Some Buzz-words that are losing their Buzz

1. 360 Degree

 A term borrowed from geometry and trademarked by the Ogilvy company. However competitive agencies like JWT are equally comfortable using it, not realizing that every time they do so, they are secretly paying obeisance to Ogilvy.

 Supposed to mean all non- advertising activities that traditional   advertising agencies can’t deliver but will always promise to.

 2. Positioning

 A word originally contributed to advertising by Jack Trout and Al Ries. A very flexible word, which can fit into any simple and mundane sentence e.g. ‘this product is positioned for kids’. However it would not have the same import if it were substituted by other words such as ‘targeted’. Increasingly a throw away word, that is supposed to indicate that the user of the word is knowledgeable about marketing and advertising.

 3. Insight

 This word has taken over brand strategy and is currently the most important word in the marketing and advertising man’s vocabulary. The meaning of insight in the English dictionary is ‘the capacity to gain an accurate and deep intuitive understanding’. However advertising and marketing people often forget the qualification ‘Intuitive’. Intuitive being a rare faculty, since Big Data is making us more left-brained, people are more comfortable getting their insights from  ‘logical’ market research. 

 4. Proposition

 In logic it is a statement expressing a concept that might be true or false. It is no wonder then that there is so much argument about what the proposition should be. Because to the person who has written it, it is true and to the person who receives it in a  creative brief, it is false. Please note that it has no relationship whatsoever with Value Proposition.

 5. Branding

 A word coined by the advertising community that does not exist in the English dictionary. It is the present continuous tense of the verb ‘to brand’ used in advertising as a noun e.g. ‘The branding is weak’. Normally sounds more impressive and knowledgeable than saying ‘Could you please increase the size of my logo?’

 6. Pro-active 

 Supposed to mean all the initiatives and actions that should have been taken in the normal course of business by client and agency but are currently not being taken. However the lack of being proactive is normally attributed only to advertising agencies since it is inconceivable in the business that clients would not be pro-active even if their market cap is taking a severe beating.

7. Activation

 A non-dictionary word that is probably the noun form of the verb ‘to activate’. Could mean a series of tactical initiatives that is increasingly being given a status it does not rightfully deserve. As a word it doesn't have the same status as 'engagement'.

 8. Personality

 A word borrowed from psychology and attached to the word ‘brand’ as in ‘brand personality’. Easily substitutable by other words like ‘character’ and ‘equity’, a (term borrowed from the financial disciplines). Brand personality is almost always young, dynamic, warm and friendly, irrespective of the brand. Applies equally well to sanitary napkins and motor engine oils.

 9. Brief

 Supposed to mean a short concise document giving essential information. Normally advertising briefs are anything but brief and are written to pose a challenge to creative people, which is perhaps why creative people rarely read them.

 10. Pitch

 To fall headlong. To make a high pressure sales talk. To fix firmly in place. In advertising circles ‘pitch’ usually refers to the process of falling headlong into a high pressure sales talk, to fix firmly in the clients mind the notion that only they (the agency making the pitch) can do justice to the client’s brand.

11.  Digital Story Telling

Is a short form of digital media production that allows everyday people to share aspects of their life story. As a word it is used  by people who work in digital to make people in other industries feel a little inferior and overwhelmed.

12. Big Data

Is the Britney Spears of the new marketing man's vocabulary. ( young and over-used ).  Conjures up images of some one churning large amounts of data that is not going to be useful to anybody except themselves.  It is a word to be watched because they say that the Chief Data Officer is likely to replace the Chief Marketing Officer in the future.

13. Citysumers

Used by people who think that consumers is an old fashioned term that has outlived its purpose. They have consequently moved on to Prosumers, have tired of it  since its no longer trending and and are now looking for something more fashionable.  A   simpler substitute for this word is simply 'urbanites' which unfortunately simply does not have the same import and hardly likely to  baffle anyone.

14. Native advertising

Is anything but native, lest you think this means something like  advertising to rural folk. If it was, Pradeep Kashyap would have used it eons ago. It is only another baffling word which is supposed to mean sponsored content typically on social media.

15. Deep Dives

Apologies if you thought  that this had anything to do with snorkelling equipment. Deep dives means a deep immersion process into a project or problem.