But, what exactly is a buzzword, what do they mean and how are they used?
What Is a Business Buzzword?
Individuals working within different industries and businesses will often create their own form of language and abbreviations that are relevant to what they do. These words are designed to be understood by those working within the same industry and are often abbreviated or shortened terms. Buzzwords are particularly popular within the marketing and sales industries. When a company is attempting to boost staff morale or describe their culture, they may choose to use buzzwords to do so. Some words will stay in use for years, whereas others will become passing trends. There is also a difference in the buzzwords used between colleagues and those that may be created to appeal to customers or a specific target audience.
When Should You Use Buzzwords?
Internal communications – Buzzwords can be used when sending internal emails or business memos. They can often serve as a way to abbreviate and shorten messages without losing their meaning. When motivating a team – Buzzwords are often motivational and encouraging in the way they sound. This is why they can often be a good choice when it comes to giving a team talk or encouraging better performance. When you know the person you are talking to responds well to buzzwords – Some individuals respond well to the use of buzzwords, others have an intense dislike for them. It is important to know your audience and communicate appropriately. In advertising – There are certain buzzwords that appeal to customers and the general public. These are often related to current trends. For this reason, it can be useful to use them for advertising purposes.
When to Avoid Using Buzzwords
Within formal letters – Buzzwords are essentially slang terms. Although they may be widely used in conversation or more informal business memos, they should not be used in formal letters or official documentation. If you are dealing with individuals from another industry – Buzzwords are generally unique to their own industry. For this reason, when you are communicating with others from outside your particular sector, it is advisable to avoid using them. This helps to circumvent any confusion or misunderstanding. If you don’t know exactly what they mean – This should go without saying, but if you don’t know exactly what a buzzword means, then don’t use it. By using a word that you don’t fully understand, you could discover that what you are trying to say has been misinterpreted.
Our Pick of the Top 30 Business Buzzwords People Don’t Usually Understand
1. Synergy
This is a word used to describe the way that different areas of a company work together in order to achieve a goal. When a team works well together or different departments work to achieve a common goal, then this is described as synergising or having synergy.
2. Action It
This is another way of saying that a task should be done. When someone is asked to ‘action’ something, it is essentially telling them to get on with the job in hand. It can be a useful phrase to use when different members of a team are being given a variety of tasks to undertake.
3. Value Add
This is a relatively obvious term used to describe whether something or someone has a positive impact and therefore adds value.
4. Thought Leader
This is a phrase that has grown in popularity over recent years, especially on social media. It is commonly used to describe someone who is a leader in their chosen field. Generally, this is a term used by individuals to describe themselves (rather than businesses using it describe their staff), which is why it can be seen as being boastful or self-important.
5. Blue Sky Thinking
This is used to describe a belief that anything is possible. New ideas, processes and technologies can be thought of and designed. The only limit is imagination.
6. Circle Back
Indicates that thoughts or conversations need to be brought back on track if they have deviated from the designated topic. It is often used in the context of brainstorming sessions or meetings when a lot of ideas may be proposed, some of which might not be relevant. It may also be used when a project needs to revisit ideas that were previously disregarded.
7. Bottleneck
This is a commonly used word in a variety of different contexts, both at work and in the wider world. In a work context, it indicates that capacity has been reached; meaning that processes have slowed down and a backlog has been created.
8. Wheelhouse
The term ‘wheelhouse’ has been adopted from boating. It is used to describe someone’s speciality or key skill set. It can also be used to describe the specialist focus of a company.
9. Boil the Ocean
Often, this will be a term used to indicate that a task is particularly difficult, perhaps even impossible.
10. Onboarding
This is the process of introducing new staff members to a company. Unlike in past times when new employees would arrive for their first day and immediately be expected to start work, an onboarding experience gradually introduces employees to their tasks and obligations while ensuring that they understand the aims and values of the company they are working for.
