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July 31, 2014 at 08:30 AM
Let me be the first to admit that I have been complicit in using “think outside the box” before (Exhibit A), as well as a few other phrases on this list. So sue me (please, don’t!). However, if you are trying to write marketing or sales documents that will represent your brand and make that valuable first impression, I implore you: Please, don’t use any of these clichés — or, at the very least, try to disguise them as much as possible.
Clients want to see new and creative ideas that will captivate their imagination, make them dream, visualize a happy future, or transport them to a distant memory. Following is a short list of some of the worst clichés and taglines in marketing. Consider this a public service designed to help bring light to these hackneyed blunders, and prevent them from tarnishing future marketing efforts.
1) The visual analogy of the light bulb
We know that Bugs Bunny, Mickey Mouse and other animated cartoons like Wile E. Coyote constantly use this analogy to convey the fact that they’ve thought of a brilliant idea. Along the lines of “oh my gosh, please just stop, this is not brilliant and it’s overused,” the folks at 101 Clichés agree: “there’s not a retina on the planet that the light bulb isn’t burned on the back of. Let’s do everyone a favor and switch it off.”
An alternative:
Symbolism is powerful when you’re trying to find a logo or image to convey a message. Sometimes the best ideas are simple and right in front you. Clear your mind, desk and white board. Write a list of your values, your mission and your objectives. Hopefully, this exercise in reflection and analysis will yield the visual analogy that you’re looking for, instead of resorting to the easiest one. For example, Apple’s logo, the apple, came from the idea that the forbidden apple was what led to creation (among other things). Simple. Elegant. Apple.
2) Built from the ground up
We understand that you’re proud of your business and you want to convey that to your clients. But, ask yourself: if it wasn’t “built from the ground up,” was it built “from the ground down” or “from the side,” etc.? Leave the brand storytelling for the “About Us” or “History” page on your website or information packet, and skip making this your unoriginal tagline.
An alternative:
Be clear about your services or products. Your clients will appreciate that you tell them from the get-go what you and your brand are all about. Remember, you only have a few seconds to capture their attention.
3) Rock stars and ninjas
If we’re being honest, we all want to be rock stars … the paparazzi, the glitter falling from the concert venue’s ceiling, the multi-platinum album sales … except, we are not. And there seems to be a lot of rock stars at a lot of companies lately. The only media outlet that begs to differ a little bit is The Wall Street Journal: they recommend you hire the entire band, instead! What about the roadies, WSJ?
In the real world, rock stars are part of a double (if not triple) edged sword: they’re influential, they might define cultural phenomena and they are highly controversial, more often than not, in a negative way. Rock stars also sometimes want to shine on their own, which is a problem when you’re trying to work as a team.
Ninja is another term that tends to stick. This was a buzzword in 2010. An unknown ninja has had his own videoblog on YouTube since 2005 called “Ask a Ninja.” And while we might wish to have the amazing hiding abilities and superior fighter skills of the ninjas from feudal Japan, we owe it to our five-year-old self to leave this one behind…
An alternative:
Be honest. People appreciate honesty, especially in this era where anything and everything can be taken out of context or photoshopped. Also, remember that anyone trying too hard to be cool usually comes off as a phony. Or, as famed advertising exec David Ogilvy once said, “Our business is infested with idiots who try to impress by using pretentious jargon.”
