In the Great Advertising Debate, branding vs. direct response, I’ve always come down on the side of direct response. Every marketing message (not just ads) should have a call to action, a way of moving the reader/viewer/listener forward.
With the Internet making it very easy to remove material from its original context and share it, I [...]
Entries Tagged as 'language'
Great Ad…Missed Opportunity to Increase Effectiveness
February 28th, 2010 · 3 Comments · Advertising, Energy & Sustainability, Marketing Techniques and Philosophies, language
Tags: branding·direct response advertising·oil extraction·oil shale tar sands·rainforest action network·royal bank of canada
My Name is Shel and I’ll Be Your Jargon-Cop Today
September 5th, 2009 · No Comments · Web 2.0/Social Media, language
One of my pet peeves is professional communicators who can’t communicate.
Today I followed a link to an interesting-sounding article about why businesses could benefit from managing multiple Twitter accounts for different purposes. As a social media strategist (among other hats I wear), I figured I could get some fresh perspective.
What I got instead was [...]
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Hey, Guys–Are You Macho Enough to Wear Pink?
July 2nd, 2009 · No Comments · Advertising, Marketing Techniques and Philosophies, People Helping People, language
“Are you tough enough to wear pink?” This was the campaign they ran this year – everyone who bought a pink western shirt (yes – for the guys) was donating a percentage of the shirt price to breast cancer research.
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Worst Bit of Corporate Gobbledygook of the Day
June 18th, 2009 · 5 Comments · Copywriting, Energy & Sustainability, Uncategorized, language
From a Starbucks press release–the second sentence in the first paragraph, and within the quote, I’ve linked to the full press release:
With the goal of prioritization and agreement on criteria for a comprehensive recyclable cup solution, discussions will address obstacles and opportunities.
Who writes this crap? I’m sorry, but that’s not English. Will someone please tell [...]
Tags: Copywriting·press releases·recyclable coffee cups·starbucks·storytelling
And When Did “Pimp” Become a Positive Verb, Anyway?
May 19th, 2009 · 4 Comments · Ethics: General, language
Call me old-fashioned, but I reject the transition of “pimp” form a negative noun–a man who rents out the bodies of women he controls (and a verb to describe that action)–to a positive verb, to make something look classy and flashy by adding gizmos and gewgaws and bling.
I don’t like it. Pimping is not a [...]
This is Disgusting Anti-Semitism
May 17th, 2009 · No Comments · Ethics: General, People Helping People, Social and Economic Justice, language
Bad enough that Arkansas State Senator Kim Hendren called Chuck Schumer ‘that Jew’–but even worse is the anti-Semitic trash talk from so many readers of the New York Daily News story about it.
Eeeew! In 2009, we should be better than that! In fact, that kind of racist crap should have been unacceptable in 1809. No [...]
Tags: anti-semitism·racism·senator charles schumer·state senator kim hendron
