Do you have words that annoy you every time you see them?
I have a few. One is "hacks." My aversion to that one is so strong that if an email subject line offers "Hacks" for any purpose, I delete the message.
Thankfully, that one isn't in such common use as the other one that bugs me.
The word that keeps jumping out of advertisements to annoy me is "needs."
"Need" is a poor word to use when speaking to a client or prospective client - as in "You
need to..." They're apt to react with resistance - the same way a child does when told he or she needs to clean their room or do homework before watching TV.
But that's just an unwise idea. It's not the "needs" I'm thinking about right now.
The one that bugs me is marketing that says the advertiser will take care of "All your real estate needs" - or all of your anything else needs. I see it used in marketing for flooring, roofing, siding, hardware, shipping, and on and on.
It's a catch-all word that really doesn't describe anything the advertiser has to offer, and it more than likely isn't true.
Really - can you imagine any one agent being able to take care of all the real estate needs of everyone who might read that advertising?
And isn't it a bit lazy - and ineffective? Wouldn't it be better to spell out what it is you really do? For instance, helping people buy and sell homes in a specific city? Or helping people buy or sell commercial property, development land, waterfront lots, or farm and ranch property somewhere specific?
Disclaimer: I may be the only person in the U.S. bothered by that word.

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