Overused Marketing Words and Some Worthy Replacements

Last week I received an email with the following subject line:

Great Discount on LittleTikes.com | Great Deal on Mineral Make-Up & Skin Care.

Did you catch the issue? Here it is again with the issue highlighted:

Great Discount on LittleTikes.com | Great Deal on Mineral Make-Up & Skin Care

We marketers often find ourselves in what you could call a ‘language rut’. It feels as though we have so many words at our disposal, but when it comes to writing we often resort to a select few as illustrated in the subject line above. Below is a list I’ve compiled of a few overly used marketing words along with ideas of new words to add to your repertoire.

• Great - Instead of defaulting to great try words such as: exceptional, tremendous, marvelous, outstanding, super, or brilliant
• Unique – Using the word unique almost reads as though you are anything but unique. Consider words like: rare, exclusive, incomparable, distinctive, or essential
• Creative – Go beyond being creative and describe what makes you creative by using words such as: inspired, clever, ingenious, cunning, shrewd, or inventive
• Leading – Everyone says they are the leading blah, blah, blah. Choose words that portray more authentic leadership such as: spearhead, motivating, trailblazer, or driving
• Innovative – This is a hard word for readers to quantify. It sounds good, but is hard to define. Consider words or terms such as: breaking new ground, visionary, unconventional, or radical
• Awesome – Along the same lines as great, but awesome sort of suggests an unexperienced marketer is writing your copy. Try one of these instead: impressive, remarkable, astounding, or resplendent (if you work resplendent into your marketing copy, 10 points for you!)
• Best – You may think you are the best, but using the word ‘best’ doesn’t imply your sentiment. Give one of these a go instead: preeminent, ace, unrivaled, optimum, or surpassing

What do you think? What words do you default to in your marketing? What words drive you bonkers when you see them over and over and over and over?