Monthly Archives: January 2012

Why worry about good writing for your website?

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When creating (or redesigning) your business’ website, design and code are vital. You want to immediately impress and draw in visitors with your site’s punchy and professional appeal. But by focusing only on the site’s development, color scheme and fonts, the site won’t achieve the success you want. You must take the time to create  high-quality copy for every page.

Writing matters to website design and, ultimately, its success. Great copy makes your site better by:

1. Dividing information logically and intuitively

If the site’s information isn’t organized, it’s difficult to read. This means that visitors will leave before they are persuaded to buy your product or service. When the information is divided and distilled intuitively, visitors will want to read every page — and return again and again. These visitors are most likely to share your ideas with others or purchase what you’re selling.

2. Determining search engine optimization

Your copy influences its search engine optimization — and whether or not searchers can find the site. Without properly placed keywords, your site may be beautiful, but will not show up in search results.

3. Showing the reader who you are and how you do business

With great writing, you demonstrate to readers that you have a great attention to detail, know your business and have a professional attitude. Also, clear descriptions of your business’ services, products and mission will attract the best prospective clients.

4. Selling your products and ideas 

The site’s design and useability attract the visitor initially. The words are what seal the deal. With excellent, benefit-orientated writing, visitors will become promoters of your blog posts and business. Ultimately, the writing turns visitors into customers.

Good writing is vital for your site’s success. Make sure you are putting the time and effort into creating great copy. If you aren’t sure where to start or need help creating insightful content, be sure to hire an expert.

What Makes Your Writing Professional?

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In business writing, I find that “formal” and “professional” styles often become confused, or even believed to be interchangeable. Often, people feel they need to write with a large vocabulary and formal phrases so that they “sound” professional.

Journalists must follow the Associated Press‘ rules and academics rely on The Modern Language Association or The Chicago Manual of Style. Business writers, however, have no set standard to follow. Perhaps this is because all organizations do business a little differently.

So let’s take a moment to consider what professionalism means, regardless of the type of business you work for:

  1. Responding to situations in a timely, skillful and respectful manner
  2. Acting with integrity, honesty and transparency
  3. Making decisions with sensitivity to the context and audience
  4. Shaping actions and decisions to support the organization’s larger objectives

The last two elements really speak to writing style; the organization’s unique objectives, context and audience should sculpt your writing style. Many organizations today want to be perceived as contemporary, personable and moving with the times, so a straightforward and conversational writing style makes sense. Many formal phrases — that came about when business was conducted via telegrams and letters — are no longer needed.

That’s not to say that formality doesn’t have it’s place, but it’s not always necessary for effective and professional business writing. What matters most is that you are clear, cogent and contribute to your organization’s image and productivity goals.

4 Ways to Avoid Confusion with Commas

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The punctuation mark comma

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As punctuation devices go, commas are often the most useful. They separate the structural elements of a sentence into more manageable segments of information, preventing confusion. The rules surrounding comma use, however, can be vague and flexible. Unlike semicolons, for example, there are few hard-and-fast rules.

Most writers, including business writers, don’t use commas enough to make their writing easier to understand. Here are a few strategies to help make your writing perfectly clear:

Use a comma to:

1. Address someone directly:

Wrong: Thank you Sheila! or Will you commit James?

Right: Thank you, Sheila! or Will you commit, James?

2. Separate a sentence’s introductory clause:

Wrong: Yes I received the report.

Right: Yes, I received the report.

3. Separate a sentence’s contrasting elements:

Wrong: My role includes these responsibilities not yours.

Right: My role includes these responsibilities, not yours.

4. Separate two distinct clauses: 

Wrong: Our department chose to support the Boys and Girls Club of America and Human Resources chose the Humane Society.

Right: Our department chose to support the Boys and Girls Club of America, and Human Resources chose the Humane Society.

Without the use of a comma, these sentence’s meanings are generally understood. However, with a comma, they are crystal clear and avoid any confusion.

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Workbook for Organizing Writing Projects

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Extensive business writing projects require careful planning and organization. When you take the time to plan, you’ll save time writing and produce a better final product. However, organizing them can be very challenging if you don’t know where to start. I spend lots of time and effort creating detailed plans for presentations, manuals and other larger communications — and have found a system that works well for me.

Fill out the form below to receive a free copy of my Workbook for Organizing Writing Projects!

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