Every industry has them. Maybe, you are a little short on content for that case study or presentation? Or, you are speaking on a topic that you aren’t entirely comfortable talking about it. So, you pull out those “cool-sounding words” that are meant to “wow” your audience. Some of these “buzzwords” are becoming a bit too overabundant. Here’s 12 words that I wish every PR pro, marketer and advertiser would stop abusing in 2012.
1. Synergy
WTF, does synergy even mean? I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve heard the term used in news conferences and read it in press releases and articles for years.
2. Klout or +K
Oh, good ole’ Klout. This quasi-mysterious algorithm attempts to quantify influence. The problem is you really can’t quantify influence– at least not yet.
3. Jack of all trades
I’ve had a problem with this one since my days in j-school. It’s mainly because everyone who says they are a jack of all trades really isn’t one. It’s usually a cleverly disguised excuse to glorify mediocrity.
4. Innovation/innovator/innovative
Just because you are calling yourself an innovator, doesn’t mean you actually are one.
5. Ninja/guru/expert/jedi/visionary/chief unicorn chaser
The list is endless. People can call themselves whatever they want, but these “colorful titles” mean absolutely nothing without additional context.
6. Revolutionary
The Civil War was revolutionary. Women’s suffrage was revolutionary. The Civil Rights Act was revolutionary. Your new business product is most likely not.
7. The “mommy blogger”
I’m not sure when the term, “mommy blogger” became a category for anybody who blogs and has kids, including guys. . .
8. Out of the box/Thinking out of the box
Can you say cliche? It’s also terribly undescriptive.
9. Logistics
Now, this word just isn’t overused by a certain international shipping company. It’s overwhelmingly abused by just about everybody.
9. Game-changer
This is similar to my beef over the word, revolutionary. Game-changing moments should be reserved for the winning touchdown pass in the Superbowl, or the homerun that clinched the win in Game 7 of the World Series.
10. The next big thing
There’s only so many things that can be the next big thing. Still confused? See also revolutionary and game-changer.
11. Integrated/Integrated efforts
Just a tiny, tiny bit vague, right?
12. Real Time
It’s December 2011. Not 1993. Let’s scrap this one from our vocab. K, thanks.
What additional buzzwords should be added to this list? Please leave them below in the comment section.
