Mills on Marketing

One of the things that I admire about Disney World is the way it transforms its low paid workforce into a cast of brand evangelists.

Walt Disney understood that the words we use frame the way we think and often behavior. Disney created his own language to support the Disney mission of delivering happiness through entertainment.

In Disney Speak:

• Rides or shows are always called ATTRACTIONS
• Employees are always CAST MEMBERS
• Customers are always called GUESTS
• Jobs are always called ROLES

On the surface, language can seem superficial or trite. But words create images that reinforce assumptions. Take the word GUEST. A disgruntled customer evoked a different image to an unhappy guest. Guests always deserve special treatment, while customers often evoke images of indifference.

If you want to create a service culture where staff stay in role or on-brand, start by changing the vocabulary you use to label staff, roles and customers. The right words really can mobilize your culture.

Popularity: 22% [?]

I never cease to be amazed by the number of inane responses when we ring service centers.

It doesn’t matter whether its Dublin, Atlanta, or Mumbai, but the same prerecorded voice bleats out, “Your call is extremely important to us. Please hold and your call will be answered by the next available agent.”

As a customer, you know your call is not important. If it were there would be enough staff to answer the call.

Why don’t companies limit themselves to a simple sorry? Gratuitous responses simply add to the frustration of hanging on.

Popularity: 13% [?]

Most of us are familiar with the power of goal setting. Setting SMART goals must be one of the most common acronyms used by trainers and coaches.

SMART stands for:

Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Time-driven

Graham Jones and Adrian Moorehouse in their book Developing Mental Toughness, have coined a new acronym INSPIRED which I think works even better. Why? Because it adds the emotional element to goal setting which is lacking in the SMART formula.

The INSPIRED Formula is:

Internalized
Nurturing
Specific
Planned
In your control
Reviewed regularly
Energizing
Documented

Popularity: 12% [?]

Few teenagers have trouble translating this text message.
“Talk to you later, gotta go to work, love you lots.”

If teenagers are your customers and you don’t understand how they talk you have a problem.

The first step in understanding any group of customers is to understand how they talk.

Popularity: 6% [?]

Business is drowning in meaningless acronyms. How about this one I came across in Why Business People Speak Like Idiots:

SCUBA - a System to Clean Up Bogus Acronyms

Acronyms that act as memory aids are useful tools.

Acronyms for the sake of acronyms irritate and frustrate.

Popularity: 7% [?]

This heading is a punchy and persuasive chapter in the best book on plain communication I’ve read in a while: Why Business People Speak Like Idiots.

An example taken from Accenture’s annual report which attempts to spell out what sets them apart from competitors: “We harness deep industry, process and technology expertise and unrivaled large-scale, complex change capabilities.”

What does this sentence communicate to you about the style and personality of Accenture?

The authors, Brian Fugere, Chelsea Hardaway and Jon Warshawsky have developed Bullfighter a software that quantifies idiocy in the world of business writing.

Popularity: 6% [?]

“I notice that you use plain simple language, short words and brief sentences.

That is the way to write English — it is the modern way and the best way.

Stick to it; don’t let fluff and flowers and verbosity creep in.” - Mark Twain

“The great enemy of clear language is insincerity.

When there is a gap between one’s real and one’s declared aims, one turns instinctively to long words and exhausted idioms, like a cuttle fish squirting out ink.” - George Orwell, Animal Farm

Popularity: 7% [?]