What does your language reveal about your charity?

©LinguisticLandscapes2011
What does your language
reveal about your charity?
(And why does it matter?)
CharityComms Seminar: ‘Communicating core values
through language and tone of voice’
25th April 2013
Gill Ereaut
Founding Partner
Linguistic Landscapes

Do any of these sound familiar?
We have problems getting sign-off from people outside the comms/marketing
department for our campaign or copy – we know it’s right for our audience
but they’re clearly not comfortable with it, so they pick it apart
2
Our major competitor – new to this field – has a
much fresher, more contemporary tone of voice.
No matter how we try, we just don’t seem to be
able to sound quite as good
Our brand comms are great now. But although we’ve
done internal marketing of the new brand and tone of
voice, it’s just not working – customers don’t get the same
tone of voice when they phone us, or get a letter from us

What I’d like to cover today
 A bit about us
 A bit about the theory we use
 Communications and the role of
organisational culture
 Branding from the inside out
 An example
3

A bit about us
 We use discourse analysis to work on strategy
and change …
 … by showing organisations the powerful but
hidden effects of their own habitual language
 Once people see the familiar differently, they
question it and find new ways to think and
act
 This has implications and applications for
communications
4

Discourse Analysis?
A (tiny) bit about the theory
5

Making culture visible by looking at language
 Language becomes invisible
when it is familiar
 We don’t normally see the
way it shapes, guides and
constrains our thinking
 Discourse analysis gives
clues about how this works
and helps people see it for
themselves

Discourse analysis – core ideas
 Language isn't a transparent
and neutral medium
 It is active - we use it to do
things
 Every detail of language
choice is meaningful
 The focus is on the structure
and detail of language – for
what it reveals about much
bigger, deeper things

Communications and
organisational culture
Why is it useful to uncover ‘culture’ via
internal discourse?
8

What we like to think happens
9
Communications
Internal
discourse
CUSTOMERS

But… the inside leaks to the outside
10
“Controlled”
communications
Internal
discourse
leakage
leakage
DRAG BACK
CUSTOMERS

Branding from the
inside out
Bringing silent assumptions to the
surface
13

A new strategy – simple, isn't it?
14
Our strategy
vision, values etc
New strategy
vision, values etc
today tomorrow

What’s really happening today
15
Surface language
spoken & written
formal & informal
Silent assumptions
what really matters
around here
Our strategy
statements, claims &
wishes
vision, values etc
Adapted from Schein 2004

So if you just shift the strategic
statement, nothing really changes…
16
New strategy
vision, values etc
Claims & wishes
vision, values e
Surface language
spoken & written
formal & informal
Silent assumptions
what really matters
around here
Adapted from Schein 2004

‘Silent assumptions’ are powerful rules of
thumb
 Not rules, but rules of
thumb
 Simple guides to
decision-making
 Below consciousness
 Noticeable only when
you’re a newcomer
 Fossilising old strategies
17

From The Prostate
Cancer Charity to
Prostate Cancer UK
18

What does your language reveal about your charity?

 Indirectness and distancing in
language
 Euphemism and politeness
 Medical and Health Service
discourse
 Very British, middle class, educated
 Volume of text
 PCC acts on others, not vice versa
 Occasional bursts of fire and
fighting talk – but submerged
 A ‘muffled’ discourse –
soft, quiet, civilised and caring –
Prostate Cancer Charity – the language
fingerprint

Silent assumption: we mustn’t offend, we mustn’t
be controversial
It was almost a little bit
off-putting at first, I
found it a bit alarming
... perhaps it feels a
little restrictive in that
sense, in that if you do
want to jump around
and scream then it’s not
the done thing
We believe that every man with prostate cancer must be able to access any
licensed treatment for the disease, if their doctor believes it will be beneficial. It
is disappointing to see that NICE does not believe that cabazitaxel is a treatment
it can recommend at this stage.
Support Group Newsletter

 After the ‘doh!’ moment –
and rush of energy, they said:
 We don’t want to be ’muffled’
and hyper-polite – and maybe
we don’t have to be like this
 We want to focus on and
stand up for men
 We need to keep our authority
and credibility…
 …but we really do want to be
more accessible
How did people at the charity respond to the
analysis?
?
? ?

Tone of voice
Active
Straight talking
Empathetic
Passionate
Compelling
Intelligent

Associations with the organisation post campaign (March 2013)
Q: Please tell us which of these words you would associate with each of these charities.
Growing
Campaigning
Caring
Active
Human
Approachable
Expert
Energetic
Forthright
Leader
Authority
Not just
cancer
Angry
51
38
45
35
38
32
26
18
18
15
12
5
5
69
61
52
53
47
45
43
32
31
26
26
7
5
Not recognised any adverts
Any advert recognisers
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
* Significance Level: * = 95%
Source: Brainjuicer

More people coming to our Helpline
Total number of annual Helpline Calls (12 months April to March)
2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13
5,165 5,392 5,498 6,209
+4% +2% +13%
Total number of Helpline Calls
(4th Quarter Jan – Mar)
2011/12 2012/13
1,538 2,049
+33%

More Health Professionals
ordering more publications
4th Quarter (Jan-Mar) 2012 2013 +/-
Total orders 1,628 2,676 +64%
Number of individual publications 112,526 207,403 +84%
Here come the boys!
Total Requests 252
Publications sent 25,000

Summing up
 Surfacing internal culture via language can align the
inside and outside discourse of your organisation
 This makes comms more consistent, and makes
change easier to achieve
 Grasping their shared but unhelpful silent
assumptions helps everyone act differently, not
because they have ‘bought in’ but because they see
and understand what needs to change, and why
 It makes sense to people at all levels – and is
energising and compelling - pull wins over push.
35

Let’s give our client the last word…
However striking and visually pleasing the new identity
for Prostate Cancer UK is, it was never about aesthetics
alone. Together, we committed to become more
open, direct and confident, and to present the cause in
a more urgent way.
There were no surprises or awkward attempts to bolt a
‘culture’ on to a visual identity. We made a shared and
organic vision of ‘how we want to do things here’ the
foundation of our working principles and of our brand.
Vivienne Francis, Prostate Cancer UK’s deputy
director of communications.

L I N G U I S T I C
L A N D S C A P E S
19a Bell Street
Reigate
Surrey
RH2 7AD
UK
+44 1737 246 155
contact@linguisticlandscapes.co.uk
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