Glossary

Communication terminology explained in simple terms

Explaining complex concepts in simple language is one of our specialties.

However, even we sometimes use technical lingo. Here, we explain technical terminology from the field of communication. These are terms that we work with every day and use in our Total Rewards Communication projects. To establish a common understanding of these technical terms, we have listed them here separately for reference.

Our glossary is a living document and is continuously being expanded.

AIDA-Model

The AIDA Model describes the four stages a person goes through when interacting with communication: Attention, Interest, Desire, Action. It helps structure messages and campaigns to capture attention, spark interest, create desire, and ultimately drive the user or customer to take action.

 
 

Audiences

Groups of people who receive or engage with a message, product, or service. Audiences can be segmented by demographics, interests, behaviors, or needs. In marketing, this includes potential customers; in internal communications, it might be employees or stakeholders.​

Branding

Branding refers to the targeted development and management of a brand, including its communicative and visual characteristics, to make a product, organization, person, or place easy to recognize and different from others by connecting it with a particular name, design, symbol, or set of qualities. Branding covers all tangible and intangible factors that let a company, service, or product distinguish itself and be remembered, such as values, mission, and personality. Within the context of Total Rewards, it refers mainly to Employer Branding, i.e., to the branding of a company as employer.

Key Aspects of Branding
Branding is about creating unique visual and communicative messages (such as logos, colors, style, and stories) that help people identify and relate to a brand.

Its main goals are differentiation from competitors, maintaining a consistent brand experience, and establishing an emotional connection between the brand and its target audience (in this case the company’s employees).

Branding can apply to products, services, companies, individuals, and even places or regions; it is not limited to commercial goods.

Why Branding Is Important
A strong brand leaves a lasting impression, builds trust and loyalty, and provides orientation for consumers choosing between similar offers in the market. Branding helps achieve greater appreciation for products, services, or the company as an employer, and influences target group decisions by creating meaning and emotional value beyond just functional benefit.

Center of Excellence

A Center of Excellence is a dedicated team within an organization that provides specialized knowledge, guidance, and best practices in a specific area. It supports other departments by offering expertise, ensuring consistency, and enabling effective decision-making across the company.

Communication Channel

Communication channels are the pathways or media through which information, messages, or ideas are exchanged between a sender and a receiver. They serve to enable communication and can be either traditional or digital.

Communication channels can be divided into two main categories:

Traditional communication channels: These include print media such as flyers, information brochures, checklists, one-pagers, newspapers, magazines, posters, displays, and other tangible materials.

Digital communication channels: These include email, websites, intranet content, digital tutorials, social media, videos, PowerPoint presentations, interactive PDFs, digital platforms, virtual reality, and more.

In addition, direct communication channels such as face-to-face conversations, phone calls, or video calls are also part of this landscape. They ensure immediate human-to-human exchange, which is essential for effective communication.

Communications, internal, external

Communication refers to the exchange of information, ideas, and messages between people or organizations and is central to their collaboration and success.

Internal Communication
Internal communication includes all measures and processes used within an organization or company to inform, motivate, and coordinate employees. It is directed at staff, managers, and various teams and serves to share relevant information, enable feedback, and strengthen the corporate culture.

External Communication
External communication refers to all communication activities aimed at target groups outside the company, such as customers, business partners, the media, or the general public. Its goal is to promote the company’s image, products, or services, convey key messages to stakeholders, and maintain relationships.

Employee Experience

The sum of all interactions an employee has with their employer, from recruitment to exit. It includes the physical workspace, company culture, technology, leadership, and HR processes. A positive employee experience boosts engagement, retention, and performance.​

Employee Journey

A step-by-step path an employee takes throughout their time with a company. It typically includes:​ Recruitment, Onboarding, Development, Promotion, Retention, Exit/Retirement. Mapping this journey helps organizations improve touchpoints and support employees effectively.​

Employee Value Proposition (EVP)

An Employee Value Proposition defines the unique set of benefits, culture, and experiences an organization offers to its employees. It communicates why current and potential employees should join, stay, and engage with the company, linking organizational values with personal and professional fulfillment.

Human-centric Design

Human-Centric Design is an approach that puts the needs, emotions, and experiences of people at the center of the design process. It ensures products, services, or processes are intuitive, accessible, and meaningful, creating value for both users and organizations.

Information Design

Information design is about creating, presenting, and visualizing information so that it’s clear, easy to understand, and useful for the audience. It brings together content, layout, and visuals to help people quickly make sense of complex data, ideas, or instructions.

Key Message

The central idea or takeaway the audience needs to remember. It’s the core of a communication: clear, concise, and aligned with the defined goals. A strong key message guides tone, content, and delivery across channels.​

Look&Feel

Refers to the combined aesthetic and emotional experience that a user has when interacting with a product, brand, or interface. The “look” encompasses the visual design elements such as color schemes, typography, layout, and imagery, while the “feel” relates to the emotional tone and usability, i.e. how intuitive, engaging, or satisfying the experience is. Together, they shape the user’s perception and influence how they connect with what they see and use.

Narrative

A narrative is a meaningful story or message that goes beyond numbers and facts. It creates identification, emotional connection, and conveys the bigger picture. In the context of Total Rewards, this means not just “explaining” the value of the offering and the company culture but making them truly felt.

Storytelling

Describes the craft of conveying ideas, emotions, or messages through a structured narrative. It involves creating a sequence of events that typically includes characters, a plot, conflict, and resolution, all woven together to express a central theme. Storytelling is a powerful tool in communication, marketing, and design because it helps people relate to information on a human level, making it more memorable and impactful. Whether used to share a brand’s origin, a user’s journey, or a product’s purpose, storytelling builds connection and meaning.

Target Group

A specific subset of the audience a product, service, or message is aimed at. Defined by characteristics like age, profession, location, or behavior. Targeting helps tailor communication and offerings for maximum relevance and impact.​

Total Rewards

Total Rewards is a holistic system that compensates employees for their work. It comprises all financial renumeration, additional benefits, special incentives, perks and underlying provisions that a company offers its employees. Total Rewards is a strategic tool for attracting, retaining and motivating employees and is part of HR.

User Experience (UX) und UX Design

User experience includes the entire interaction a user has with a product, service, or brand, including every touchpoint with the company, its services, and its products. The goal of UX design is to make the experience easy, efficient, relevant, and altogether pleasant for the user. UX encompasses everything that a person thinks and feels before (expectation), during (experience), and after (memory).

User Journey

A User journey maps the complete path a user takes when interacting with a product, service, or brand. It captures every step, action, decision, and emotion, showing how users experience value and meaning beyond mere functionality. Understanding the User Journey helps design interactions that are seamless, engaging, and aligned with both user needs and the company’s goals.

Value Proposition

A clear statement that explains how a product, service, or idea solves a problem or improves a situation. It highlights benefits and differentiators: why someone should choose this specific product, service, or idea over competitors. It’s the promise of value able to be delivered.​

CONTACT US

If you’d like to chat about this, or any other topic, get in touch with us.

We lead People-Projects to success through communication.

Portrait of Simone Schmitt Schillig - Managing Director Unequity GmbH

Your contact person

Share this page directly: