Writing For Business

We write all the time. It has been and is an inseparable part of human civilisation. When it comes to business organisations, the impact of writing only enhances. Here writing comes in the form of proposals, sales pitches, solutions, presentations, assignments, emails, texts, and blogs and so on. But it takes no less than an expert to make sure that writing conveys the message the way intended. Fortunately, being an expert in business writing isn't a god gifted skill and can be developed by anyone with just a bit of willpower. Below are a few tips that can come really handy. 

READ BEFORE YOU HIT SEND 

None of these tips may come to no end if you don't read it yourself prior to handing it over to another. Reading your own writing makes one aware of the mistakes he or she is repeating. Yes, at times it may seem too boring to go over the same piece of writing a second time. In such cases, take a break and then start again. Asking a fellow colleague or friend to go through the write-up is also welcome. 

PRACTICE

Writing is like weightlifting. You cannot lift the heaviest weight on your first day at the gym. You have to build up your writing muscles little by little (sorry, no shortcut here). Reading literature, business journals or analysing writings of well-known business authors are great ways of honing expertise. 

BE DIRECT

Time is money. So, don't waste too many words before you deliver the message. Be brief at first and then go on to elaborate. By all means, the intended message should be stated within the first sentence. In case an introduction is really really important, opt for a second sentence. Go beyond that and you're risking the reader's attention. 

JARGON IS YES OR NO

Many find it less taxing to use jargon or technical terminologies in writing. However for readers, this is often accompanied by mixed feelings. Use of jargon is alright only if you're sure that readers are well acquainted with the term i.e. using engineering terms with engineers. Rule of thumb: if you're even a little bit concerned about how readers may react to jargon it's better to lay off them completely, if not mention it in brackets, footnote or appendix. 

DEFINE 'MESSAGE'

The writing process starts way before we sit with pen and paper or rest hands on the keyboard. It starts with outlining the message we need to convey. Don't be surprised if this defining phase takes several hours, days or involves elaborate discussion and/or in-depth research. It's all part of preparation. And don't even panic if the 'message' doesn't go beyond one sentence, that's how it should be in most cases. Only in the rarest circumstances are more than 2-3 sentences needed to define your key message.

SHORT SENTENCES

Short sentences are an important tool for holding the reader's focus. Short sentences with incremental information keeps readers intrigued. It also helps reader understand the writer's perspective better.

KILL YOUR DARLINGS

This is another way of saying 'leave out unnecessary words.' Sometimes we prefer to use more than one synonym when the basic word itself does the job perfectly. Use of extra adjectives is a practice that we often opt for to amplify or emphasise something. In such cases, use of the first one is permissible, any more and it sounds redundant.

Like everything else, writing too has evolved. Do a casual survey and you'll find people who prefer a keyboard (few may even say mobile phone) over pen and paper. But this is only context; much change has come into style, forms and tempo of writing too. In spite of these changes in format, writing has not only persisted, but has intensified in significance. So next time you sit down to write a wind-changing business proposal, stick to the tips above and you'll be sure to convey the right message the first time, the second time, and every time onwards.

The writer works for the Supply Chain Department of Square Pharmaceuticals Ltd.