{"id":18112,"date":"2021-03-02T16:33:31","date_gmt":"2021-03-03T00:33:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/otmk.wpengine.com\/?p=18112"},"modified":"2025-06-25T12:56:19","modified_gmt":"2025-06-25T19:56:19","slug":"the-power-of-words","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.outsourcemarketing.com\/blog\/the-power-of-words\/","title":{"rendered":"The Power of Words"},"content":{"rendered":"[vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” column_margin=”default” column_direction=”default” column_direction_tablet=”default” column_direction_phone=”default” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” row_border_radius=”none” row_border_radius_applies=”bg” overlay_strength=”0.3″ gradient_direction=”left_to_right” shape_divider_position=”bottom” bg_image_animation=”none”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_tablet=”inherit” column_padding_phone=”inherit” column_padding_position=”all” column_element_spacing=”default” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” column_link_target=”_self” gradient_direction=”left_to_right” overlay_strength=”0.3″ width=”1\/1″ tablet_width_inherit=”default” tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” bg_image_animation=”none” border_type=”simple” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]The first in a two-part series on copywriting. Find the second part here<\/a>.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

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\u201cChoose your words carefully.\u201d<\/h3>\n

You\u2019ve heard the phrase. And you might have taken it to heart. After all, words\u2014spoken and written\u2014have enfranchised genders, established nation-states, and both started and ended global wars.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Words may just be words. And as Gloria Estefan suggests, they can \u201cget in the way.\u201d After all, \u201cactions speak louder than words.\u201d Right?<\/span><\/p>\n

Not always.<\/span><\/p>\n

Words have meaning. Words have impact. Words <\/span>do <\/span><\/i>matter. And in that vein, words have power.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe power of words.\u201d<\/h3>\n

That\u2019s another phrase you might have come across, especially if you speak American or British English on the regular. I\u2019ve been thinking a lot about that particular phrase lately. It\u2019s actually what brought me to this table, right now, typing these words on my laptop.<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been wondering about the word \u201cpower\u201d too. It gets thrown around, all the time, in just about every context: race, gender, the body politic, finance, military, industry, alternative, advertising, and, of course, superhero. Just about every aspect of civilization and identity can have some sort of \u201cpower\u201d attributed to them, from bars to brokers.<\/span><\/p>\n

So what does \u201cpower\u201d actually mean? And how is it humanly possible for a mere word to have power?<\/span><\/p>\n

When you look at the etymology of the word \u201cpower,\u201d most authoritative sources agree that it has Anglo-French origins, and martial connotations. It most likely emerged in the Middle English lexicon around 1300, uttered as \u201cpoer,\u201d or \u201cpouer,\u201d meaning \u201cto be able,\u201d especially in the context of conquest.<\/span><\/p>\n

So back in the day, if you had power, you most likely were a boss on the battlefield. You possessed the ability to dominate in battle, and by extension, bands of warriors with power were essentially good at war.<\/span><\/p>\n

That brings us back to the phrase: \u201cThe power of words.\u201d Words can do stuff. Words are able. And if we layer in the original meaning of our Middle Age brethren, words slay.<\/span><\/p>\n

I thought it would be useful to examine the power of words through the lens of my particular milieu, copywriting. Shall we get our Don Draper on and take a stroll down Madison Avenue?<\/span><\/p>\n