News and Views
2010: the year of better communication. We hope.
3 February 2010
It's perhaps predictable to start the new year with a forecast piece. Yet there's something very satisfying about the process, so I have come up with some predictions for 2010. Perhaps not all of them reflect what will happen, but what should happen. Either way, here's hoping...
The anti-jargon campaign gathers momentum. Don Watson's Bendable Learnings, published last year, was his latest shot in the war against management-speak, naming and shaming some of the worst offenders. Leo D'Angleo Fisher echoed this in the Jan 28 edition of BRW, claiming "the modern manager has become a jargon junkie". Perhaps this year will see more communication professionals rejecting the lazy language option that jargon offers.
Corporates realise they can't control the world - the online world, that is. With 350 million people now on Facebook, and 75 million on Twitter, companies may finally realise they can't stop people talking about them, nor can they stop employees accessing these sites. However, they can use these channels to talk to their customers, and build their employment brand and talent pools. Rather than ban social networking, smart companies will provide guidance for employees who use them, so that the benefits are shared with both.
Sub-editors will continue their sad decline. As newspaper revenues continue to contract, dodgy writing and appalling typos will continue to slip past under-resourced editorial desks. It will be up to a small band of sad pedants to remind the world that ‘led' is past participle of ‘to lead'. By contrast, online outlets will also continue to make errors, they have the advantage of retrospective subbing, because outspoken readers ensure ‘you're never wrong for long' online.
PR will bask in a post-downturn halo. As the economy tentatively recovers, CEOs will realise that maintaining their PR budget during the downturn was a damn smart move (those who didn't will, of course, curse their poor judgement). During tough times, PR and communication programs cost less than advertising, maintain the company's market awareness and give the company's thought leaders a reason to keep thinking.