Keep it simple–or else!

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If you want your readers to understand you, keep it simple.

You may be surprised by the American public’s low level of reading comprehension. More than 40 percent of adult, English-speaking hospital patients didn’t understand the following sentence:

Do not take this medication on an empty stomach.

This is according to Roger Lehrman’s “The Political Speechwriter’s Life,” which appeared in The New York Times (Nov 4, 2012). Yikes, this is scary.

Americans read, on average, at a seventh-grade level, according to Lehrman. If you want to reach them, you must write at their level. Here’s what Lehrman says about this:

You can’t hand your boss a speech saying, “It’s got all of your ideas. But 40 percent of your audience won’t know what you’re talking about.”

If you’re writing for a general audience, use plain English and keep it short. Short sentences also tend to be easier to understand.

What about writing for college-educated audiences?

You may think, “But my clients and prospects are all college-educated. Why should I keep it simple?”

Here’s my reply: your writing’s grade level is a measure of how hard you’re making your readers work to understand you. If you make their lives easier, they’re more likely to stick with you.

If your readership includes some more sophisticated readers, you can still appeal to them. I discuss some of these techniques in “How to make one quarterly letter fit clients at different levels of sophistication.”

Tools to help you assess your writing

To get a sense of your writing’s grade level, use the readability statistics in your word processing program or Hemingway App. If the numbers say you’re writing at a high grade level, you may benefit from rewriting your text.

Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

April 2018 note: I replaced a no-longer-available tool with Hemingway App.

What number of examples is ideal for persuasion?

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Persuasive writing often demands examples. You can’t expect your reader to take your word for everything.

The right number of examples depends on the nature and complexity of your point.

One example may be enough to prove a simple point. More examples may boost your argument’s power. However, too many examples will overwhelm your readers, possibly causing them to stop reading.

When I originally posted this article, I ran a poll asking “What number of examples is ideal?” You can read the poll results below.

Poll results and more 

The most popular answer to my poll was “three.” I’m not surprised because I had the “Rule of Three” in my head when I wrote this question. A writing teacher told me long ago that when you’re writing, groups of three often produce the best results.

For more on the “Rule of Three,” read Brian Clark’s “How to Use the ‘Rule of Three’ to Create Engaging Content.” In his post on the Copyblogger website, Clark said, “I truly do believe that a set of three bullet points is the most effective use of the format.”

More recently, New York Times writer Susannah Jacob cited research suggesting that “When trying to persuade, four claims are one too many.” You can read more in “The Power of Three.”

Note: This post was updated on Jan. 19, 2014, to reflect answers to my 2012 poll on this topic and more recent research.

Wise words for writers from “Alpha Better Juice”

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Rereading your drafts results in better writing. That’s the bottom line of the following quote from Roy Blount Jr.’s Alpha Better Juice or, the Joy of Text:

The web is a wondrous thing…, but so many people who publish things on it seem not be aware of that heretofore traditional stage of composition that involves reading over what you have written before you present it to the world. That’s one of the key advantages of writing as opposed to chatting: you can look at what you wrote and see whether it makes sense to, for starters, yourself, in which case it might make sense to somebody else.

 

I know it’s tempting to hit “publish” or” send” as soon as you finish a blog post draft or email. I’ve done that many times myself. But next time you finish a draft, please pause to reread it. There’s often one little thing you can tweak to improve the odds that your communication will achieve its goal.

Writing lesson from a museum exhibit

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A strong title can boost the appeal of a dull topic, as an exhibit at the Springfield Museum of Fine Arts reminded me.

I was leaning toward skipping the museum’s exhibit of Currier & Ives nineteenth century lithographs. The name summons fusty images.

But I changed my mind after I read the exhibit’s title: “The Real Housewives of Currier & Ives.”

The title promised a lively, contemporary spin on old images. Even better, it delivered on its promise, giving me a sense of women’s changing roles.

You can boost the appeal of your articles and blog posts by adapting titles of popular books and shows. If you do this well, you may attract readers who wouldn’t have looked at a more conventionally titled piece.

Have you successfully used a title from popular culture for your writing? Please share it below.

Currier & Ives travel note

If you’d like to see one of the country’s largest Currier & Ives collections, visit the Springfield Museum of Fine Arts’ Lenore B. and Sydney A. Alpert Currier & Ives Gallery.

