The business section of today’s Seattle Times features an article about Free & Clear, a company that provides stop-smoking programs.
CEO Tim Kilgallon is quoted as saying “Tobacco treatment is the low-hanging fruit in health-care cost savings.” The same quote appears under Mr. Kilgallon’s photo in the print edition of the paper.
I know exactly what Tim Kilgallon means, and I like the expression “low-hanging fruit.” Many times in my career I have benefited from building success through the “low-hanging fruit” of easy achievements, things within easy reach.
But I have learned something about “low-hanging fruit”: many people don’t understand the expression. In my years of teaching business writing, I have often asked classes whether they know the meaning of the phrase. A few people always admit that they do not. Sometimes these people speak English as a second language (ESL) or a third or fourth.
So what are we business communicators to do? Should we avoid colorful figurative expressions to communicate with the greatest number of people? Or should we use them, knowing that we may leave many people, especially ESL speakers and writers, in the dark (so to speak)?
My rule is this: If it is essential that all readers understand the message, avoid figurative expressions and cultural allusions like these:
- Do we have all our ducks in order?
- The next task is a walk in the park.
- It takes two to tango.
- You have to listen to that still, small voice.
- Have you checked with the usual suspects?
The revisions below, without figurative expressions or cultural allusions, sparkle less. But they are more formal and communicate more clearly:
- Are we completely prepared?
- The next task is easy.
- If no one engages with him, nothing bad can happen.
- You must listen to your inner voice, or conscience.
- Have you checked with the people we usually consult?
As a writer, you have to decide whether to go for a 3-pointer, or play it from the inside. (That’s another example of writing that doesn’t reach around the world.) As always, write for your audience, whether global, local, or down the hall.
For tips on communicating with a wide audience, write to me for my article “Write for 1.4 Billion.” (The 1.4 billion figure comes from the billion people who speak English as a foreign language, and the 400,000,000 who speak it as a first language.)