1. What’s Your Message?
Before you start writing your letter, memo, or report, determine exactly what it is you want to say in a simple statement. If you can, break it down to one simple point, such as, “Tell Smith he is needed in Detroit next week,” or if it’s more lengthy, write down a quick list, such as:
- Smith is needed in Detroit.
- He needs to determine the size of the job there.
- He needs to come back with three recommendations.
- Target high and low costs
- Contractors to hire
- Begin/end dates
These quick points then become the outline for your writing. Use these and expand from there.
2. Use the “Five Ws”
Journalists have used the “five Ws” for years as a way to check to see if they’ve covered everything that’s important. The five Ws are: Who, What, When, Where, and Why. I always add a sixth, although it’s not actually officially a “W”--that’s hoW. These questions cover the gamut of what your reader may be asking. So, you might say, Smith (who) is going to get information (what) next week (when) in Detroit (where) to get the building project started (why) by going on a fact-finding mission (how).
3. Use Plain English
Don’t be too formal and stuffy. More people will react positively to a more personal, conversational tone than a formal one. Your readers shouldn’t need a PhD to understand what you’re saying. Keep your writing style at your reader’s level. Make it easy to understand by removing unnecessary jargon, acronyms, and technical language. Other culprits are run-on sentences, big words, and long paragraphs.
4. Be Brief
Don’t be verbose. It’s too hard to follow. People don’t really read things—they scan them. And too much information is often overwhelming for people to get through. Shorten up those sentences and paragraphs, and cut the chaff.
Don’t write like this: “Dear Smith: It is imperative for you to follow up with McFee and Shelton in an effort to move the whole project in Detroit forward. We don’t want the project to come in late and then we’ll be forced to assign more funds to the building rather than the machinery.”
Do write like this: “Dear Smith: Please go to Detroit and follow up with McFee and Shelton to get the project moving. We don’t want to lose money.”
Check out our writing samples to see how brief, concise wording is much easier to read.
5. Make It Easy to Scan
Readers don’t actually read written communication--they scan it. Thus, you need to make it easy to scan. You only have a few seconds to grab your reader’s attention. Make it count.
This is what newspapers do. If all a person reads is the first sentence, he’ll understand the gist of what the rest of the paragraph will be saying.
6. Use Active Voice
Passive voice puts your readers to sleep. It’s a wimpy, roundabout way to say what you mean. Active voice is more direct and more lively.
Don’t use passive voice: “Detroit is where Smith is going.”
Use active voice: “Smith is going to Detroit.”
7. Edit
After you write, read it over. Does it say everything clearly, succinctly, and get your point across? Edit it down. If you can, set it aside for a day or two, and then re-read it. It’s likely a few things will pop out that you didn’t see before. Check out our editing samples for more info about what to look for when editing your document.
