Business
Writing
December 6, 2007
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Business
Writing
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Q:
Steve -- I was wondering if you could give our office some tips on effective
business writing. We create a lot of proposals and memos and I find far
too many with run-on sentences, grammatical mistakes, etc. Some basic
rules to follow would be great. Thank you. -- Carla
A: Writing for business is not that
different than writing generally, though I do think that more care must be taken
in business writing because people are less forgiving and more demanding
regarding business correspondence than personal correspondence.
Although there are, of course, no hard and fast rules for effective business writing, here are five tips that I think could make anyone a better writer:
1. Learn from the Internet. One of the interesting things I have noticed recently is that the Internet has even changed how we write, along with just about everything else it has touched. Specifically, because people are now getting so much of their information online, they (we) have become used to that style of writing.
What do I mean by that? Well,
Bullet points are far more common. People like, and often expect, to get their information in bite-sized chunks. This is also due in no small part to the pioneering style of the paper, USA TODAY, as well as, I think, the mass use of PowerPoint, where bullet points carry the day.
Paragraphs are shorter. It used to be that we could write full thoughts in long paragraphs of, say, ten sentences or more. And although it is still acceptable, people quite often tend to skip them in favor of smaller paragraphs. If you want people to read your stuff, you will try and avoid overly-long paragraphs.
2. Punch it up. What do I mean by that? Well, business writing can tend towards either the boring or the verbose. Filling your documents with jargon is a sure way to lose people's interest, as it taking too long to get to the point.
Keep your sentences short. Get to the point quickly. Write in a style that hopefully engages the reader. In this day and age, readers have less time and patience, so keep that in mind and write accordingly.
3. Remember that email is a business tool. Write clearly, avoid too many abbreviations, don't be too colloquial, and remember, there is no room for nuance in email.
I remembered this just last week when I was corresponding with a business associate, and for emphasis, I CAPITALIZED A FEW SENTENCES THAT I THOUGHT WERE IMPORTANT. In response, he told me that I had no reason to be mad at him and I realized that he thought my caps were me yelling at him. No, there is no nuance in email.
Similarly, it is easy to dash off an email without double-checking it. But just remember that when you do, it can contain spelling or grammatical mistakes -- which are still no-no's in business, even for a quick email.
Which brings me to . . .
4. Don't forget your grammar. You don't have to be a librarian or a grammarian to take grammar seriously and use it appropriately. Commas break up ideas and can clarify meaning. For instance, just look at that title (about pandas if I recall correctly) from the great little book Eats, shoots, and leaves. Of course the sentence would make sense with the right comma -- Eats shoots, and leaves.
Proper grammar is your friend.
5. Remember, writing is re-writing. I tell my daughters this so often, that it is probably as ingrained in their psyche as "look both ways when crossing the street!" Few of us get it right the first time, or even the second time. To get your point made in a powerful, memorable way requires that you write it, read it, and then kill those sentences that, while maybe beautiful, don't serve your purpose. Write it and then re-write it.
Finally, don't be afraid to infuse your writing with some personality. Doing so is fine, smart even, as long as you make your point.
Or at least I
hope so!
Today's Tip: My favorite book about writing is still Strunk and White's Elements of Style.