Can the copywriters craft be compared to great literature? Check out Beanz Meanz Rhymz.

Ever wondered just how powerful words are? This chap certainly felt their force in some risque text messages and decided to take his revenge.

We love developing clever company names and amusing strap lines, we recently came up with ‘Making a bum job better’ for Cheeky Wipes. So we appreciate other inventive approaches to naming businesses - how about something new for the concrete industry?

gelidity (noun)
The state or condition of being extremely cold; coldness due to a cold environment.

Somehow this word seemed appropriate today. Can’t think why…

*turns the heating up another notch*

We’re a funny lot down at All Words - we hate jargon but we love interesting and unusual words. So I guess you could call us sesquipedalians - given to using long words (only when needed, of course). And I’ve found out we’re not alone.

And in an amazing co-incidence, defenestrate is also my all time favourite word. It means to throw something or someone (usually forcibly) out of a window. I used it frequently this week in reference to my broken-yet-again Blackberry (phone, not fruit).

So what’s your favourite word?

You’ve heard of Beer Goggles - those invisible yet powerful spectacles favoured by the inebriated that can miraculously transform the most ordinary of beings into a clone of Brad Pitt, or Kate Moss.

Well, Google have now come up with Mail Goggles - a device that, once enabled, serves as a kind of sobriety test for those late-night workers who might be suffering from the lethal combination of a belly full of booze and a head full of frustration for a work colleague whose email address is tantalisingly right there…

Now, if only they could do something similar for mobile phones…

I have a habit of making up words, usually when I can’t find the one I want in the filing cabinet that is my head. Sometimes the dictionary doesn’t contain exactly the right word I’m looking for. Apparently quite a few people agree with me. My favourite is Nopology (n). Any statement beginning ‘I’m sorry if…’

I started writing an article last week about shunning grammar conventions. Language is constantly changing, it’s a flexible jungle full of interesting words, expressions, punctuation and idioms. All at our disposal to have fun with. Or so you’d think. I used to get told off at school for starting sentences with conjunctions. And now I do it all the time.

Tesco have recently had a little language guidance from the Plain English Campaign which sparked off a grammar debate on the BBC website.

Makes interesting reading.

This week we’ve been featured in the Manchester Digital newsletter with our manifesto (that’s a polite word for a mini-rant) on SEO and brand language…

We all know what good SEO can do for a company’s visibility on the web. So it must be a key part of branding, right? What if you’ve grown a business and created a brand which uses a very specific tone or has a certain brand language? Can you marry this with the idea of getting certain key phrases into a particular page, especially if they have to appear in specific places on a webpage (for example, headlines)?

Businesses need to move towards full integration of SEO into their branding, and stop treating it as a separate entity. Tone of voice or verbal identity guidelines should consider the use of brand and generic key phrases. The final part of the puzzle is to find creative writers who both understand SEO techniques and can create the unique voice a company needs to stand out from the competition.

So, so true…

1. “Fine.”

This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to stop talking.

2. “Five minutes.”

If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour.  Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the match before helping around the house. In fact, that really means two minutes.

3. “Nothing.”

This is the calm before the storm. This means “Something” and you should be very wary. Arguments that begin with “Nothing” usually end in “Fine”.

4. “Go ahead.”

This not permission - this is a dare. Don’t do it!

5. *loud sigh*

This is actually a word; it is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means that she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing (refer back to #3 for the meaning of nothing).

6. “It’s okay.”

Possibly one of the most dangerous statements a women can make to a man. “It’s okay” means that she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

7. “Thanks.”

A woman is thanking you - do not question, or faint. Just say, “You’re welcome”.

8. “Whatever…”

I think we all know what that means…

9. “Don’t worry about it, I’ve got it.”

Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking “What’s wrong?” For the woman’s response, refer to #3.