If advertising and digital agencies are so creative, why do so many of them use the same words?
Let’s begin with their names. If I see one more [Colour]/[Animal] combination, I swear I’m signing up for a Foundation Certificate in Bookkeeping.
Or beekeeping. Whatever.
You know the score. Purple Frog. Orange Meerkat. Green Chicken. Yellow Armadillo. Pink pangolin.
I could go on. Perm any combo. They’re all the same.
Website language
Then there’s the lingo they plaster all over their websites.
Everything’s ‘engaging’ or ‘immersive’. Engaging content. Immersive video. Engaging copy. Immersive 3D experiences.
If it’s not immersive, it’s ‘curated’. Curated content. Curated digital. Curated talents.
In my experience, ‘curated’ belongs in a museum.
And what about ‘disruptive’? Disruptive marketing strategies. Disrupting the industry. Disruptive social-media campaigns. There’s even an agency called Disruptive. Apparently, they’re the paradigm shift you’ve been looking for.
That’s a shame, cos I wasn’t searching for one.
Get a room
Oh, and ‘passionate’. We’re passionate about this, passionate about that, passionate about tax returns or pet insurance or correction fluid.
No you’re not. And get a room.
All these words are lazy, maybe even brainwashed.
There’s a thing in writing called ‘show, don’t tell’. That is, you could say, ‘With 25 years in the industry, we’re passionate about personal training.’
That’s telling. It doesn’t back up your claim with hard evidence. Saying you’re passionate about something is like saying you’re funny, but not being able to come up with a joke.
Provide evidence
When you show, you provide evidence that the target can use to tick off their list of objections.
Going back to the personal training, you might talk about your tailored nutrition advice, how you work evenings and weekends, or your free home programme.
These are all solid, real things. While passionate is just an empty claim.
Agencies, please find new words.
If you need new words, you know where to find me. 07745 092037.
