Eight Steps to Writing so that People Not Only Read and Understand
but Even Respond to Your Marketing Message
by Visiting Professor Wanda Loskot
In the age of instant communication your writing skills are more important than ever. You
must be able to express yourself without the benefit of facial expression, voice tone and
body language. The message must be clear, easy to read and VERY interesting because people
will turn off and quit reading a boring message much quicker than they will tune out a
boring speaker. Although many will listen to you to be polite - don't count on such luck
when it comes to reading your e-mail, your website content or any other written material.
And I am not talking about spelling and grammar only. While the mechanics are important to
communicate you are literate, of greater importance is how you say what you want to
communicate. It is fairly easy to find someone who could correct your grammar and spell
check is just a mouse click away, but above all you must take responsibility to create a
good content.
In writing, just like in speaking, what counts is focusing on communication with the
others rather than trying to impress them with your wit, knowledge or experience. And just
like in speaking, the more effective you are in writing, the more people trust you, like
you - and heck, yes - the more they buy from you.
I'm sure that these seven steps will help you write more effectively:
1. Know your objective
Before you write your first word, make sure that you know what your subject is and know
the subject well enough to write about it. But above all, know what you want to
accomplish. Why is it important? Because when you know where you are going it is easier to
get there. You can find the supporting material by doing some research - on the other hand
just knowing your topic well without a clear idea what you want to accomplish will lead
you nowhere.
The more specific you are, the better. Consider the example of searching the web. If you
only have a vague idea of what you want, you will end up with 258,978 (or more!)
references. When you refine your search, you can more easily get to where you want to go.
So, what result do you want to produce?
Do you want to educate your readers?
Gain their trust?
Dazzle them?
Make them think?
Do you want them to call you?
Or to order your special report?
Vote for you?
Do you want them to read everything on your website and come back for more?
Or maybe you just want them to remember you forever and tell everyone about you?
All of the above?
Everything can be accomplished if you know what it is. But be realistic - not everything
can be done in a one short piece.
Write down your objective in one paragraph - it might be difficult at first, so start with
a few words, and build upon it. You will be amazed how easy it is to write when you really
know what you want to accomplish. If you have trouble getting started, try writing
"I'm having trouble getting started, what I mean to say is......" and watch it
flow. Just let it come out, like brainstorming.
2. Organize your message logically
Create an outline (you saw it coming - didn't you?) - from the first point in your
introduction to the last one in the conclusion. Arrange your major points in a logical
order. And then start to work on your opening and on your conclusion.
I know it sounds strange but you should know your conclusion before you write the rest -
like in everything else, the only way to write clearly is to know where you are going.
Spend a lot of time on the headline and introduction because if you don't grab the
reader's attention right from the beginning, the reader won't read the rest no
matter how good it may be!
3. Use plain language
Use simple words. Plain talk. Write the way you and your readers talk. Short words of one,
two, or three syllables. Forget about your power vocabulary - to communicate effectively,
simple is better. And don't even think about using your jargon (you know what is jargon of
course - it is the "insider's" talk that most of your readers don't understand)
| Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address
| contains 275 words. And 196 of those words,
| have only one syllable!
Write in short, easy-to-read sentences. Avoid clichés - however use familiar word
combinations. Such phrases are usually well understood and remembered longer than the
sophisticated language.
And forget about the strict grammar rules! Not about ALL the rules -- good grammar is
important because it allows us to express ourselves clearly. But forget about your high
school English teacher and don't be afraid to violate the rules if it helps you make your
point. It is OK to start a sentence with "but'. And don't be afraid of non-sentences.
Like this one (without a verb!). Break the rules whenever you feel that it will make the
message sound more real - and I promise, you will sound real.
4. Concentrate on your reader
Even if you write about you yourself, your company and your product, concentrate on your
reader. Because your reader is more important than your topic, trust me! Think about
helping your readers get involved with whatever you write about, help them understand it,
help them remember it.
