Tech Terms Not Familiar to Many Americans

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The results of a recent survey conducted by Vouchercloud.net are a little bit disappointing for those of us in the tech world.

As it turns out, much of America is in the dark about many technical terms that we use quite often in our industry. It is easy to use them when corresponding with clients because we are used to it.

Ultimately, we don’t stop to think that the client may not know what we are talking about.

The survey, detailed in a Los Angeles Times article, found some interesting statistics:

• 77% of respondents could not identify what SEO means. SEO is an acronym for Search Engine Optimization.

• 27% identified "gigabyte" as an insect commonly found in South America. A gigabyte is a measurement unit for the storage capacity of an electronic device.

• 42% said they believed a Motherboard was the deck of a cruise ship. A motherboard is actually a circuit board.

• 23% thought a MP3 was a Star Wars robot. An MP3 in reality is an audio file.

• 18% identified Blu-Ray as a marine animal. It is a disk format used to store high-definition videos.

• 15% said they believed software was another word for comfortable clothing. Software is a term used for computer programs.

• Lastly, 12% thought USB is the acronym for a European country.  In reality, USB is a type of connector.

Despite the incorrect answers, 61% of the respondents said it is important to have a good knowledge of technology in this day and age.

This survey shocked us at Visionary because we are so familiar with the latest tech jargon, and inherently, we assume everyone else ­– particularly our clients – understand our language.

These terms aren’t specific to our company, though. Some aren’t even unique to our industry. But being a client-oriented business, we strive to communicate as effectively as we can.

And while the survey findings may be humorous to those in the know, it’s evident we should be making a greater effort to educate our clients – which means making sure everyone’s speaking the same language.

Click Here to read the original article published on the Los Angeles Times website.