Richard Walker on his love of evolving language and how it shapes better market research and customer insight.
My children (aged 12 and 15) keep on bringing new turns of phrase into the Walker household. Playful. Inventive. Sometimes baffling. Often brilliant.
I first noticed it when, in early years schooling, my son brought home “blammock” as a word to convey annoyance or frustration. In hindsight, it was probably just a substitute swear word! I loved it and gave it longevity by introducing it to colleagues. Blammock lives on at Mustard – used as a phrase to describe those instances of unduly complicated and (sometimes) unnecessarily long-winded public sector procurement.
When Language Travels From Home to Qualitative Research
Back to the present. What’s fascinating isn’t just hearing these new turns of phrase at the dinner table. It’s watching them seep into society more broadly… and eventually hearing them surface in qualitative interviews, groups, surveys, and ultimately into briefs or debriefs.
No. I’m not talking about the ridiculousness of “6–7” here. (Although… a small part of me wonders whether that craze has quietly impacted how consumers interpret a 7 on a 10-point scale? One for another blog. Or maybe not.). I’m talking about the growing collection of phrases appended to the start of sentences to convey emotion, urgency or sincerity.
“Literally” has been overused for years. Often when “metaphorically” would be more accurate. “Low key” arrived to add understated drama. “Genuinely” followed to emphasise sincerity.
And then, last week, came the mash-up: “Low-ken-uinely”.
Such an utterly brilliant word to say, I’m determined to bring it into a meeting this week. I’ll test the water internally first. Panic not, clients.
The Rise of “Meta-Language” in Customer Insight
It also got me thinking about other phrases that have been embedding themselves into everyday language. “Not gonna lie” or worse, “NGL” is one I struggle with. Operating in a world where we seek to uncover truths, I’d hope honesty was a given!
Mid. Another favourite right now. More often used as a single-word response to a question. (How was your day at school, how did you play at football, how are you feeling about XYZ…). The answer, very often, is simply “mid”. I’ve not seen that in a scale question yet, but I’m sure it’s coming soon.
Other phrases we often hear from Gen Z and Gen Alpha include “to be fair” (signalling balance), “I mean…” (which helps to soften points being made) and “No offence but…” (which feels like the OG hedge which never went away).
Why Language Matters in Market Research
Looking at the longer-term evolution of language (and being in the business of data), I’ve always had a low tolerance for the overuse of “less” and the underuse of “fewer”. But, aside from my snobbery and low tolerance – and to avoid this turning into a list of pet peeves – here’s the point of this blog…
As market research professionals, we operate in a fascinating space. We have to be fluent in the language of our participants, while also translating that language so it resonates across our clients’ organisations. We can’t sanitise it. But we can’t dilute the meaning either. Clients need to hear how people actually talk. Because language is culture. And culture shapes behaviour.
Many of these emerging phrases are doing meta-communication. They add emotion, sincerity, or social positioning. This makes them especially fascinating when we see / hear them in our qualitative research. They soften criticism, they signal vulnerability, they hedge strong opinions and they add social alignment. They may sound like “filler” but they’re actually strong meaning carriers.
Designing Better Surveys and Discussion Guides
The evolution of language is not just important for the analysis and interpretation of research. It’s important for design too. The best questionnaires and discussion guides should feel naturally conversational.
It’s also why we pay attention to readability when designing research materials. Tools like the Gunning Fog Index help us understand the reading age required to comprehend surveys, discussion guides and stimulus.
So yes, language evolves. New phrases emerge. Old ones fade. Some make us wince. Others make us smile.
But for those of us working in insight, these shifts matter. They’re signals of tone, emotion and cultural nuance. They help us understand not just what people say, but how they feel.
And if that means I occasionally drop “low-ken-uinely” into a meeting…
Well… low-ken-uinely, that’s just good cultural immersion.