Marketing invents jargon as a feature, not a bug. The job is to make things sound compelling, so the language trends toward the aspirational: everything is a "north star," a flywheel, or a moment. Some of it names real mechanics. A lot of it is vibes with a dashboard.
The phrases below fill campaign briefs, growth reviews, and the deck that explains why the quarter was actually a success. Knowing the plain version keeps you honest about what is a strategy and what is just a nicer word for "we posted a lot."
The worst offenders
- Brand equity (Managing Director) "Brand equity" is the added value a well-known brand name gives a product or company beyond what the underlying product alone would be worth.
- Mindshare (Managing Director) "Mindshare" means how much of a person's or audience's mental attention and awareness a brand, product, or idea has captured relative to its competitors.
- Omnichannel (Managing Director) "Omnichannel" means delivering a consistent customer experience across every platform and channel, including email, social media, web, and in-person touchpoints.
- Earned media (Vice President) "Earned media" means press coverage, social shares, or word-of-mouth attention that a company received without paying for it.
- Above the fold (Vice President) "Above the fold" means the portion of a web page or email that is visible without scrolling, borrowed from the era of printed newspapers folded on newsstands.
- Content is king (Vice President) "Content is king" is a phrase asserting that high-quality content is the most important factor in attracting and retaining an audience, particularly online.
The full Marketing & Growth Jargon glossary
All 21 terms in this category, with the plain-English swap. Click any phrase for the full breakdown, the seniority tier, and a before-and-after example.
| Phrase | Say instead |
|---|---|
| Above the fold | top of the page |
| Authentic | genuine |
| Brand awareness | name recognition |
| Brand equity | brand value |
| Call to action | the button |
| Content is king | good content matters most |
| Conversion | sign-ups or sales |
| Drive engagement | get interaction |
| Earned media | free press coverage |
| Engagement | likes and comments |
| Evergreen | always relevant |
| Eyeballs | viewers |
| Impressions | views |
| Messaging | talking points |
| Mindshare | attention |
| Omnichannel | everywhere at once |
| On-brand | fits the brand |
| Organic reach | unpaid reach |
| Positioning | how it's framed |
| Storytelling | telling the story |
| Top-of-mind | first thing they think of |
This is the editorial cut. For the bare index, see the Marketing & Growth Jargon category page.