goes off and you pick up your smartphone to check your emails. So here’s a tip: use them wisely.
