Summary of Frank I. Luntz's Words That Work

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Book Preview:

#1 Don’t worry about the rules. Just start communicating. -> The rules of communication are important, because American business and political communication is rife with bad habits and unhelpful tendencies that can do serious damage to the companies and causes they seek to promote.

#2 Communication is a two-way street, and the people are the true end. You must first speak their language to reach them.

#3 To get to the heart of America, you must first understand the language of America.

#4 When communicating with Americans, do not use words that might force someone to look up a dictionary. The more simply and plainly an idea is presented, the more credible it will be.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Sep 15, 2022
• ISBN: 9798350029321

IRB Media

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Insights on Frank I. Luntz's Words That Work

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 4

Insights from Chapter 5

Insights from Chapter 6

Insights from Chapter 7

Insights from Chapter 8

Insights from Chapter 9

Insights from Chapter 10

Insights from Chapter 11

Insights from Chapter 12

Insights from Chapter 13

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

There are rules of good communication, and they are especially important given the amount of communication the average person has to deal with. The ten rules I offer are valuable in ad agency conference rooms and political war rooms.

#2

The limits of language should not be ignored. Language is a tool to reach and teach people, but it is not everything. It cannot achieve miracles. Actual policy counts at least as much as how something is framed.

#3

What matters is not what you say, but what people hear. Through national telephone surveys, focus groups, one-on-one interviews, content analysis, and simple day-to-day interaction with people, I learn the language of America.

#4

The most effective language is simple and clear. It makes ideas clear rather than clouding them. The more simply and plainly an idea is presented, the more understandable it is, and the more credible it will be.

#5

The preference for simple words and acronyms is reflected in pop culture as well. We live in a text messaging world, and we process more visual and audible information than ever before, which explains why we don’t have the patience to tease out the fine nuances and connotations of ten-dollar words.

#6

The most memorable political language is rarely longer than a sentence. The best ad-makers and creative artists understand this notion of appropriateness, and they wisely avoid going overboard.

#7

The words you use become you, and you become the words you use. The politicalgraveyards are full of politicians who learned this lesson the hard way. Companies often make the same mistake. They launch new and improved items every day in an effort to get their products noticed, but these efforts rarely succeed because the item isn’t really new or improved.

#8

The political world is also a place where expectations are set low or high, and it can be very important to manage those expectations. If you set expectations too high for a candidate or campaign, they may not be able to live up to them, and they may even lose credibility as a result.

#9

credibility is established by telling people who you are or what you do, and then doing what you have said you would do. Finally, remind people that you are who you say you are.

#10

The Energizer Bunny is a great analogy for good language. It keeps going and going and going. Too many politicians and companies insist on new talking points every day, and by the time we remember and recognize a particular