Effective Business Writing

The best advice that anyone can give for effective business writing is that well used phrase "Keep it simple, stupid." I don't recall who made that statement, I think his name was Bill, but I'm not sure.

Anyway, he certainly appeared to know what he was talking about, although it certainly appears to be good advice. But not to be taken too literary. It really depends on the application. If you are writing copy for advertising the latest perfume or a sleek new top-of-the range sports car, you can permit yourself the floweriest language and play on words. If you are writing a company report or balance sheet, you should keep your choice of words fairly simple.

In business writing, the principal function us to convey the message in as simple a form as possible. Don't assume that your readers are only 3 years old and only understand words such as fat, cat, dog and moon. On the other hand, don't go over the top, as if you have just swallowed a dictionary. Never try to be too eloquent. Especially if you are not to sure what the words you are using actually mean. Stay away from being too sparse with your choice of words.

Try and reach out to your audience by using words that you are sure they will be familiar with. This will help to make your message easily read and understood. The words that you use in your writing should have a definite and clear meaning. Don't expect your readers to think too much about what you are trying to tell them. Make your message easy to read and understand. The biggest mistake a writer can make is to fall into the trap of wordiness. Don't try to over explain things. Chances are that your readers are intelligent people. They will understand the message. What you are trying to tell them.

Once you have established this simple writing style. Of short and direct sentences you will be on your way to being a master of effective business writing.

The next thing you will have to deal with is being creative. Creative is not how you write, it is what you write. First of all in order to write creatively, you have to nurture your creative skills. We all have them, at least to an extent. Just a lot of us don't have the opportunity or desire to use them. Anyone who has ever read a good book. An excellent newspaper article or a compelling piece of marketing communication has come across the fruits of the talents of a creative writer. A creative writer is a perceptive person. They notice what is going on around them. They tend to listen a lot and speak a lot less. Why? Because they are drinking in what is going around them. To be used later.

Before a writer sits down to create a presentation, they will have already mapped out in their heads what they intend to write, and how they intend to write it. They will have adopted the phrase "Keep your sentences short and your paragraphs even shorter." You may even see a creative writer walking around talking to himself. Don't worry. He is just measuring his sentences!

Writing can be compared with weaving tapestries of words. People have been doing it for centuries. Styles have changed a lot, even over the last few years. People are now writing more and more articles for the internet. It is a well known fact that people who read web articles like short articles with short sentences. Like this one!