Mark Twain described sound bites as "a minimum of sound to a maximum of sense."
Sound bites (yes, apparently 'sound byte' is an incorrect usage) can be very useful to communicate the essence of a topic, problem, opportunity or issue on hand. Used well, eyes will light up and the room will reverberate to the sound of "I got it!".
Sound bites are the modern version of the dagger carried by the assassins in the days or yore. Daggers were handy to take down people who were getting too powerful, annoying, inconvenient, threatening or difficult to understand. Sometimes, daggers were used just for amusement. Over time humans became more civilized and realized that killing opponents is not a solution that will scale. Besides, law enforcement was getting better and one day, they might be killed themselves!
Enter the 'sound bite'. A few well placed bites can plant seeds of doubt to raise questions on credibility of a person, a solution, a proposal, intentions, actions or plans.
It is often debated whether humans have fundamentally evolved and become more civilized or whether they are the same. Whatever the answer, deal with reality. In executing your strategy, use 'sound bites' or be used by it.
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