Too many words and diagrams are a very bad idea
- Fri, November 05 2010
- Filed under: Marketing essentials
Less is more. Strip everything mediocre out of all you say and do, nonprofit marketers!
When you make things more wordy, more complex and more obtuse, you water down your message.
Here are my favorite examples.
BAD=The serenity prayer as a flow chart
see more Funny Graphs
GOOD = The serenity prayer, plain and simple
God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.
BAD = Story by jargon (from the witty Andy Goodman)
Once day, an at-risk youth from a blended family in the economically depressed farm belt is rendered unconscious during an extreme weather event. When she awakens, she undertakes a long, hazardous journey to a distant, mineral-based metropolitan center.
GOOD = The Wizard of Oz
SO-SO = Toto’s song Africa
GOOD = Same song, not a single instrument. How can you go acapella in your messaging?
(I love the human-made sound of rain.)
Less is more!
Not sure how to make less?
Be tough on yourself. And try out the Gobbledygook grader.
Comments
Thanks so much for this idea. I was thinking the opposite.
Sometimes in trying be be very detailed to make sure the reader understand what you are trying to say turns the other way around. This is where the Japanese approach applied best. Talk or write less in order for Japanese to understand you more easily.
Katya, this post and the chart made me laugh out loud! A great example of trying too hard to communicate when simple really is better.
I touched on this topic recently: You Can Say A Lot With Only Six Words:
http://lorijacobwith.com/2010/04/you-can-say-a-lot-with-only-six-words/
Hi, I agree with you. Less is more. too much information and pictures mostly just confuse.
Gotta admit, I sort of love the serenity prayer as a flow chart. Does this make me hopeless?
Thanks so much for the thoughtful post 