OK, enough is enough!

For several years now I’ve seen and heard hundreds of marketers refer to their outsourced staff as "virtual assistants" or "VA’s".

But in reality, that term is completely incorrect!

Think about it, what does the term "virtual" mean?

Well, Webopedia defines it as:

"Not real. The term virtual is popular among computer scientists and is used in a wide variety of situations. In general, it distinguishes something that is merely conceptual from something that has physical reality.

For example, virtual memory refers to an imaginary set of locations, or addresses, where you can store data. It is imaginary in the sense that the memory area is not the same as the real physical memory composed of transistors. The difference is a bit like the difference between an architect’s plans for a house and the actual house. A computer scientist might call the plans a virtual house.

Another analogy is the difference between the brain and the mind. The mind is a virtual brain. It exists conceptually, but the actual physical matter is the brain."

So, do all these marketers have "not real" or "conceptual" assistants? No, I don’t think that’s it.

How can any of us employ an imaginary assistant?

We can’t (at least for now), plain and simple.

But what we CAN do is employ a REMOTE ASSISTANT, or RA, can’t we?

Yes, that’s right, a genuine flesh and blood human being. Not some imaginary construct of a non-physical "person" who does our menial work for us.

So, why not start today using accurate terms and accurate thinking?

From now on, how about using the term Remote Assistant to replace the ridiculously incorrect Virtual Assistant?

And while I’m on the subject, I’m reminded of a term that Mark Joyner termed to describe the viral growth rate of marketing campaigns – COPULATION rate.

Guess what Mark, that’s a really bad (and incorrect) use of the English language.

In his defense, Mark did admit that he would have preferred a better word, but that’s what he came up with.

The definition of copulation is: Sexual intercourse.

I’m guessing that if you’re reading this, you well know that sexual intercourse doesn’t necessarily produce offspring.

And that’s what Mark was shooting for with the term copulation – the production of offspring.

In this case, an exponential (or viral) explosion of growth in an email list or other marketing campaign.

In other words, the term he chose doesn’t center-in on the key principle he was trying to identify and define – exponential growth.

Some better word choices would have been: propagation, proliferation, replication, duplication, X-factor, etc., etc.

The only reason I can think of that a guy as smart as Mark would purposely choose an incorrect term like copulation is…

SEX SELLS!

Yep, even sexual terms like copulation.

And since Mark is a master marketer, I’d prefer to think it was a deliberate decision, rather than him simply being lazy.

Either way, I’m a very strong advocate of moving the human race forward, not backward.

And one of the ways I believe we can do that is by using our incredible English language to accurately communicate our thoughts.

In short, I refuse to participate in any form of "The Dumbing Down of America" or any other country, for that matter.

Hopefully you’ll join me and educate the folks you have in your sphere of influence to take the "high road" in their communications.