Will You Add?
#1 in Business Subscribe Email Print

You are here: Home > Business > Marketing > How to Handle Jargon at Your Web Site - and Why

Tags

  • didnt
  • using
  • acronyms
  • another company
  • sites comply
  • ordinary product

  • Links

  • Kettering University Professors Aims To Lower Hybrid Costs
  • Alcoholism in Peru (and Mantaro Valley) Special Report, Part 4 and Closing)
  • Cat Ear Health And Ear Mites
  • Will You Add? - How to Handle Jargon at Your Web Site - and Why

    Project Management – Scheduling Projects Made Easy
    Complex projects require sophisticated software and scheduling tools, however simpler and more straightforward projects involving only a few people over a relatively short period of time require a much simpler approach.Usually, a simple project will have a few steps which are dependent on other steps taking place first, and will be relatively straightforward to coordinate. An example might be creating and implementing a marketing p
    ar term comes up, its meaning will be clear. For instance, see how the explanation precedes the term "assessment of human capital" in the following passage:

    "Management's leadership abilities, operating abilities and personal motivations can profoundly influence what happens after a change in ownership. In contrast to the financials, the true strengths and weaknesses of a company's executives may remain hidden, only to surface later with disastrous results. To minimize risks, buyers need to take care of due diligence on company management. This

    Profiles of the Powerful: Advertising Exec Steve Grasse
    After ten minutes with Ed Tettemer in the offices of the agency he founded with partner, Steve Red, you begin to understand the agency's passion for excellence. After an hour with Ed, you begin to understand the intensity of his personal passion. You begin to understand it but I have a feeling that, even after days and days of exposure to him, you probably wouldn't get the whole picture."Passion," the word, may seem descriptive of a
    If you sell a technical product or service, you probably know you have jargon at your web site - specialized terminology that the average person doesn't understand. While jargon does help you communicate precisely with peers, it seriously gets in the way if potential and actual customers aren't as conversant with it as you are.

    Plenty of heart patients, for instance, don't know what a "myocardial infarction" is (a heart attack). Many pregnant women have never heard of a "doula," a woman who coaches them through labor. Movers and shakers thinking of buying another company don't necessarily know the term "assessment of human capital." Hardly anyone would know what "global readiness solutions" are, since one company made up the term. The same goes for abbreviations and acronyms used without the spelled-out versions, like "W3C, 508 compliant."

    If you sell an ordinary product or service, you're also in danger of having jargon serve as a barrier at your web site. You may be using common words in ways most people wouldn't understand. For example, the sentence "We partner with creative men and women so they reach their goals" doesn't contain any unusual words or expressions, but most readers wouldn't grasp that it means "Creative men and women hire us to help them reach their goals." At a real estate site, I once saw the headline "Not a drive-by!" and didn't know whether a "drive-by" meant that you wouldn't want to stop or that you wouldn't need to.

    Nearly everyone in business overestimates - usually greatly overestimates - the extent to which customers understand their jargon.

    In most instances, you don't need to eliminate jargon, but to include an explanation so that the context makes the meaning clear. You can do this explicitly, as in these examples:

    * Treatments for myocardial infarction (heart attack)

    * Greta spent five years as a doula, a trained labor coach, before studying to become a nurse-midwife.

    * All of our web sites comply with World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) standards as well as the latest U.S. government regulations on accessibility to the disabled (Section 508).

    In other situations, you can add context so that when the unfamiliar term comes up, its meaning will be clear. For instance, see how the explanation precedes the term "assessment of human capital" in the following passage:

    "Management's leadership abilities, operating abilities and personal motivations can profoundly influence what happens after a change in ownership. In contrast to the financials, the true strengths and weaknesses of a company's executives may remain hidden, only to surface later with disastrous results. To minimize risks, buyers need to take care of due diligence on company management. This

    Government Grant Money - How Much Is Available For Your Business?
    Are you looking for funding options for your business idea, project, organization or foundation but you are not sure what programs are available and what the eligibility requirements are?Finding sources of funding is often the single biggest challenge for anyone wanting to start or expand their business. One financing option is federal or state funding from government sources. Whether you need money to start your bu
    ing of buying another company don't necessarily know the term "assessment of human capital." Hardly anyone would know what "global readiness solutions" are, since one company made up the term. The same goes for abbreviations and acronyms used without the spelled-out versions, like "W3C, 508 compliant."

    If you sell an ordinary product or service, you're also in danger of having jargon serve as a barrier at your web site. You may be using common words in ways most people wouldn't understand. For example, the sentence "We partner with creative men and women so they reach their goals" doesn't contain any unusual words or expressions, but most readers wouldn't grasp that it means "Creative men and women hire us to help them reach their goals." At a real estate site, I once saw the headline "Not a drive-by!" and didn't know whether a "drive-by" meant that you wouldn't want to stop or that you wouldn't need to.

    Nearly everyone in business overestimates - usually greatly overestimates - the extent to which customers understand their jargon.

    In most instances, you don't need to eliminate jargon, but to include an explanation so that the context makes the meaning clear. You can do this explicitly, as in these examples:

    * Treatments for myocardial infarction (heart attack)

    * Greta spent five years as a doula, a trained labor coach, before studying to become a nurse-midwife.

    * All of our web sites comply with World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) standards as well as the latest U.S. government regulations on accessibility to the disabled (Section 508).

