I just got an email saying we need to “Fight to ensure transparency.” It was regarding the supplement industry.
You could slide this word into any topic…politics, medicine, food production, business, etc., and it would have literally no effect on creating a positive outcome.
“Transparency” is a dead word. It’s one of the many marketing buzz words (along with “quality,” “respectability” “integrity,” “authenticity,” etc.) that businesses are now using to describe their methods, products, and approach in a positive way…
Everybody uses these words. Everybody claims to have transparency and quality. So therefore, no one has it.
I call these “Dead Words.”
They’re completely ineffective, and a waste of space. (Does the sun go around saying “I’m authentic, transparent, and full of integrity?” No, it doesn’t need to…it just shines its light.)
Ironically, the companies that sell the most toxic products seem to be the ones over-using these dead words.
They’ve trained consumers to parrot these dead words right back to them, via statements like, “We demand more transparency!”
Dead Words are nothing more than slick marketing lingo…designed to lure people in via manipulation.
One of my Anti-Marketing principles is “Stop Using Dead Words.”
Transparency is for plastic wrap, not people. Integrity is for narcissists and cheaters. Authenticity is code for “fake.” “Respectable” organizations are built on lies.
Most marketing is flat out manipulative and dysfunctional, relying on dead words to do the job.
Fuck marketing! There’s a better way to get the word out about your products!…And it’s called Anti-Marketing!
How does it work? Simple — just tell users what you’re NOT doing.
Example: “Most companies in our industry do XYZ… we don’t do that. That method causes [UNWANTED SIDE EFFECTS HERE], and we’re not about that. Instead, we do ABC, which causes [DESIRABLE OUTCOMES HERE]…”
Fill in the blanks using alive words that jump off the screen and smack the reader in the face.
By contrasting what you do versus what you don’t do…you teach the reader cause and effect. They learn how different methods produce different results. This is valuable to readers, because it this helps them make an informed decision…not a decision that was made based on dead words.
Instead of using manipulation to sell, you use Truth to sell. You help people choose from a place of TOTAL UNDERSTANDING whether they want to buy your product… or the fake product that boasts of having “transparency.”
Does your product sales page have “dead words” in it? If so, let’s clean it up.
Send it to me for edits, so that you can make a stronger impact on readers and generate more sales.
www.AntiMarketingManifesto.com
Michelle Lopez Boggs is a copywriter, copywriting mentor, and author of "The Anti-Marketing Manifesto: How to Sell Without Being a Sellout." She's helped her clients sell millions of dollars' worth of products and services online by using the MEI(S) principle — motivate, educate, and inspire, and sell. 