You don’t need to be a ‘writer’ to need to be a better writer. A large proportion of the workforce labours for hours in front of their computers every working day. It doesn’t matter whether you call it business writing, work writing, correspondence, professional writing, report writing or just simply communications. You might not even think of it as writing, more like shuffling information around your contact list. But it’s a craft – and when applied it turns generic, poorly reasoned and sloppily constructed writing into a convincing argument. All it takes is a deliberate and focused approach to shift the dynamic between you and your reader. A disengaged reader represents a lost opportunity, for you and for your organization. You can remedy that simply by changing your approach to writing.
Who exactly needs to write better?
Marketers who want to do a better job integrating their brand or corporate voice into their day-to-day business communications.
Not-for-profit communicators who need to bring more consistency and more of a sense of purpose to its public face and to its advocacy and fundraising efforts.
Government employees who must walk the line between diplomacy and conviction, between collaboration and the desire to put a strong case forward.
Professionals of all stripes – from lawyers to engineers – working in specialized fields who tend to talk in jargon to a public that doesn’t understand the terminology, so need to writer more clearly and directly.
Entrepreneurs who run small-to-medium sized businesses who are used to person-to-person relationships, but as their businesses grow, must learn how to communicate the benefits of their companies to a much wider pool of customers.
Academics who are trying to achieve a wider circulation for their work and their issues, so must engage the public on the public’s own terms.
Proposal writers who must be able to combine the need for detailed information with the desire to stand apart by communicating with more authority and commitment.