Don’t let the buzz words get in the way of achieving your brand goals.

It’s the substance of the idea, not always what you call it.

Branding. Insight discovery. Exploration. Positioning. Strategic account planning. CRM.

After 25 years in the business, I’ve heard a lot of the same basic ideas referred to in all kinds of ways. What’s different each time is a matter of wording—the terminology of the day. Yet I’ve seen accounts be put in jeopardy over a simple disagreement in terms: people talking about the same idea but disagreeing over the terminology. 

Here’s the takeaway:

Try not to get too caught up in whether it’s the right word for what you are doing, or whether your agency calls it the same thing your last agency did. Just try to make sure you are getting what you need to build a successful brand. The rest is just semantics, really.

Imagine if we switched the buzzwords of marketing with those of some other industry—professional ice hockey for instance. Hey, there’s a wicked left turn—you still with me? The point is to show that in every business there are all kinds of jargon-filled slang terms. It’s just a matter of finding the meaning—not the literal interpretation.

Here’s how to use slang to sound like a smart marketing guy at a hockey game.

Recently, Frank Nazzario, our client at ViroPharma, Inc., won the PM360 magazine Autoimmune Brand Manager of the Year award. He’s a hockey guy, so we created a tribute ad for him, that was also a fun exercise in translating jargon.

Check out the ad, and then see how many of these slang terms you know. Any?

Sniper: Centers and forwards who have the ability to slap pucks from outside the blue line directly on goal

Clapper: A high hard slap shot that’s difficult to see

Top shelf: Upper part of the goal net, often a difficult area to defend

Five hole: A goalie can be thought to have five places where a puck can get through—2 over his shoulders, 2 under his arms but above his pads, and one between his legs—the five hole.

Hoser: In the days before the Zamboni, the losers of the match were required to hose down the ice for the next game. Hoser=loser.

Sieve: A kitchen implement used to sift, or a goalie who lets in more than 3 goals in one period

Goons: Defensemen and other criminals

Snap your twig: Sounds painful, but not really—it just means break your stick

Bucket: Helmet

Dome: Head

Danglers: Forwards who hang around the net looking for cheap rebounds

Glove side: Often the goalie’s weak-side hand—his glove hand can be vulnerable to players sneaking the puck inside the goal post

Deke: Attempted move to fake out an opponent; a deceiving move

Tender: Goaltender

And your bonus word: Celly: The celebration after a goal

For more of our thoughts on branding, check out these entries:

Taglines don’t matter in biotech branding

Lessons on biotech brand building from 4 famous brand managers

Biotech brand is not an oxymoron.