 

For another exhibit-inspired blog post, go to Communications lessons from “Torn in Two” at the Boston Public Library

Guest post: “Good Writing is Good for Business”

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Gil Weinreich and I had a great conversation about the importance to advisors of good writing when he interviewed me for an article about email that appeared on AdvisorOne. I’m delighted that I convinced him to share his thoughts in this guest post.

Good Writing is Good for Business

By Gil Weinreich

More than 15 years of financial journalism experience have convinced me that a high proportion of financial services industry professionals – be they corporate executives or retail financial advisors – are poor communicators.

I recall one broker, who expensively branded around the motto “I value every sale.” Of course you do. Each sale makes you richer. But what does it do for me?

That is typical of an inability to imaginatively penetrate the deep-seated concerns of clients, who are looking for someone they can trust to help manage their personal finances, not a parasite to feed off their hard-earned assets.

Another common communications flaw is self-important verbosity, which gives the appearance that the writer was hoping a quantity of words would somehow give the impression of quality: “We help clients achieve their investment goals and objectives in light of their various needs and circumstances through ongoing consultation and periodic reviews.”

Just one of each pair (i.e., goals or objectives, needs or circumstances, consultation or periodic review) would do, and a competent writer could embellish each of these subjects rather than numb readers’ interest through repetition.

Poorly thought out word choices is another common malady: “From today’s needs to tomorrow’s goals, we will guide you on your financial path.” But most clients want to discuss today’s goals and tomorrow’s needs.

An asset manager executive once shared with me some shareholder newsletters that were uniformly ponderous, numeric and insipid. What the firm needed, I advised, was to find a capable person with investment knowledge but also literary skill to be put in charge of these communications. What they needed, in short, was a Chief Literary Officer.

The firm’s principals, all MBAs, nodded their approval, but it was clear they didn’t really get it since it violated all their business-school biases. They eventually hired a marketer – though, the firm already had marketers on staff – to oversee their investment communications. Years later, the firm has not grown much in assets under management and their communications do not appear to have much improved.

And that’s the thing of it. It’s hard to stand out in a crowded marketplace when you look, act, think, speak and write like all your competitors. Part of what B-school is about is making money, and financial professionals often, unwittingly, convey the impression that they make money from you rather than for you. Missing is insight into how to connect with customers, clients or prospects on a deeper level. And that is a task that requires broadmindedness and communications expertise.

Kyle Wiens, founder of two high-tech start-ups iFixit and Dozuki, requires all his employees, even salespeople and operations staff, to pass a grammar test as a condition of employment.

Writing in the July issue of the Harvard Business Review, Wiens says:

“If it takes someone more than 20 years to notice how to properly use “it’s,” then that’s not a learning curve I’m comfortable with. So, even in this hyper-competitive market, I will pass on a great programmer who cannot write.”

Poor grammar in financial communications leaves a bad impression, to be sure. But more than that, literarily accomplished financial communications can impress prospects and clients in ways that your average salesperson may not be able to achieve (but which he or she will find to be an indispensable aid). Simply put, good writing –especially because it is increasingly rare — is good for business.

——————

Gil Weinreich is the editor of Research magazine and a daily contributor to AdvisorOne, financial advisor-targeted publications owned by Summit Business Media. He can be reached at gweinreich@sbmedia.com.

Finding easy-to-follow formulas for your blog posts

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WSJ formual“Are there writing formulas I can follow?” This question from one of my blogging class students popped into my head as I read a Wall Street Journal article.

Find formulas in newspapers

If you’re an analytical, formula-loving blogger, then turn your eyes to The Wall Street Journal or another newspaper. You’ll find great models there. I especially like newspapers as models because their articles are short and typically get to the point right away. This is perfect for financial blog posts.

Formula: Summary + examples + explanation

“U.S. Profit Streak Hit by Global Weakness” on the Wall Street Journal‘s front page on July 30, 2012, suggested a formula to me. Start your article with a short summary statement. Follow it with short examples. Then dive into explanation.

Here’s how it looks in the article.

Intro: Bid adieu to growing profits.

Short examples: Slowing economies from the U.S. to China, increasingly wary shoppers, recession in much of Europe and a stronger dollar…

Explanation: Until Friday, the outlook had been for further growth in earnings. But forecasts are now turning negative…

Does this formula work for you?

