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By Rebecca Gould
Advertisements. Direct mail postcards. Press releases. You never let these marketing and branding documents outside your office walls until you put them through the wringer with several rounds of proofreading from marketers, editors, and associates. And that's the way it should be!
But do your online articles or emails find their way to the internet without a stamp of approval? If you're like most busy professionals, the chances are that yes, at least every once in a while, they do.
You may not consider emails to be branding material. But every document represents you, your firm, and your brand, and should be edited with appropriate care. When you're not physically present with a client, he or she will judge you by your documents.
You may try to stay as far away from writing as possible, but especially in the age of email, avoiding it entirely is impossible.
"But this is why we have copywriters and proofreaders," you might say. True. But I bet you don't have someone read over all your emails. And what about when you need to get a proposal out with quicker-than-lightning turnaround time?
So when your editor is out sick, instead of hastily hitting the "send" button on your email, or stuffing your proposal into an envelope, stop for a moment. Read over your document and consider these questions:
- When You Read The Document Aloud, How Does It Sound?
This age-old trick is age-old for a reason. As silly as you may feel walking around your office, reading your own document aloud, it will truly help you identify problem areas and ensure a logical connection of ideas.
Often, when reading silently, your eyes and mind play tricks on you. When you read in your head and something is out of order, or there's a grammatical mistake, or an extra word slipped into a sentence, you may not catch it. Your brain magically puts everything into place, and you never even notice. When you read aloud, you are forced to slow down and focus on each word, one at a time -- helping to highlight any hidden errors.
- What Kind Of Voice Comes Through?
Inexperienced writers sometimes write exactly as they speak. This isn't necessarily a bad trick, but it's easy to get carried away.
What works in a sales pitch in person doesn't necessarily work on paper. When you speak with someone, your tone of voice plays just as large a role (if not more so) as your actual words. Sarcasm, for example, is rarely received correctly in writing, and jokes that are spelled out on paper in the midst of a business document are also likely to fall flat.
But you don't need to sound overly formal all the time. Emails, white papers, and even proposals are lighter and more enjoyable to read if you connect with the reader on a personal level. Use some casually written language to let the reader get a sense of your personality. This makes your writing real, and gives your document a more human touch. People connect much better with other people than they do with robotic-sounding documents.
- Do You Keep Your Reader's Knowledge In Mind?
Yes, you may know the intricacies of the T5127-U model superchip, or the tax code for starting a new business, or the laws regarding immigration and visas in the U.S., but does your reader?
Know your reader. Consider their background and their depth of knowledge on the subject on which you are writing. If you write technical documents, and jump right into the nitty-gritty details without explaining the situation first in an introduction – expect to lose your readers quickly.
Include an introduction that summarizes what you're about to discuss and why. It is better to err on the side of too much explanation than too little. The reader can always skip ahead in your document, but will likely give up entirely if they don't understand it from the get-go.
- Is It All Necessary?
This is a fun rule because it can save you a lot of headaches. When you read a sentence or a whole paragraph, and you just don't like it – it doesn't make sense, it feels out of place, or whatever else, think about it. Ask yourself: Is this necessary? How does the document sound without it entirely?
If it doesn't add anything important, delete it. A 50-page proposal is only more cumbersome – not more impressive -- than a 35-page proposal if the message is the same. Less is more.
- What Do I Do Now?
Conclusions are important – and often forgotten. Leave your reader with some closing thoughts and next steps, if appropriate. For emails, let them know what to expect next. Are you calling them, or are they calling you? In proposals, do you expect the reader to sign the document, or make amendments, and when? For articles, summarize your points so the reader walks away with the lessons they came to learn. Often, people don't read your document all at once. To successfully convey your message, reiterate your main points and clarify any next steps
Truly editing your writing means more than just a quick proofread. Remember, your document replaces you when you aren't there in person. Yes, everyone makes typos here and there, and I don't believe your clients would hold that against you. More important than a missed comma, however, is the bigger picture.
Does your document sound good read aloud? Does your writing walk the line of professional, yet human? Will your audience understand your document without running to an encyclopedia? Is your writing clear and concise? Do you end your document with a solid conclusion?
Remember to ask yourself these questions when you review your work or someone else's. Consider your firm's brand and keep the bigger picture in mind. Assess whether you're ready to hit "send" – or if you'd better take just a little more time to make sure it's good to go. |