Skip Dry Corporate Language if You Want to Instill Confidence in Your Readers

Last weekend, I flew Southwest Airlines for the first time. What really struck me about the trip, aside from the several hour delay,  was the tone of the Southwest staff. Here’s a quick sample from the flight attendant’s safety presentation:

“At this time, please pretend to pay attention as we go over the safety features of this plane. In case you haven’t been in an automobile since 1964, the seat belt is fastened by inserting the flat end into the buckle until it latches. If cabin pressure is lost, a yellow oxygen mask will drop from the ceiling. Affix the mask over your face and breathe normally (yeah right…you’ve seen Fight Club haven’t you?). In the case that this flight becomes a cruise, we will provide fashionable yellow life jackets. Pull the tabs to inflate automatically. For overachievers, inflate the life jacket by blowing into the tubes located on either side of the jacket.”

The FAA requires flight attendants to go through this spiel. They know that we know the routine, and we know that they know, so most of us tune it out. Most airlines have their attendants go through the motions as quickly and generically as possible, dutifully fulfilling their obligations to their captive audience. But Southwest at least takes this opportunity to entertain their passengers and lighten the mood, which is much appreciated, especially after a long delay like mine.

A quick YouTube search of “funny Southwest attendants” reveals that my experience with Southwest is not unique. Undoubtedly, this novel approach to the mundane drag of regulatory compliance was part of the staff’s training. The practice turns out to be very astute for two reasons: it gets people to listen and it makes a memorable impression.

Like flight attendants, Web writers are representatives of a company and whether drafting a sales letter, providing copy for a website, or addressing customers through a newsletter, we  speak  with the voice of the company. While the safe route is to adopt mind-numbingly innocuous corporate language – “Moving forward, our company’s vision is to add value to the paradigm that we have pioneered through our excellent service and award-winning innovation” -  in many cases, it can be more successful to connect with readers in your target audience by adopting a more relaxed tone. After all, on the Web something more interesting is always a click away, and if the medium doesn’t hook the message will never be delivered.

We see the benefits of a friendlier, sometimes irreverent tone in such phenomenon as Woot.com. The main idea of the website which features one product a day seems unimpressive at first. But the light-hearted yet still informative product descriptions and the self-referential humor in its blogs help build a sense of community and enthusiasm about the website where a staid, rote delivery would not. Web readers see dry, standard phrasing and “safe” language and assume, often correctly, that it’s something that they’ve read before and skip over it.

Apple’s humble hands-in-the-pockets, “It just works,” attitude versus Microsoft’s  eager shedding of its businessman appeal shows that a more down-to-earth presence can effectively translate to larger operations, but there is a fine line between connecting with your audience and sounding like an out-of-touch dad trying to level with his teenage kid.

For example, Virgin Mobile’s automated customer support line greets you with a youthful “’Sup, it’s Virgin Mobile” and the holding music is some kind of cheesy rap-rock. Granted, I was never a Limp Bizkit fan, but it’s been almost a decade since I’ve seen any rappers gone rock (or rockers gone rap) climb the charts and I don’t think I’ve greeted a friend with “’Sup” un-ironically.

In essence, the goal of any company communication is to establish professionalism and show genuine concern for your customers. Traditionally, the white-washed, buzz-word stuffed, chiseled and polished corporate phrasing exuded a stern and steady image that comforted those who sought solace in reliable institutions. But on the Web, where scams, marketing ploys and misleading content are scattered indiscriminately amongst the trustworthy gems, a position of transparency and unpretentiousness is more valuable. Corporate gibberish is far more imitable than a playful, fresh-voiced outlook. Whereas a standard mission statement evokes a company merely going through the motions, a humorous take belies a smart, self-awareness that promises an operation that runs on human reason, rather than corporate policy.

Today, many customers would rather do business with a person, rather than a faceless corporation. Because of this, showing your human side in your communication is more vital than ever. Consider this the next time you are writing a company blog or a company announcement.