11. Deep Dive
Commonly, this is a phrase used to describe an in-depth brainstorming session, typically when there is a problem which needs solving. This will involve complex analysis of a topic and considers all possible options before forming a solution. Normally, this would be done in a group, working to create and communicate ideas that can then be tried, tested and implemented.
13. Cloud and Cloud-Based
These are phrases that are becoming more widely used in the general population. Within a business setting, ‘cloud’ and ‘cloud-based’ are terms used to describe applications, resources and services that are made available via the internet rather than in a physical form.
14. Big Data
This is a term used to describe the large amounts of information and data that can be collected. Usually, this is done by those in the marketing industry and the term is used to simplify large, complex sets of information that is commonly used to analyze markets and discover patterns.
15. Data Driven
This describes the approach a business takes to making decisions and planning changes. These choices are made by using and interpreting complex data from a variety of sources. The idea is to use this information to provide a better service and experience for customers.
16. Analytics
This is a term commonly used in a variety of areas of business. In simple terms, [analytics] (/uk/courses/subject/google-analytics/) is the processing and analyzing of current and historical data. This is done in order to identify trends, before making decisions which are based on this information.
17. Jacking
This is the process of using trending media in a way that furthers your own business. Commonly, this will be seen when companies jump on breaking news trends to highlight their own agendas or through the use of popular memes to market a product or service.
18. Move the Needle
This is a way for companies and managers to encourage big changes. People who are described as ‘moving the needle’ are considered to be highly influential within their industries.
19. Leverage
This term is used to describe one party that has an advantage over another. This could be between individuals, departments or companies. It can also be used to describe taking advantage of an opportunity to its full extent.
20. Agile
This can mean a variety of things depending on the person who is using it. The most common use of ‘agile’ is to describe someone who is able to constantly adapt and adjust to changing situations.
21. Next Gen
Also known as ‘next generation’, this is a term used to describe both customers and products. It is usually used to describe new changes, innovations and technologies
22. Bandwidth
This is a term that is generally used to describe the amount of capacity someone has to get things done. When someone says that they are ‘out of bandwidth’, they mean that they are working to capacity and are unable to take on any more.
23. Growth Hacking
This means making the most of free marketing methods in order to increase reach and growth. It is commonly used by smaller businesses that can’t afford extensive marketing campaigns. Free marketing methods will include blogs, social media, content marketing and optimizing SEO strategies.
24. Digital Transformation
This can have many meanings, but is generally used to describe the ability of technology to transform and improve the performance of a business. This can be seen in the digitizing of processes or the implementation of new software and technologies to improve existing processes.
25. Touch Points
This is a term used to describe the ways that a customer can interact with a business. Examples of touchpoints would be via telephone, company website, app or in-store. It can also be used to describe the customer service staff who directly communicate with customers. Businesses will often talk about how touchpoints should be a positive experience for customers.
26. Customer Journey
Used to describe all of the experiences a customer will go through during their interaction with a company. This is often viewed to fully understand what a customer will experience before improvements can be made.
27. Voice of the Customer
This is a research method used to consider whether a business, product or service fully meets the needs of the customer. It can be used to identify gaps and highlight areas in need of improvement.
28. Alignment/Aligned
This is used to describe whether a company’s actions are in line with their goals and values. It can also be used to describe the idea that tasks should be aligned with desired outcomes.
29. Earned Media
This is essentially media and marketing that isn’t paid for, but can be beneficial for a company. Examples of earned media would be: mentions or shares on social media, recommendations and reviews.
30. Advertainment
This is a term used to describe advertising that is also entertaining. It’s commonly found within the marketing industry.
Final Thoughts
Buzzwords are growing in popularity and, as language is constantly evolving, it seems that more are being created all of the time. But, it is still important to know your audience and fully understand what you are saying before introducing buzzwords to your everyday vocabulary. They may be useful in face-to-face conversations of communications with those within the same industry as yourself, but you should always take care to communicate clearly with those outside of your area of expertise and in formal communications. This will help to avoid misunderstandings and confusion.
