Flexing My Superpower

I will do what I can in 2015 to help clients get rid of acronyms in their communications because acronyms are a real pet peeve of mine, and ridding the world’s websites, brochures and blogs of these imprecise and confusing villains is my superpower.

In today’s world, everything is an acronym. There is SEO on your website, an ATM in your grocery store, along with plenty of GMOs, and kids with ADHD in your schools and libraries. Your boss has an MBA, and maybe OCD too, and if you think it’s funny, BTW, you can LOL with your BFF about it.

National and international organizations and agencies can get away with acronyms – especially athletes in the NBA and the NFL – but when it comes to local businesses and nonprofits, I recommend you avoid acronyms and let your name speak clearly for itself. Using a complete name reinforces identity and ensures you are building awareness around your organization.

Acronyms are not clever, and they are not your friends.

When I work with a new client, one of the first things I impress upon them is that they should be proud of their name and find a way to abbreviate it in a way that promotes identity rather than turning it into an alphabet soup.

Judy and I worked with the Massachusetts Council for Adult Foster Care, for instance, which called itself MCAFC. We believed that only those working in close collaboration with them could identify what that meant. In building the content for the new website, we were careful to use the complete name in each new web section and subsequently to refer to it as “the Council” or “the organization.”

Never MCAFC. What would that even mean to an outsider? Nothing, and no one will take the time to figure it out. They will move on.

Likewise, when working with The Creative on the website and printed collateral for the Business Growth Center in Springfield, Ruth, Maureen and I talked with Director Marla Michel about clear and distinct ways to refer to the Growth Center in subsequent references.

We offered our rationale against BGC, and yes, Growth Center is what we all landed on as it’s more clear and specific than the Center. It’s the Growth Center. Clear. Direct. Distinct.

A few weeks ago, a colleague sent me a Facebook message, asking if I wanted to “come out to the PVLF tonight.”  I had no idea what he was referring to, so I asked, “What’s the PVLF?”

“Pioneer Valley Local First.”

“Ah,” I thought. “Great organization.”

Hearing the full title was enlightening, and it made me want to attend the gathering, even though I wasn’t available.

So, I think you got the point. Use your name loudly, proudly and fully.

TYVM for listening, and we’ll C U.