En Route To The Tar Pits

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Sometimes it seems nobody cares anymore about using language well.

I’m nauseated by the flood of illiteracy, bad spelling, and non-existent grammar we’re drowning in.

And don’t even get me STARTED with people whose every other word is “like”!

As a writer and marketing professional, these trends trouble me. As I’ve always told my daughter, if you can’t communicate clearly, you won’t get what you want.

Then again…if everyone is speaking poorly, maybe you can. OUCH!

Regardless, I’m realistic enough to recognize several things:

  • English is a living language which must evolve and grow

  • Fighting bad grammar is like trying to hold back the tide

  • Guys like me are dinosaurs

Miraculously, I’ll still occasionally bump into someone skillfully wielding language to openly impart a hidden message. Consider these two realtor taglines:

  • Brian Habib (Rancho Bernardo) says he’s “A Man Who Listens”

  • Bernadette Butler (Suffern, NY) advertises herself as “A realtor you CAN trust.”

For a moment, consider what they AREN’T saying. Mr. Habib implies nobody else listens to your needs; Ms. Butler suggests you can’t trust anyone else.

With a seemingly endless supply of realtors selling themselves, listening and trust become critical to achieving success. In both these cases, a few well-chosen words have allowed these professionals to rise above a crowded field.

Mr. Habib is a MAN who listens (important to women, who make most families’ big buying decisions). Ms. Butler knows others are also saying you can trust them, and neatly plants a doubt.

Now consider your business. The increasingly noisy marketplace bombards the average adult with roughly 5,000 advertising messages daily. Finding a few words for customers to hang onto can easily make a huge difference.

Just make sure they’re the correct words, and put the emphasis in the right place.

And please use some original thinking. Mr. Habib didn’t say “Got Real Estate?” or “You’ve tried the rest, now try the best!”. He instead targets his audience, including his phrase as part of an overall messaging campaign.

Language can be powerful. As McDonald’s used to say, “You deserve a break today.” More on point, YOU deserve bigger profits today.

And taking the time to understand your customer profile and build messaging that effectively reaches that person should help you generate better revenues.

With that said, I wish you a week of profitable marketing.

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Get branding help at www.askmrmarketing.com. 

b2c marketing, corporate messaging, strategic planningRob WeinbergMBT ConsultingBrian Habib, branding, ask mr. marketing, LanguageComment