If you use this formula, I’d like to see examples of your work. Please post them below.

By the way, if you like this post, you might also like “Make your writing easier with my fill-in-the-blanks approach for structuring articles.”

Monetary policy in plain English–Can you do better?

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Monetary policy. If you’re a financial advisor or investment manager, you know exactly what that means. But what about your clients and other readers of your communications? Do they get it?

Sometimes it’s useful to give a brief explanation of technical terms, as I described in “How to make one quarterly letter fit clients at different levels of sophistication.”

Plain English may not come easily to you. If not, look elsewhere for ideas. The Wall Street Journal is a good source for explanations of such terms.

For example, here’s how columnist David Wessel explained monetary policy in “Central Bankers’ Political Conundrum“:

. . . the interest rates the Fed controls and its ability to print money and buy assets.

I like Wessel’s brief explanation. Sure, he could explain more, but writers must strike a balance between clarity and length.

How would YOU explain”monetary policy”?

There are other ways to explain “monetary policy.” If you have an equally good or even better explanation, please share it below.

If you have plain English challenges

Are there financial terms that you struggle to explain in plain English? If you share them below, I’ll consider them as the topic of a future blog post.

Photo + Mind Map = Blog Inspiration

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It’s not easy generating ideas for a steady flow of blog posts about financial planning, investments, or related topics. When your well runs dry, consider looking through your old photos for inspiration. This blog post was inspired by stumbling on a Barbie on a Rhode Island beach this summer.

Turn your photos into blog posts infographic

Step 1: Pick a photo

Choose a photo to spark your brainstorming. I suggest choosing one that has no obvious connection to your blog’s topic. No dollar bills, piggy banks, or smiling retirees. This will free your mind to go in any direction.

There is no obvious connection between Barbie and writing. At least none that I can think of.

Step 2: Jot down any thoughts that come to mind

Look at your photo. Write down any thoughts that occur to you.

Some of you may come up with fully formed topics. If that’s not true for you, then organize your thoughts into a mind map in the next step.

Step 3: Draw a mind map

Draw a mind map with your photo at the center. As branches, draw potential blog post topics.

I drew the mind map below on the Green Hills Beach in Rhode Island’s South County region. If you find my handwritten map hard to read, look farther down for the same map, recreated using Mindomo.

As you can see, the Barbie on the beach sent my mind in many directions.

mind map

Mind map

Mind map

Barbie mind map created using Mindomo

Your mind map will look different, reflecting your interests and inclinations.

Step 4: Write your blog post

Your next step? Pick the topic that most appeals to you and start writing!

If this idea sparks a new blog post, please link to it below. Some vacation photos inspired one of my most popular blog posts: “Writing tip: Pop the balloon or make it your focus.”

Are your paragraphs the right length?

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The length of your paragraphs can help or handicap your readers.

I favor short paragraphs, especially when I’m writing blog posts for readers in a hurry. However, I also believe you should vary paragraph length according to the length demanded by your subject matter. It’s better to run too short than too long in these days of information overload.

For another perspective, here’s Roy Peter Clark quoting H.W. Fowler’s Modern English Usage:

…white space is the writer’s friend–and the reader’s. “Paragraphing is also a matter of the eye,” writes Fowler. “A reader will address himself more readily to his task if he sees from the start that he will have breathing spaces from time to time than if what is before him looks like a marathon course.”

In other words, please don’t write paragraphs that take up an entire page.

What do you think about paragraph length?

Miller’s Killer: Paper swap brainstorming blog and article ideas

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How can you come up with fresh ideas for your blog, newsletter, or white papers?

I recently discovered a new technique, The Paper Swap in “Think Bank: Break out of brainstorming boredom with these thought-provoking topics” in Spirit Magazine (no link available).

Here is a description of this group brainstorming technique:

Participants write ideas on pieces of paper, then swap papers and continue to add input.

To enable participants to read one another’s ideas, you should ask them to print. Alternatively, a group with multiple tablet computers could  pass them around for inputting.

The Paper Swap technique makes it easier for shy people to participate. It may also inspire unexpected perspectives on topics.

For more ideas, you may wish to check out Miller’s book, Quick Brainstorming Ideas for Busy Managers: 50 Exercises to Spark Your Team’s Creativity and Get Results Fast.