Communicating in Plain English doesn’t mean dumbing down your message or boring your audience to tears. In fact, it’s quite the opposite.
Keeping It Simple
Throughout history, writers have been telling us to keep it simple.
Leonardo da Vinci said “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”. George Eliot said “The finest language is mostly made up of simple unimposing words” and William Butler Yeats said “Think like a wise man but communicate in the language of the people.”
Unfortunately, too many businesses and organisations are still unsuccessful in their attempts to communicate clearly thanks to technical information, irrelevant detail and industry jargon.
There’s no point writing something no one else understands and no one wants to read.
Writing plainly and precisely takes skill and effort. Here’s our top three tips to help you tell a compelling story and make your point.
Know Your Audience
Before you start writing, decide who you’re writing for. While experts in your field might be comfortable with complicated language, the general public isn’t. Write to communicate with your chosen audience, not to show off your technical expertise or knowledge of industry jargon.
Keep it simple, active and precise
Choose simple words. Use active sentences to keep your information punchy and clear. Keep your sentences short (on average 15-20 words). Don’t add information for the sake of it. If you can communicate the same message with fewer words – do so. The quickest way to lose your audience is unfriendly, passive and long-winded writing.
Ask a friend for feedback
Before you hit send on your email or publish on your blog, get someone else to read what you’ve written. It’s even better if that someone isn’t familiar with your subject so they can quickly tell you whether they understand it or give feedback on how you could improve it.
PR and Engagement specialists are pros at ditching jargon, making the complex simple and the technical relatable.
Harvey Cameron PR and Engagement can help you get your message across, tell a compelling story - no matter who your audience is ― and make you look good in the process!
