What did he just say? Demystifying techno-babble
Posted by Carole Loomis on July 11th, 2007As if bungs, thiefs, brettanomyces and barriques weren’t difficult enough to wrap your mind (and your tongue) around; start selling wine Direct and now you’ve got Tech speak and Business jargon to contend with. Get a URL and the RTE to sell DTC – then watch your KPIs and at EOD you’ll have a great ROI;-)
I’ve got to admit that this way of speaking seems silly at first – it did for me. Why say push-back when you can use one perfectly good, unhyphenated word, resistance? Now the word just pops out of my mouth. You’ve heard of viral marketing? This stuff is catchy, too.
Some terms are hard to figure out – either because they are so general or because they are so foreign. Best practice is a strange term – and over used. Whose best practice? The industry? Who decides? Aren’t we still figuring this all out? I finally figured out what a Webinar was. I think I heard the word about 6 or 7 times until it sunk in and, of course, I felt like a dolt for not getting it in the first place.
References that used to be used only for software and hardware applications now apply to humans. Why do I have to interface with someone when all I really want to do is talk? And what about downloading (with a person)? In my world we call that dumping on them!
If you feel like you are stuck in the last century (or wish you could stay there) you’re not alone. If you’re ready to join us in these REvoluntionary times then get yourself a dictionary or a techno-geek for a friend. In the meantime here are a few terms and their definitions:
URL – Your web address
RTE – Inertia’s REthink Engine – think of it as the engine that makes your Direct business GO!
DTC – Selling Directly to the Consumer – build relationships, keep your profit
KPI – Key Performance Indicator – a way to define and measure progress towards goals
ROI – Return on investment – profit after expenses
Webinar – Seminar broadcast over the internet
EOD – End of Day – when all is said and done…