    In other situations, you can add context so that when the unfamiliar term comes up, its meaning will be clear. For instance, see how the explanation precedes the term "assessment of human capital" in the following passage:

    "Management's leadership abilities, operating abilities and personal motivations can profoundly influence what happens after a change in ownership. In contrast to the financials, the true strengths and weaknesses of a company's executives may remain hidden, only to surface later with disastrous results. To minimize risks, buyers need to take care of due diligence on company management. This

    Making Money Consistently Using Construction Estimating Software
    That is an appealing self-assured declaration. Moreover, truthfully, it is perhaps a bit of an overstatement, but not by much. I will clarify this shortly.First, a question. Are you steadily making money on your construction jobs? Are you using cash from the job in progress to pay the bills on the last construction job that was completed?If you do, this is on the whole, one of the most imperative concepts you ever will read.<
    e men and women so they reach their goals" doesn't contain any unusual words or expressions, but most readers wouldn't grasp that it means "Creative men and women hire us to help them reach their goals." At a real estate site, I once saw the headline "Not a drive-by!" and didn't know whether a "drive-by" meant that you wouldn't want to stop or that you wouldn't need to.

    Nearly everyone in business overestimates - usually greatly overestimates - the extent to which customers understand their jargon.

    In most instances, you don't need to eliminate jargon, but to include an explanation so that the context makes the meaning clear. You can do this explicitly, as in these examples:

    * Treatments for myocardial infarction (heart attack)

    * Greta spent five years as a doula, a trained labor coach, before studying to become a nurse-midwife.

    * All of our web sites comply with World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) standards as well as the latest U.S. government regulations on accessibility to the disabled (Section 508).

    In other situations, you can add context so that when the unfamiliar term comes up, its meaning will be clear. For instance, see how the explanation precedes the term "assessment of human capital" in the following passage:

    "Management's leadership abilities, operating abilities and personal motivations can profoundly influence what happens after a change in ownership. In contrast to the financials, the true strengths and weaknesses of a company's executives may remain hidden, only to surface later with disastrous results. To minimize risks, buyers need to take care of due diligence on company management. This

    Yellow Page Ads No-No's -- Part 3
    If you have a Yellow Page ad and think it’s doing it’s job, think again. After all, when was the last time you tracked the results? In fact, before you even placed the ad, did you pass a copy around to employees, friends, relatives and total strangers to get a reaction? That’s your first problem. Then, did you set up a tracking device like a special phone number within the ad to measure the number of responses? Receiving feedback on an ad
    e jargon, but to include an explanation so that the context makes the meaning clear. You can do this explicitly, as in these examples:

    * Treatments for myocardial infarction (heart attack)

    * Greta spent five years as a doula, a trained labor coach, before studying to become a nurse-midwife.

    * All of our web sites comply with World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) standards as well as the latest U.S. government regulations on accessibility to the disabled (Section 508).

    In other situations, you can add context so that when the unfamiliar term comes up, its meaning will be clear. For instance, see how the explanation precedes the term "assessment of human capital" in the following passage:

    "Management's leadership abilities, operating abilities and personal motivations can profoundly influence what happens after a change in ownership. In contrast to the financials, the true strengths and weaknesses of a company's executives may remain hidden, only to surface later with disastrous results. To minimize risks, buyers need to take care of due diligence on company management. This

    The Evolution of Magazine
    Magazine has come a long way since it started being published in the US less than three centuries ago. Even Benjamin Franklin published one himself.But published magazines then only lasted for a few months. This is because publishers are limited geographically and the cost of magazine printing could be quite expensive. A few people could afford getting a subscription. And the target of the publishers were the “educated class” becaus
    ar term comes up, its meaning will be clear. For instance, see how the explanation precedes the term "assessment of human capital" in the following passage:

    "Management's leadership abilities, operating abilities and personal motivations can profoundly influence what happens after a change in ownership. In contrast to the financials, the true strengths and weaknesses of a company's executives may remain hidden, only to surface later with disastrous results. To minimize risks, buyers need to take care of due diligence on company management. This assessment of human capital is a specialty of New London Management Associates."

    By combining jargon with an explanation, you strengthen your message for those who already know the technicalities.

    Skillfully using ordinary language along with jargon doesn't talk down to anyone or "dumb down" your web site. You also make the value of the services or products you provide more understandable to someone who may need to sign off on a project but who is not technically sophisticated. Likewise, it becomes more likely that non-specialists who discover your site will refer other companies or individuals to you. Your web site thus becomes a stronger marketing vehicle.

    HTTP = HTML link (for blogs, profiles,phorums):
    <a href="http://www.atriclecheck.com/article/30110/atriclecheck-How-to-Handle-Jargon-at-Your-Web-Site--and-Why.html">How to Handle Jargon at Your Web Site - and Why</a>

    BB link (for phorums):
    [url=http://www.atriclecheck.com/article/30110/atriclecheck-How-to-Handle-Jargon-at-Your-Web-Site--and-Why.html]How to Handle Jargon at Your Web Site - and Why[/url]

    Related Articles:

    So You Want to Be a Consultant?

    When Your Business Feels Like an Arranged Marriage

    Four Essential Marketing Plan Components

    Bookmark it: del.icio.us digg.com reddit.com netvouz.com google.com yahoo.com technorati.com furl.net bloglines.com socialdust.com ma.gnolia.com newsvine.com slashdot.org simpy.com shadows.com blinklist.com