Want to get ahead in business? One of the quickest ways might just be the use of IT lingo… especially when you’re talking with your boss!
So what are some buzzwords that could give you a leg-up with your supervisor? Try these and see how they work for you:
The Word: SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
How to Use It: “Hey, boss… is our website SEO friendly? I wonder if we should get on that?”
What It Means: Basically, SEO is a method used to make a site more attractive to the big search engines like Google. Through organic SEO practices, an organization can slowly (or sometimes aggressively) work its way to the first page of search engine results. This is important because up to 75% of all people performing a search only consider clicking on the first 10 links they see.
What Your Boss Will Think: Your boss may have heard of SEO, but probably isn’t sure how to implement it. He or she will assume you have a wealth of knowledge. One caveat, though… if your boss knows IT or is into online marketing, don’t try this without doing a ton of homework or you’ll get slammed.
The Word: Plug-In
How to Use It: “In terms of our blog, what kind of plug-ins do you think we could use to make the user’s experience better?”
What It Means: Plug-ins are to blogs essentially what “apps” are to iPhones. They are downloadable programs/components that enable the blog to have more bells and whistles. Some plug-ins are meant to help the blog owner (as in the case of plug-ins that help analyze traffic), others operate for the convenience of the blog visitor.
What Your Boss Will Think: Assuming your boss knows the company even has a blog, he or she will assume that you have ideas for plug-ins. So investigate a few beforehand. (Just do a search for Wordpress plug-ins… it won’t take more than 15 minutes but you’ll look like you’re really up-to-date.)
The Word: Defrag
How to Use It: “Boss, our computers are running slowly… is it time to defrag them?”
What It Means: Defragging is a really cool word for a simple operation that takes virtually no effort on the computer user’s part beyond clicking a few buttons. When you defrag your computer, you’re freeing up space by consolidating (de-fragmenting) files. Consider it to be akin to cleaning your office. In the end, you’re left with a cleaner space which equates to greater efficiency.
What Your Boss Will Think: If he or she has never heard the word before, you’re going to see a furrowed brow. Then, you may be asked for your opinion. Just say you recommend defragging. From there, you can set up instant defragging on any PC. (FYI – this isn’t applicable for MAC users.)
The Phrase: Google Wave
How to Use It: “Wow. Tough about the Google Wave, huh? Barely made it past beta testing and now it’s on the way out…”
What It Means: Google recently tried to sell the public on a new method of collaborative, real-time communicating. Called the Wave, it just didn’t resonate with consumers or business people, so Google decided to scrap the initial concept. The Wave is still being considered for other uses, however.
What Your Boss Will Think: Unless your boss cares a lot, he or she may just agree with your thoughts and walk (rapidly) away. You’ll be seen as a bit of a geek, but one who is definitely up to speed on computers and tech-talk.
… next time… four more words to use…