Friday, August 29, 2008

It Is Not A Samwich Mangled Pronunciation

Writen by Julia O'Connor

There are two TV ads in the U.S. that are driving me crazy. Subway and Hardee's both have ads running where the voice-over talks about a great Samich.

There is no such word as Samich. It is SANDWICH. The basic description is for some food product between two pieces of bread.

Where did Samich come from? Lazy tongues, poor language development, general acceptance by people who don't care and are not corrected. It makes me cry that big bucks are spent perpetrating bad grammar and fast fat food.

OH, JULIA – YOU SAY --- You're just being an old fuddy-duddy. Nobody cares how people pronounce it – we know what it is.

WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH TRADE SHOWS?

Trade shows are noisy environments so I may not understand what you say because of noise pollution. I may not understand what you say because it is a new word to me, or you are using jargon not in my vocabulary.

I may not understand what you say for any number of reasons but NEVER ever let it be the fact that you mangled a word, mispronounced it and didn't know the difference.

Prospects are picky people. Your great exhibit, wonderful give-aways and that nifty shirt you are wearing only gets them into your space. It's the little things people remember – bad grammar, sloppy pronunciation and incoherent syntax are high on my list of no-nos.

MANAGERS – Check your staff for vocabulary and pronunciation before a show. This is particularly important when there are new products and technical terms. Don't forget to check for the vernacular and correct your staff so they are proper representatives for your company.

Julia O'Connor - Speaker, Author, Consultant - writes about practical aspects of trade shows. As president of Trade Show Training, inc,, now celebrating its 11th year, she works with companies in a variety of industries to improve their bottom line and marketing opportunities at trade shows. Julia is founder of Camp Sho-M-Sel-M, a specialized sales training program being held August 22-23 in Las Vegas. The focus of this Camp is Trade Shows & The Unions, with a Behind-the-Scene tour of the Las Vegas Convention Center, led by union officials.

Julia is an expert in the psychology of the trade show environment and uses this expertise in sales training and management seminars. Contact her at 804-355-7800 or check the site http://www.TradeShowTraining.com

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