To measure how well you pay attention to your readers, keep an eye on the use of pronouns
"me" and "you". By saying "you" (and yours) at least three
times as often as saying I (and me, we, mine, our) you take the focus away from yourself
and put it on the reader.
And whenever you see too many "me" and "mine" rewrite until your
balance is right.
For example:
instead of "I think that this is really important",
say - "You will find that this is very important".
5. Write about what they want to know
Provide information. But don't assume that by merely describing your product or service
you are doing great job of informing. Ask yourself : What do your readers need? What do
they care about? What do they want? What do they fear? And write to answer their needs,
their wants, their fears. Make sure that the reader will feel better informed after
reading what you wrote.
Keep in mind that your readers have in their minds this one major question "What's in
it for me?" so keep enticing them to read all the way to the end by constantly
providing something new and important to discover. You might explain some confusing data,
give a new perspective, or introduce new facts and new ideas
You need to be aware that even after they start to read your message, they can still dump
it in the wastepaper basket if it's paper - or with a click of that deadly mouse if it is
on their computer screen (for example, will you read to the end of this article if you
don't find it interesting?).
The more you concentrate on your reader the more likely she or he will finish reading
whatever your write.
6. Understand the advantage of writing
When you speak, it's easy to get off the subject, or to get tongue-tied. When you speak,
it's easy to say something that can be regretted. When you speak, it is often difficult to
clarify - or even catch - confusing statements. (Often if you try to straighten out a
mistake, it gets even worse.)
Understand the beauty of writing and take full advantage of it. You can write and rewrite
until you express exactly what you say the way you want to say it. You never run out of
words because you can use a thesaurus and find the most effective expressions! You can say
much more in writing in less time than in the a face-to-face conversation because people
usually read faster than you or I can talk.
Please remember all that and take advantage of it - don't just spill your words on the
paper (or on the computer screen). Take your time to craft the message. Keep reviewing it
and rewriting until you say what you want to say in the most effective and compelling
way... Remember that everything worth reading was rewritten many many times.
| Ernest Hemingway rewrote the ending
| to his novel "A Farewell to Arms"
| more than 50 times!
7. Understand disadvantages of writing
In writing we don't have the opportunity to use our voice tone or body language to
emphasize what we say. Our message has to be clear enough to stand alone (OK, on the
internet we have those :-) but they cannot be a substitute for the multitude of our facial
expression...) Keeping that in mind don't be afraid to use expressive personal
statements.Don't be afraid to be different...
Probably the greatest disadvantage of writing is that people will quit reading much
quicker than they will quit listening. In real life most people will listen to you talk
even if they are bored - just to be polite - but that just won't happen in print.
Then there is this question: Will you ever know what they think? Just think - when
you speak (to just one person or to a whole crowd) you receive a multitude of immediate,
spontaneous reactions that let you know whether or not your message is well received. In
writing to find out anything about the audience response you need to employ special
"direct response marketing" skills. In fact, unless you learn those skills you
may never know how people react to your message.
8. Include call for action
Always ask readers to do something to respond. It may be to call you to request more
information, recommend you to others, sign in your guest book, respond to you in writing,
sign a petition - or even order your product on the spot (good luck with that!) Whatever.
But ask them to do something.
Why? Because you can measure the response to find out how effective your message is. You
read this article only because I asked you to request it, right? That's how I know whether
or not my newsletter was enticing enough...
If you ask your readers to do something and they don't do it - it usually means that your
writing is not effective. Of course it is also important to be realistic and ask
readers for something that they can do!
Writing is a challenging task. It is time consuming and not easy. But it is also extremely
also essential for your business and personal growth - not only on the Internet. A poorly
written piece equals missed opportunities, wasted time, lost income...
And a clear, result-oriented message? Just imagine what it could mean if your reader would
respond twice as much to your appeals, requests, and calls for action! |
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