cat-on-stairsEven major corporations are abandoning the use of businessy-bland style copy of yesteryear that used to inspire consumer confidence. The word inspires no longer inspires.

Never mind the fine print, no one reads the large print… scanning is the new reading. Influenced by social media, “conversational style” is more than the mere use of informal language — it’s content crafted for a non-reader and one that no longer trusts the powers that be. Now, truly engaging content must feel like it’s generated by a human and, paradoxically, sustain interest with character and substance.

IBM is the poster child for the soulless corporate behemoth and its communications’ strategy seems to confirm this perception.

For example, let’s consider this tagline from IBM’s website: “helping leaders reshape business” Restated: leaders (one assumes not leaders for nothing) need IBM’s help to reshape business (from the old failing business shape?) into a new, but not necessarily better, business shape? What does this statement even mean? This style of corporate-power-speak is often littered with big claims that mean nothing.  The intention is to convey a veneer of high professionalism.

The public no longer trusts its corporate masters and businessy-bland-power-speak is gloss over connection. To humanize the face of business and create messages audiences respond to requires a more relatable tone and a sense that actual humans are behind the wall.