6.01.2008

An overused phrase

It seems that commercial copy (advertising, marketing, etc) seems to often include the phrase "We work hard to ensure..." I think at this point, it's overused. People should think of other ways to communicate with potential clients and customers. When I see that phrase, it doesn't convince me that they're really working hard, it just shows that they're using a canned phrase because their writing hasn't loosened up and they don't know how to communicate with humans in a non-targeting way (the comma splice in this sentence was intentional, btw).

3 comments:

thaikarl said...

overused phrases... gee, there are so many of them. i notice that americans, when asked a question, especially in a formal setting (like in a call-in on the radio) preface any answer with "that's a good question". i'm sick of hearing it. no one EVER says, "now thats a bad question". and now the simple word 'but' has to be "at the end of the day" and the hideous "having said that..."

Margaret Larkin said...

I haven't noticed so much use of that expression--but I'll look for it now!

Margaret Larkin said...

The phrase I was referring to was "that's a good question"...as for "having said that", I've heard that a lot too, as well as "at the end of the day".