Say What?
Don't confuse customers or prospects with overuse of industry acronyms.
Every industry has its own set of words, acronyms and codes thatserve as verbal shorthand. Some of this jargon is fairlywell-known, but most of it isn't. For example, most people knowthat a "spot" on television means a short commercialmessage. But how many know what a "donut" means inTV-language? (It's a commercial message where the beginning andend remain the same from showing to showing but the middle--thehole in the donut--is changed frequently.) Your industry has itsown jargon, too.
It's important to identify your specialized terms and makesure your prospect understands them. Be especially careful ofacronyms--those collections of initials that are taking over ourlanguage. For instance: "We are offering you only Bb+ rated orbetter NYC GO's, so your 1099 will be very simple." Thismay be perfectly clear to a stockbroker or an accountant, but whatdoes it mean to you and me--or the prospect?
Excerpted from Creative Selling: Boost your B2B sales
