Prompt Proofing Blog Post: 3 Tips for Better Business Writing

This month we look at three key things to consider when you are writing for business purposes.

2012-08-17

VANCOUVER, BC, August 17, 2012 (Press-News.org) This month we look at three key things to consider when you are writing for business purposes.

#1 Tone:

Depending on your recipient, your tone is going to be either formal, friendly or familiar. The latter is unlikely to be used in a business scenario, unless you are simply emailing colleagues that you know extremely well. A formal tone is needed for any communications with people you have yet to meet, for reports, references for past employees, proposals or informative/scholarly articles. Emails and blogs can - in fact, should - be friendly in tone, engaging the reader and using a more conversational style. Website pages may be either formal or friendly depending on the nature of your business.

#2 Be positive:

It is difficult to win people over to your point of view if you sound unsure or apologetic. It's nice to be self-deprecating in many social situations but your website, business proposal or resume is not the place for this! If you do not appear confident, how can you expect other people to have confidence in you? To this end, avoid over qualifying. For example:

- We are fairly sure this will be successful.
- I hope you will enjoy reading our newsletter.
- It is possible that as many as 3 million people are affected by this.
- In all likelihood, this will be out-of-date in a couple of years or so.

Now compare:

- We know this will be successful.
- I am confident you will enjoy reading our newsletter.
- This has affected as many as 3 million people. (Note also the change from passive to active voice here!)
- This will be out-of-date in a couple of years.

Be positive!

#3 Make every word count:

We have written before about the value of being concise in your writing. Attention spans are short; few people have time to read articles full of digressions and anecdotes. Get to the point quickly and don't waste words. Go through your copy with a blue pencil (figuratively - the delete button on your keyboard works just as well!) and ruthlessly eradicate any redundancies. Avoid, for example, offering clients 'free gifts', sending someone a 'bouquet of flowers' or suggesting a 'safe haven' for their investments! ('Gifts', 'flowers' and 'haven' do all the explaining on their own!)

Resist the temptation to reiterate your point; make it once and move on.

Use strong verbs. Strong verbs are generally far more effective than verbs qualified by adverbs. Compare:

- She walked slowly down the street. / She sauntered down the street.
- He worked hard to recover from the setback. / He struggled to recover from the setback.

Minimize use of the verb 'to be', which is a weak verb. Starting sentences with 'There is/are' or 'It is', for example, is generally unnecessary - eliminate these two words and your writing will be more powerful.

Compare:

- There are many reasons why we should consider outsourcing. / We should consider outsourcing for many reasons.
- It is clear that we need to cut down on our overheads. / Clearly, we need to cut down on our overheads.

Tone, positivity and conciseness will give your business communications the effect you desire.

Check back next month for further writing tips.

About Prompt Proofing

Prompt Proofing is based in Vancouver, BC, Canada and was officially launched in 2010 by a team of editing and writing professionals who have over 40 years of experience in the education, news media, public relations and recruitment fields. Prompt Proofing prides itself on affordable services delivered with fast turnaround times, without sacrificing quality or accuracy.

Offering content writing, editing and proofreading services, Prompt Proofing takes care of your individual or business content needs. Visit our website for more information at http://www.PromptProofing.com.

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Prompt Proofing Blog Post: 3 Tips for Better Business Writing

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