What exactly is it about? At the moment, you often read terms such as "stuttering German" or "language disorder" because a form of gender-neutral speech - namely when using gender signs -

What is it? When you pronounce a word with a gender asterisk, for example "Bürger:innen", you do indeed pause briefly before the "innen". And yes, it is understandable that this irritates some people, simply because they are not used to it.

However, these pauses or stresses are anything but new or unusual. In fact, we encounter them all the time in the German language. We have to "auf:essen" our plate, we go to the "The:ater", we "um:armen" our partner, a "Heb:amme" gives birth to us, we often "ver:ursachen" confusion and hopefully don't have to go to the "Not:aufnahme". And we often wish we could just "end" a discussion.

And: these pauses and emphases are often even fundamental to the meaning of the word, they can even turn the meaning of the word into its opposite. Just think of the request to "drive around" a policeman as opposed to the request to "drive around" him. Also, "dust:corners" are different from "traffic:jams". And "the ode" is different from a "diode". And there is also a big difference between "ver:reisen" and "ver:eisen".

Our conclusion: Yes, you can personally find the pause in speech with the gender marker unpleasant. And you can also cite it as a reason why gendering is "stupid". And you certainly have to make an effort to learn it. However, you also learn it very quickly if you do it for a while. Just like we have learned all the other words. So that's not really a compelling reason against gendering. On the contrary: this "disruption" is partly intentional. After all, it's not just about gender-conscious speaking, but also about gender-conscious listening.

Significance for marketing and communication: It's simply a matter of weighing up the benefits. If diversity and inclusion are part of your strategy, then welcome the disruption. Because your message will be better perceived precisely because of the disruption. However, if you are mainly communicating with stakeholders and target groups who find this pause very disruptive, you can and should take them into consideration. In this case, use other ways of speaking in a gender-conscious manner and refrain from using gender signs.

If you want to read more about this: