Why it’s time to ditch the corporate speak for good

Chances are you’ve either used, or been on the receiving end of, terms like “circling back”, “moving the needle” or “pushing the envelope”. These are all examples of corporate speak, or jargon, that many of us have heard so many times, we may have stopped hearing how meaningless they are. 

But corporate speak isn’t just ineffective communication, it’s actually capable of much worse - even dangerous or legal - consequences for your brand. 

The term ‘corporate speak’ refers to the seemingly innocent vocabulary of workplace slang that dominates our meetings, emails, and, worse (as far as we’re concerned) - our content. 

It’s the classic method of saying a lot, but not really saying anything at all. 

To give you a little dose of corporate speak, we asked the expert of overcomplicated language (ChatGPT) to give us an example. Here’s what it came up with:

“As we synergize our core competencies and leverage cutting-edge paradigms, our mission-critical objectives are poised for exponential growth and maximum impact in the dynamic marketplace landscape. Leveraging robust data analytics and harnessing the power of actionable insights, we're strategically positioned to pivot towards disruptive strategies, cultivating synergistic partnerships and unlocking untapped potential for sustainable, future-proof growth.”

How many of those words have you used today? Because if it’s more than three, we might need to act quickly. 

Corporate speak is typically used in our workplace or content marketing because we think it will improve our productivity or perhaps reinforce our professionalism, but it's also deeper than that. One of the main reasons we use slang is to foster a sense of community and build group identity. When a group of people use a common slang, it creates a common bond that can bring them closer together, but the wider effect of corporate speak can often do the reverse.

Corporate speak’s ability to bring people together is equally as powerful in excluding those who aren’t in on the lingo. And it’s this that poses a major threat to brands that are using content to try to increase their reach and strengthen connections with their customers. 

Still not convinced?

The Plain English Foundation not only agrees that simple is better, but brings to light how corporate speak can actually be harmful to an organisation in their list of Worst Words of 2023. 

In extreme cases, brands can inadvertently weaponise corporate jargon to minimise the severity of crisis or avoid public responsibility by hiding behind a false professionalism - which can see them losing fans in a big way.

Let’s take Elon Musk’s company SpaceX, for example. Last year, their new spacecraft exploded after takeoff, with debris landing on spectators, homes, cars and even a wildlife sanctuary. Their crisis response afterwards referred to the disastrous incident as “rapid unscheduled assembly”, rightfully earning them the number 1 spot on the Worst Words list for 2023. 

The aftermath of SpaceX’s crisis management nightmare? Strained relationships with their community, a whole lot of negative publicity, and several lawsuits.

And while using corporate speak isn’t always quite as bad as that, or even technically illegal, its overly abstract nature and potential for misinterpretation can significantly hinder communication lines.

Corporate speak can also plague our communication in the office too. Preply’s list of the top 10 most misunderstood corporate jargon terms highlights the gap between the jargon people use and just how many of us aren’t sure what they actually mean.

Source: Preply, 2024

If your audience, customers, or staff find it difficult to decipher or follow your message, it can either go over their heads or leave them feeling alienated.

And when it comes to building human-centric brands that truly connect and create community and brand loyalty, messages with corporate speak can be a missed opportunity to communicate authentically and foster trust with our audience. Any grit we add to our communications is resistance we don’t need. 

How to embrace plain language and sound more human

Corporate speak can be robotic, and people want to connect with humans, not robots. Here are three ways you can reduce corporate speak to communicate more effectively, engage your audience and avoid sounding like a AI chatbot: 

1.Simplify the topic

Corporate speak often likes to mesh multiple concepts together, producing terms that are abstract, broad or vague (ahem, “humaneering”?). If you have a bullet-proof understanding of the topic it will help your message to be more specific and relevant, making it easier for your audience to connect with.

2. Know your audience

Understand your user personas thoroughly, including all of their characteristics that influence the way they communicate. Consider their background, expertise, habits, profession, and culture when crafting your message. This can help you to be more direct and effective in connecting with your audience. 

3. Tell stories

There’s a dryness to corporate speak that can make your audience switch off. Humans love stories, and using strong storytelling skills will engage your audience and help make your message stick too. 

When it comes to building authentic brands, it’s time to say goodbye to using jargon or terminology to impress. Use clear, straightforward language that is easily understood by your target audience. Copy that sounds conversational comes across as more authentic, which will foster trust with your people and create a community that loves your brand. 

 As a content agency dedicated to creating human-sounding content that truly connects with its audience, we’re taking a stand against corporate jargon in the name of effective communication.

If you’d like to know more about how Stellar Content can help your organisation sound more human and less corporate, book a 20-minute chat with us by clicking the button below.