Partial problems
Savvy marketers might distinguish themselves by abandoning the empty ‘s’ word.
Maury Wright, Editor-in-Chief

The "s" word has become a standard part of almost every press release. Often as not, it hides the real news rather than conveying some greater message. The "s" word has even pervaded TV ads for consumer products and services. I'd suggest that savvy marketers might distinguish their products and services by abandoning this empty term.

To some extent, I understand the reasoning behind the "s" word. To compete, companies today must do more than manufacture products. Chip companies must develop or acquire software stacks for specific applications like set-top boxes, PDAs, and cell phones. Network gear manufacturers must bundle their products with support services provided by closely connected partners. Indeed, successful companies must develop alliances, sometimes even with competitors, to fill holes in their product portfolios.

But why use the "s" word? As my favorite sports-radio host likes to say, "You're not getting over." Simply everybody uses the term. Companies that build low-level components like power semiconductors assert that they provide a "complete solution." In reality, they only address a small part of a bigger problem. Cox Communications promises me a "complete solution" because it provides cable TV, phone, and Internet services—but it doesn't supply the computers, phones, routers, and other devices that make up my "complete" wired home. The largest network and software companies trumpet "complete solutions" too, but even they need third-party partners. And even with third-party help, what exactly is a complete solution?

If you're a chip company, why not trumpet the fact that you make the best chips with the highest yields and the lowest power consumption, instead of hiding these core competencies behind the "s" word? You can bolster your claims by explaining that you offer, along with the best IC, a software stack needed to bring a specific product like a set-top box to market quickly.

I'll admit, whoever first used the "s" word had a nifty thought. Even the first hundred or so marketers that copied the usage sounded somewhat unique. But it was time to banish the "s" word long before I saw amusement-park billboards trumpeting a "complete family solution."

Fact is, in my world, the "s" word comes off like the work of an incompetent spin doctor, an attempt to hide a weak product. It really gets me when someone from a PR or advertising agency parrots the "our client doesn't make products..." line. Most often, these people don't even understand what their client does make, and it shows in the phone pitches I hear and in the press releases and ads I regularly see.

But this isn't about me (well, not entirely). The "s" word may very well represent a threat to your company's credibility. To those of you in marketing roles, I plead with you to state your message plainly, or come up with inventive new ways of turning heads. For those of you who, as potential customers, hear the "s" word everyday, remind those purveyors that you only pay for products, not for solutions.