What you write gives readers a window into who you are. In fact, you are what you write — don’t be foolhardy, fatuous, or fake.
Most content — emails, website copy, blog posts, reports, meeting minutes, presentations, and the like — is sloppy, confusing, and ultimately ineffective.
According to Statista, the total amount of data created, captured, copied, and consumed globally reached 64.2 zettabytes in 2020. (A zettabyte, as in a trillion gigabytes.) The indexed web contains about four billion pages. There are approximately 1.18 billion websites in the world. The amount of content produced daily is staggering. And, yes, most of it is sloppy, confusing, and ineffective.
It’s Hard to Write Well
It’s difficult to explain yourself to people who know less than you, care less than you, or don’t believe what you believe. Carefully crafted content requires expertise and effort. We’re all strapped for time, so many people knock out emails, blogs, and reports that they themselves can barely follow. Also, far too many writing classes focus on inverted-triangle thesis paragraphs and how to use a semicolon, leaving writers of all ages unclear about what constitutes good writing.
Most people I ask say that they know they should write from the reader’s point of view, aim to provide educational or entertainment value, and offer quick clarity. Nonetheless, many of those same people let content, structure, and language fall by the wayside, continually throwing defenseless words into catchall blocks of text labeled as paragraphs. We throw words around as if readers as a rule are patient and easily persuaded. As if any words will suffice.
You probably write with the hope that readers will examine your ideas seriously. But that can happen only if they actually take the time to read and think about your message. Readers won’t take your ideas seriously if they:
- Find your writing so complex or tedious that they stop reading before the end
- Misunderstand or distrust your message
- React negatively to the quality of its presentation
You Are What You Write
As I’ve described elsewhere, your business brand is your personal brand. They’re one and the same.
Some people send one poorly written email after the other and wonder why their coworkers perceive them as careless. Some people regularly deliver poorly organized presentations and reports and then wonder why their boss won’t promote them to a managerial position. Some people create BS brand messaging, proposals, sales pitches, and email campaigns and wonder why prospective customers see them as borderline sleazy or distrust them outright.
Ineffective writing doesn’t get the job done. Worse, it hurts your credibility. To your readers, you are what you write.
Learn About the Persuasive Writing Engine
Muddled thoughts and slapdash writing make for muddled, slapdash, ineffective arguments. The solution: The Persuasive Writing Engine.
