I feel like you either write confidently for your business, or you’re scared stiff and anxious that you’re doing it all wrong. Is there a middle ground?
Maybe you’re on the road to confident business writing (yay!) or maybe you’re still in the camp of anxiety-inducing writer’s block.
Either way, there are a few mistakes you might be making in writing for your business. But before the anxiety compounds just thinking about any mistakes, take heart. These are easy mistakes to fix.
Writing that is IRRELEVANT. After you dial in on what your business does and what your business is about, you can dial in your writing and really speak to what is important to your audience (and what is important to your business, encourages growth, and provides for future expansion).
Keep writing “on brand.” Avoid tangents and bunny trails that are irrelevant to your audience and do nothing to drive your business forward.
If you tell stories in your writing, use appropriate context for those stories. (Again, no bunny trails). Have a specific strategy for what you write about and how you present that information. Stories that have no overarching purpose or message are irrelevant and end up being very confusing to your audience.
Writing that is LONG WINDED & COMPLICATED. One of the best pieces of advice you can begin implementing today is to embrace simplicity. Use short, simple sentences. Don’t go on and on and on. Be concise. Share what you need to share without being long-winded. Avoid complex thoughts and ideas and just be clear.
Readers don’t have the patience for long-winded posts, sales pages that go on forever, and product descriptions that take 7 minutes to get through.
Writing that is TECHNICAL. Jargon is just not very appreciated. No one likes the feeling of being “talked over” in topics that they don’t understand or aren’t very informed on. Technical terms, phrases, and words only elevate that sense of uncertainty and insecurity.
You can use your writing to make people comfortable being around your brand. You can bring them under your wing and helpfully guide them into understanding about complicated facets of your business, but by throwing out jargon and other technical phrases, it will serve to alienate and not encourage.
Writing that is ME focused instead of AUDIENCE focused. No one likes a person who is all about themselves, #amiright. This is true in business writing, too.
If you have a personal brand, yes, you’re going to talk about yourself. What you do is most likely very close to who you are, and there is no way to separate the two. However, when you speak about yourself and your business, you have to spin your words in a way that bring the copy full circle and talks about your audience.
Writing that is INCONSISTENT. Consistency is key in business. This is true with graphics and visuals, with timing and responses, and with brand messaging as a whole. Inconsistent writing—whether that is in terms of amount (short vs long sections), time or amount posted (as in social media), or the things you talk about—does nothing to foster know, like, and trust. Instead, it encourages mistrust because people don’t know what they can expect from you. You become unpredictable.
Consistent writing can bridge that gap between mistrust and the beginning of a beautiful consumer/business relationship.
Once you create copy that conveys the heart of your business AND effectively reaches your audience, you have yourself a treasure. Use it. Reuse it. Spin it for the different mediums you use in your business. Consistency will take you far.
Are any of these 5 mistakes ones you now recognize in your own writing for business? Are there other mistakes that you know of in addition to these? Let me know and share how you overcome!
