Lately I’ve had solutions on my mind. I just completed an article on data collection solutions for the September issue of ENX and am currently writing an article on document management solutions for the October issue.
I remember a time when no one talked about solutions in the office imaging industry. Today, many of us in the industry have fallen in love with the word “solutions” even if most of the time all we’re talking about is software.
We love our jargon even though in the real world we might as well be speaking a foreign language. At the recent Konica Minolta dealer meeting, Konica Minolta President & COO Rick Taylor talked about what will define the company going forward—how they execute and the long-term customer experience. Besides building one-on-one relationships with customers and resolving problems quickly, he emphasized the importance of talking to customers in plain language. “Our business is filled with jargon; who do you think understands what an MFP is?” he asked. “If we walk down to Lexington Ave. and ask the first 20 people we stop, how many will know? Jargon and claims that don’t make any sense we have to remove from our lexicon.”
I’ve been thinking about office imaging industry jargon ever since. Not sure if that’s the message Taylor wanted me or the rest of the press and analysts in the room to walk away with that day, but that struck a chord.
I see this in my world whenever I try to explain what I write about to friends or acquaintances. MFPs? No, they don’t know what that is. And the acronyms, PPM, CPM, CPC, MPS, MNS, MS, those totally confuse them. I wouldn’t use the word “solutions” in the real world either. Yes, it’s mostly software even though some may argue hardware can be a solution too. Now some of us are calling solutions apps. But isn’t that jargon too?
For better or for worse this industry speak its own language and I think we’ve come too far to remove some of that jargon from our lexicon. However, Taylor has a point and when out in the real world it’s important we speak their language not ours.
Thanks for reading.
