10 Words That DON’T Sell (Anymore)

We all know the word FREE is powerful stuff. “Free!” taps into something primal for almost everyone, and it’s been a marketer’s go-to word for ages. Most things slip out of fashion after centuries of use, but the promise of something for nothing isn’t going to lose its appeal. Ever.

But other words have broken their promises with irritating regularity, and after years of overuse, misuse, and abuse they’ve lost their power to emphasize, highlight, differentiate, and persuade.

I’d guess that each person’s list of worthless words is different? Exposure (or overexposure) would make a difference, and maybe also our individual cynicisms.

That said, here’s a list of words that don’t sell me anymore—

1. Value
2. Quality
3. Loyalty
4. Bargain
5. Luxury
6. All-natural
7. Gourmet
8. Organic
9. Exclusive
10. Expert

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Et tu? What well-worn words do you see on packaging, billboards, direct mail, etc that don’t sell you anymore?