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Archive for the ‘jargon’ Category

Jan 7th, 2010 by Gail Nelson

Siegel on AP Radio: Healthcare reform bill is ‘monument to complexity’

Ross Simpson, AP Radio News Anchor:
A plain language expert says the health care reform bill is a monument to complexity. AP Correspondent Warren Levinson has more:

Warren Levinson, AP Correspondent:
Let’s say the Senate and House come to agreement on the health care reform bill and pass it. Will anyone be able to understand it?

Alan Siegel, Siegel+Gale Chairman:
It’s one of the most unintelligible things I’ve ever seen.

Levinson:
And Alan Siegel, a brand consultant who has spent decades simplifying insurance forms, tax forms, and credit card bills, knows from unintelligible, and says the health bill is like a perfect storm of jargon.

Siegel:
Medical jargons meets legal jargon meets people who are fighting with other trying to put something together at the last minute jargon.

Levinson:
Sure it may pass, Siegel says, but he contends no one really knows what they’re passing.

This interview aired on AP Radio the week of January 3, 2010.

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tags: Uncategorized, complexity, healthcare, jargon, media mention, plain English

Dec 28th, 2009 by Irene Etzkorn

Plain talk replaces police lingo

I cheered when I read that police departments around the nation are rapidly dropping their “10 code” lingo in favor of Plain Talk radio transmissions. The events of September 11 precipitated the changeover when dozens of emergency responders couldn’t communicate because each had their own set of coded messages.

It is a classic example of how “insider jargon” can be both glamorous and dangerous at the same time. I admit I loved Adam-12 and other television shows and movies that glamorized police jargon—after all responding to a 10-22 sounds a bit more intriguing than chasing a burglar. Speaking in code is fun when it makes you feel part of a club. But, it can be dangerous when it becomes exclusionary in a moment of crisis.

I’m hopeful that the medical profession will jump on this bandwagon. It’s disconcerting when doctors and nurses ask, “How are you doing since the cabbage?” when you have just had major surgery and haven’t eaten in days. Most open heart surgery patients don’t know that a Coronary Bypass is called a cabbage by doctors and nurses (some shortening of Coronary Arterial Bypass and Graft).

So, over and out for now.

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tags: clarity, complexity, jargon, plain English, simplicity, simplification

Aug 14th, 2008 by Alan Siegel

Too Many Firms Use Jargon to Convey Ideas

Philadelphia Inquirer

Too many firms use jargon to convey ideas
By Stacey Burling
INQUIRER STAFF WRITER

So you’re at a party getting to know a couple of attractive strangers.

"What do you do?" you ask one of them innocently.

"I’m a market-leading provider of technology-enabled process-optimization tools to reduce and right-size inventory, improve forecast accuracy and service, optimize production resources, and reduce cycle time across the supply chain," your new acquaintance intones.

Whoa, time to get out of here, you think. But you recover your social graces enough to look hopefully at his friend.

"Well," the friend says, "I develop small-molecule, orally administered pharmacological chaperones for the treatment of human genetic diseases."

"How interesting," you lie, edging toward the door. "I’m sorry to run, but I just remembered I have to clean the cat boxes. Nice meeting you."

Obvious as it may be that such heinous assaults on the English language would send people at a party running, this is how real businesses introduce themselves to reporters - and anyone else who reads their news releases on their Web sites - every day.

After enduring this literary torture nearly to the breaking point, we thought it might help to share our pain, plus some thoughts from business experts - dare we say "thought leaders" - about the virtues of clear communication. After all, if potential customers cannot figure out what your company does, that might be a problem.

Read the complete article

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tags: jargon, media mention, simplification

Jun 18th, 2007 by Irene Etzkorn

Are We Really Surprised That They Don’t Know?

96% of homeowners have it and they spend an average of $868 per year for it. Yet, a new survey shows that they don’t understand what they bought. A 2007 National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) survey revealed that one-third to one-half of homeowners’ insurance policyholders were misinformed about what perils are covered by their policies and how much they might receive if they made a claim.

We shouldn’t be surprised. Policies are lengthy legal documents constructed with boilerplate language that is then modified with numerous notices and endorsements. Even motivated readers who put on their reading glasses are unlikely to be able to relate the significance of the policy provisions to real-world events. Consider the term "actual cash value." Shouldn’t we admit that it sounds like a good thing, not a bad thing? To real people (not lawyers), it sounds like what it costs to buy the item, not its depreciated value.

What’s more, insurers have practically trained customers to be passive consumers. Many policyholders don’t even read the policy because they don’t expect to be able to understand it. So, customers coast along in blissful ignorance until they hit the rare event of a claim and then they understand the significance of what they did or did not have covered. Consider your own circle of family and friends; typically, they will have only one or two homeowners’ claims in a lifetime. As an industry, does it really make sense for property-casualty insurers to rely on ignorance to stave off customer dissatisfaction?

What would change the scenario? A sales process laden with plain English explanations and reality-based modeling would enable homeowners to understand what they are buying. Basic technology such as on-line calculators and scenario builders would help homeowners customize their policies to the risks and characteristics of their location, building type and weather conditions. In addition, examples could help them relate risks to circumstances that they could envision. Homeowners might even be inclined to be less "penny wise and pound foolish" and pay more for better coverage.

(more…)

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tags: clarity, complexity, jargon, plain English, simplicity, simplification

Mar 21st, 2007 by Irene Etzkorn

Is Real Estate Jargon for Real?

I recently heard a radio ad exhorting everyone to make sure that their real estate agent is a “Realtor.” I wondered what that meant—would a realtor have a special license and how did it differ from the terms “agent” and “broker”? Then, a few days later, I came across an article promoting the use of a “Certified Buyer Representative.” As though buying or selling a home isn’t already filled with aggravation, apparently there are at least 8 designations of types of real estate professionals: CBR, C-CREC, CEBA, CRP, CBA, CRS, ABR and GRI. You can explore this alphabet soup yourself at www.CBRsource.com. What might the difference be between a CBR: Certified Buyer’s Representative and a CEBA: Certified Exclusive Buyers’ Agent? Don’t look to me for the answer, I’m still confused.

Isn’t this a classic case of industry self-absorption? Who has the time or inclination to find out what each of these is and when to use one or another? Even doctors have the good sense to name their specialties in a recognizable way (orthopedist, ophthalmologist, cardiologist, etc.). Industries that don’t look at themselves from the customer’s perspective risk looking like they are trying to dupe the customer. The idea of a buyer’s agent might be a very solid one but at the moment I’m too busy to find out because I’m looking for a headache specialist.

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tags: clarity, comparison shopping, complexity, jargon, plain English, simplicity, simplification