The Power of Precision: Why Vague Language Fails and Concrete Words Win
Frankie Kemp
20 July 2025
In a 2018 report by PwC, one of life’s most common complaints is customer service. What really grates with customers is that they feel the salesperson is “going through the motions” instead of being genuinely attentive to their needs.
Maybe you’ve experienced this yourself: repeats and reclarifications of an issue that have your blood pressure reaching Alpine levels.
Either they still don’t seem to have listened or give some vague response that leaves you in a state of uncertainty about whether your issue will ever be solved.
The communication skills that seem to be lacking are as applicable during interactions with internal customers as they are with external ones.
A 2020 study by Marketing Professors Jonah Berger and Grant Packard discussed in Berger’s book, ‘Magic Words: what to say to get your way’, studied thousands of customer interactions and how concrete language impacts on customer satisfaction.
Decent customer service pushed sales up by as much as 30%. But what constitutes ‘decent’ in terms of customer success. Surprisingly, the answer is not solely based on whether a problem is solved or an enquiry answered.
Berger and Packard found that the magic happens in using a particular type of language, which they termed ‘Concrete Language’.
Such language relies on specificity, rather than vagueness or jargon.
Concrete language doesn’t just make customers (and clients) happier but increases the likelihood that they’ll come back and buy in the future.
I’ll be covering internal customers as well, where actual purchasing may not apply, but you’ll see how such language builds greater confidence.
“What is Concrete Language?”
This is specific language as opposed to that which is conceptual or general in nature.
Examples:
General:
Unspecific: A waiter might say, “Do you want anything else?”
Concrete: A more concrete question is “Do you want a coffee or tea?”
Customer Success:
Unspecific: “Do you need any further assistance?”
Concrete: “Would you like help with system integration or data security?”
Technical:
Unspecific: “I’ll sort that out.”
Concrete: “I’ll create a shortcut for that operation.”
Spotting the vagueness
You’ll see how vague language, such as ‘any further assistance’ is swapped out as are pronouns, represented here by ‘that’. Other examples of words that will instantly flag up your own use of vague language are ‘it’ or ‘those’.
Some people are more careful avoiding this in written communication than in spoken. Consequently, the opportunities for misunderstanding are increased when you’re relying on verbal communication.
Mirror, Mirror
The technique of mirroring, or paraphrasing helps build connection and understanding. Both of these techniques come under the banner of ‘reflecting back’. They go beyond just parotting what you’ve heard as they allow processing and checking of the input before responding: an essential technique in active listening.
It means that you’re checking before acting with precision.
Examples of Mirroring and Concrete Language in Action
| Scenario | Vague Phrase | Reflecting Back + Concrete Language |
| Healthtech | “I’ll look into that.” | “You mentioned your wearable stopped syncing last night—I’ll review its data logs from midnight onward.” |
| IT Support | “I’ll investigate.” | “You said the error pops up when saving PDFs—I’ll test the export function using your regular workflow.” |
| Sustainable Agriculture / Net Zero Initiatives | “We’ll sort it out.” | “You flagged discrepancies in the carbon tracking dashboard—I’ll cross-check the last three weeks of satellite yield inputs against our emissions model.” |
Drop the Weak Language
Notice that there are no phrases such as “I’ll try to..” Such verbiage doesn’t inspire confidence. Instead, you could use phrases such as “I’ll aim to..” For a list of weak words and their stronger alternatives – with a handy download – go here.
Applying Concrete Language to your Internal Customers
This approach of specifity to language is relevant internally as much as externally. Your colleagues also need reassurance that their concern didn’t disappear into corporate ether.
Ditch the Jargon
When I train in giving inter-departmental updates for companies, one factor that prevents effective communication is assumed knowledge, especially with technical specialists.
There’s a common sprinkling of Tech Jargon, where the speaker swaps clarity for the mystical language of the specialist. I see this assumed knowledge often when training clients in inter-departmental updates where they’ll assume everyone speaks the same language.
Tech Jargon vs Clarity
| Scenario | Tech Jargon | Reflecting Back + Concrete, Plain English Response |
| Sustainability Reporting | “Let’s validate the anomalies flagged in the carbon intensity model.” | “Right. So you spotted a spike in emissions during period two? I’ll compare the fuel usage logs with our satellite yield data for that period.” |
| AI Tool Rollout in AgTech | “The model needs retraining based on recent farm-level variance.” | “You’re saying that the system misclassified crop health on field 17 last Tuesday? I’ll feed in the corrected soil sensor data from that day.” |
| Internal Review with Ops Team | “Action is required to enhance dashboard granularity.” | “You said the carbon tracker shows weekly totals but not daily use. Correct? I’ll update the display to reflect each zone’s daily carbon flow.” |
Your Action
Next time someone has an issue that you’ll be aiming to solve. Do this:
- Reflect back their issue to check understanding.
- Add Concrete Language stating your action.
- Use plain English if speaking to someone outside of your specialism. Here’s a template to help you:
“You mentioned [symptom/timeframe/system]—I’ll start by [specific action linked to that detail].”
But is there room for abstract language? Ah, there is. That’s the next post…
I help technical specialists sharpen up business communication training. I have customised solutions for groups and individuals looking to tap into their ability to action ideas and steer others through outstanding interpersonal communication skills.
Get in touch with me here for a free 15-minute Discovery Call to find out how we can work together.
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