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.
Getting emails like these? Buzzkill highlights corporate jargon right inside Gmail and translates it to plain English.
Add to Chrome, freeThe 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.
Spot any of these in your inbox this week? Buzzkill flags them in Gmail as you read and shows the plain-English version on hover.
Add to Chrome, freeThe 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.