More than ‘welcome’: How to get beyond the weakest PR cliché

Why has ‘welcome’ become the default word to use in press releases or social media posts reacting to a policy or news development?

Along with its opposite, ‘regret’ – meant to signal opposition to something – ‘welcome’ is a tired expression that fails to convey any meaningful information to the reader in a public relations context, even if it looks nice on a doormat.

One of the most important principles of communicating effectively is avoiding clichés – expressions that are so commonly used they have become essentially meaningless.

Type them and you tell your audience, “I couldn’t come up with anything original.” Unfortunately, they are relied upon all the time – not just because they are easily deployed but also because writers think they will be familiar to people.

In the policy PR world, one common construction is “[I/We/ACRONYM no one recognizes] welcome/regret/condemn [policy/news development].”

‘Welcome’ sounds positive but usually fails to make any point beyond a reflex-like reaction. Most major policy announcements are usually followed by an avalanche of ‘welcomes’ and ‘regrets’. Never mind that if you ‘regret’ something you imply that you are at least partly to blame for it.

Then there are the supposedly stronger but no less specific ‘condemn’ and ‘condemn in the strongest possible terms’, which are also used frequently even if those ‘strongest possible terms’ are rarely expressed.

But there’s a better way: Be sharp and be specific. If something is good, say why it is good and then add something that advances your message. Then you are not just reacting with an overused word. Likewise, if something is bad, say why it is bad and then propose your alternative.

Consider a statement tweeted from European Council President Charles Michel in 2021, which read: “Together with @EP_President Sassoli and @vonderleyen, we condemn in the strongest possible terms Russia’s unacceptable decision to ban President Sassoli, @EU_Commission @VeraJourova and 6 EU Member States’ officials from entering its territory.”

What terms?! It would have been so much stronger if Michel had said something like “Russia’s unacceptable ban on EU officials entering its territory is an affront to democracy and the rule of law and the EU will [insert something it will do].”

It’s not likely that ‘welcome’ will disappear as the auto-type reaction word in the PR lexicon anytime soon. It’s easy to use and ticks a box – you’ve expressed, even if blandly, a position. But for stronger, clearer communication that sends a real message to an audience, leave ‘welcome’ on the doormat and say something meaningful.?