How to Write Better Marketing Materials in 3 Simple Steps
Originally published at MaineBiz.biz
Whether you write for a living or not, written communication is a skill that needs to be visited and revisited. It is a key component of personal and professional development—the better you are, the more seriously you’ll be taken.
It’s always a work in progress. Bob Hope, the late comedian, once said, “If you watch a game, it’s fun. If you play it, it’s recreation. If you work at it, it’s golf.” The same can be said for writing: For some, it is a skill. For a select few, it is an art form. But for most it is never truly mastered.
I write for a living. As the head of Zenica Public Relations, a Portland-based agency, I draft or edit op-ed columns, press releases, social media posts, and other written materials. Over the years, writing has become second nature, but I would be failing my clients if complacency set in. Self-improvement requires not only repetition, but also regular introspection. How can I use this word more forcefully or make that paragraph flow more smoothly?
Know what you don’t know
For the sake of improvement, here are three New Year’s resolutions for all writers:
The first step to self-betterment is recognizing the need for it. Look at the career perspective: More than 80% of U.S. employers list the ability to communicate effectively in writing as important.
The second step is to acknowledge your own deficiencies. Chances are, you can improve as a writer. Over 80% of employers searching for job candidates with a high school diploma rate those candidates as “deficient” in writing. While a more advanced degree may lead to better writing, it is no guarantee. Only half of college seniors claim their writing skills improved over the course of a four-year education. Not surprisingly, a 2016 study by the New York-based nonprofit CollegeBoard showed corporations spend more than $3.1 billion annually on remedial written training.
The third step is to read. Then, read some more. You cannot improve your writing skills without consuming other content. Fiction or nonfiction, that content provides a barometer (at worst) or a blueprint (at best) for your own. There is a reason why the most accomplished writers recommend reading above all else. In Stephen King’s words: “If you don't have time to read, you don't have the time to write. Simple as that.” As author Lisa See puts it, “Read a thousand books, and your words will flow like a river.”
Put yourself in the reader’s shoes
Speaking of reading, the best writing keeps the reader in mind. As you create content, consider what is being consumed. Think of it like a sales job: Don’t just go on and on about what you’re selling. Take a step back, and put yourself in the buyer’s shoes: Why is this product worth my time? Why is this service worth my money?
I’ll use an example from my own life. As a PR expert, you grow comfortable speaking in different voices and speaking to different audiences. If I’m pitching a news outlet like the Wall Street Journal, I know that the Journal’s readership skews older than the likes of BuzzFeed or HuffPost. For the former, I am likelier to use more formal, buttoned-up language than for the latter two, which rely on catchier, pithier soundbites with millennials in mind (especially those with fleeting attention spans).
Similarly, if you’re emailing your boss at work, you need to put more time and effort into the impression you’re making. That means complete sentences. It does not mean the use of slang. Of course, if you’re emailing a co-worker at the same level, the writing does not have to be quite as artful. Nor must you spend as much time re-reading and rewriting.
Cut, cut, cut
Too often, aspiring writers assume that longer is better. The more content created, the more memorable it must be, right?
Not so fast. Just because your word count is higher does not mean that you’re conveying a higher level of intellectual being or the desired efficacy of writing. To the contrary, “short and sweet” communication is proven to be more resonant. This is especially true in today’s digital world, where the ease of access to varied information has made it more difficult to focus on any single strand. Take email marketing, where a reduction in the number of words by two-thirds may increase response rates by 80%.
Here’s a general rule of thumb: If you’re debating whether to include a word or not, leave it out. If you’re going back and forth on the necessity of a sentence or a paragraph, it probably isn’t necessary.
If you can write it in five words, why use six? If you can use two paragraphs, why stick with three? Out of stubbornness?
In writing (and in life), stubbornness is the enemy of self-improvement. Which brings us back to our first resolution: Self-awareness can turn a bad writer into a good one, and perhaps even a great one—that, and a whole lot of reading.
