When promoting free trade, it’s important to get the language right, according to a survey of Republicans, Democrats and independents commissioned by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Instead of speaking of “globalization,” it is better to refer to “international trade.” The word globalization is “often viewed perniciously,” the survey of voter attitudes warns, and implies that business is “exploiting Third World workers in the name of cheap goods.”

The public opinion survey was conducted in six cities from January to April of this year by Presentation Testing. The New York-based company also rates campaign debates with audience dial testing that registers in real time voters’ reactions to a candidate’s statement.

The results, summarized in a document titled “What to Say/Not Say (and Why) on International Trade,” was filed with the Justice Department by the Fratelli Group, a public relations firm hired by Colombia’s Washington embassy in May, as part of its compliance with the Foreign Agent Registration Act rules.

Fratelli has shown the document to its client as it works to revive the free trade agreement (FTA) between Colombia and the United States.

The survey shows not only the sensitivity of free trade deals, but also the advancing sophistication of advocacy efforts these days. Lobbying is about more than contacts. It is about selling a product, and increasingly, lobbyists are relying on traditional marketing practices to close the deal
Christopher Wenk, the Chamber’s senior director of international policy, said the group spent a “substantial sum of money” in preparing the document. Wenk did not specify how much the survey cost, or the other business group that helped pay for the research.

“It was not cheap,” he said. “Trade is an important issue to us and our companies. How we talk about it is very much under attack right now, so we undertook this study to refine how to better talk about trade.”

The document spells out how to tailor an appeal to Democrats, Republicans and independents, as well as to men and women, when promoting the free trade agreements.

For example, advocates should stress how free trade deals “level the playing field.” The sentiment “Our trading partners should treat us as fairly as we treat them” is a “home run statement,” according to the survey results.

Advocates, though, need to be wary of concerns that free trade deals can displace workers. Under a section titled “Putting Workers First,” the document suggests that trade advocates empathize with the anxiety that can come with increased global competition.