What’s the buzz on buzzwords?
Repeating big ticket keywords in our own writing boosts SEO, but at a cost.
Authentic.
In an ever-bustling, ever-digital world, that’s what we strive to be. Open, communicative, and true –– authenticity lifts the veil on the human experiences that shape everything we say and do.
And it’s written everywhere.
Authentic brand voice. Authentic design. There’s enough authenticity across the web to make your head spin. Thought leaders produce hoards of content about how to accomplish everything authentically –– but what does this word actually mean in context?
Etymology resource Etymonline traces authentic back to three main roots:
- Old French autentique, meaning “authoritative” and “duly authorized”
- Medieval Latin authenticus from Greek authentikos, meaning “original, genuine, principal”
- Greek authentes, “one action on one’s own authority,” built from autos “self” and hentes “doer, being”
Authentic written to denote realness was first recorded in the mid-fourteenth century. Traditionally, authentic is used to describe a source’s trustworthiness and factuality –– but modern English often blurs its traditional form with genuine, encompassing that an authentic source is not only trustworthy and factual, but real –– unaltered by a skewed perspective.
You can see, then, how striving to be authentic in online writing can get… tricky. Especially if you’re vying for clicks, views, and online engagements.
Like it or not, writing for any audience on any platform is a performative venture. Our intended readers often skew what we say and how we choose to say it.
So, for our terms and purposes, let’s give authenticity’s definition a web-writing revamp:
Saying what you mean, with the words that actually mean it.
If an article is stuffed with big keywords just for hollow impact, those words lose their punch. An authentic article folds in top search engine optimization (SEO) terms with purpose. If keywords align with its message, they’re incorporated economically –– but only when they clarify or elevate ideas already within the piece itself.
But that’s where we hit a snag: There’s no authenticity filter for keyword use. These SEO terms generate a buzz, even when they’re used without substance.
Authentic or not, heavy-hitting phrases –– buzzwords –– drive impact. These eye-catchers set trends, spark conversations, drive progress. Sometimes, they strengthen our stories. Other times, they just create a racket. That’s how words with humble beginnings become eye-roll fuel, earning their place on worst phrase lists due to rampant (and often empty) overuse.
So what’s the buzz on buzzwords? And how do they help or harm authentic writing?
Frankly, if certain buzzwords aren’t part of an article’s main concept, idea, or takeaway, they have no place in that piece. In an ideal world, we’d all ditch empty phrases for more original words that stick. But in an endless sea of online content, buzzwords have become one of the surefire ways to make a splash.
Early in my UX career, I leaned heavily on words that I encountered across industry conversations: Silos. Empathy. Ideation.
Buzzwords like these aren’t inherently negative –– they help industry newbies gain footholds for participating in and leading new conversations. Often, they’re the most accessible industry-specific language to become fluent in. My first year in UX led me through leagues of unfamiliar territory; latching on to big ticket jargon kept me afloat.
But there’s a difference between using necessary situational lingo and overusing that lingo for impact.
I’ll admit it. I love a good buzzword. And you’ll probably find some intentionally placed on this very page.
My reasoning’s fairly simple:
Buzzwords, used mindfully and in moderation, make content more visible.
As writers and speakers, it’s our job to use words wisely, differentiating between those that share knowledge and those that merely simulate it. And for some of us, that buzzword distinction might not click until it trickles down from an editor or two.
My buzzword criticism came from recognizing words I routinely used as they showed up in other authors’ work. As an editor for PatternFly, I often find myself asking our contributors what specific function buzzwords have in their submissions. If they’re purposeful, they stay. If they’re not, we hunt for a more accurate alternative.
It’s never easy to pass up an opportunity to create a buzz. Nixing a powerful buzzword from a heading or subheading doesn’t service content’s reach, but it does safeguard its authentic delivery. I’ve had meaningful conversations with myself and others about buzzwords and their place in our online content, and I can boil our findings down to a play on a saying popularized by Stan Lee’s comic series, Spider-Man:
With big words comes big responsibility.
We should wield their power sparingly, knowledgeably, and consciously so that they don’t devolve to a collection of deadbeat syllables.
So how can we navigate the choice between SEO and semantics?
As you weigh weaving buzzwords into your own writing, consider their:
- Etymology. What kind of written and cultural history stands behind each syllable?
- Dictionary definition. How are they used in more general conversations?
- Contextual meaning. How smoothly does that dictionary definition translate into your specific context?
If one piece of this trio is misaligned, you’re probably better off finding a different word to communicate your idea.
Brainstorm alternatives and play around with packaging your message in a more direct way. If, in the end, you choose to use that buzzword, choose it with care.
As we write our next articles, posts, or blogs, let’s call on sage advice from Dr. Seuss’s beloved book, Horton Hears A Who!:
“I meant what I said and I said what I meant. An elephant’s faithful one hundred percent.” — Horton the Elephant
Many of us won’t be protecting clovers from wind, rain, and hail –– but we are using language to shape our written tales. Our chosen words should mean what we say and say what we mean.
With authenticity and transparency in mind, we can use buzzwords as tools to build online impact without compromising clear –– and authentic –– communication.
In the battle between clarity and clout, clout rarely wins.
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