Today's Best Crazy Word...at the grocery store, no less.

My local Jewel-Osco....but, wait, what's that on the sign?

 

 I was at my local market [a large Midwestern super market chain] this morning to pick up a couple things when I looked up at the aisle marker and saw "Powder Drink." Check. "Bottled Juice" Check. "Aseptics" Huh? What? What the bejeebers is that. I looked around the shelves for a clue. Nothing. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So I asked the checkout clerk, "Hey, what's Aseptics? What's supposed to be in the Aseptics aisle?" He said, boy, you got me, I have no idea what that is. But, just a minute, let me call the manager. He put her on the phone with me at the checkout counter. When I asked her, she said, "I have no idea." with a chuckle. But she asked if I would show her where it was. So, we walked down the aisle and I pointed up. Puzzled, she said she really didn't know what 'Aseptics' were or are. But she called over another store person who was in the aisle who solved the mystery. It's juice boxes! Oh yeah, sure, that's......huh? Juice boxes?                                                                                                                                                         I went home and looked up "aseptics" and sure enough, it means sterile box often used for juice or milk. But I asked over 8 people at the grocery store and not one had any idea what the sign meant. The closest guess was, "....maybe something to do with bandages?"  THE LESSON. The words you use everyplace, anyplace, make a difference. They must make sense to your customers. You should avoid industry jargon on you website, in your marketing pieces and in your signage.   I wonder if the sign at my Jewel-Osco store will change. They are huge company. Probably not....very soon. But, I am smiling thinking about the big-wig marketing guy who came up with that sign thinking, "Oh yeah, everybody knows Cereal, Fruit, Soup, Soap and Aseptics.