Make an Impact with Your Written English by Fiona Talbot

Author:Fiona Talbot
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Publisher: Kogan Page

Why should they buy in to what you are saying?

Why should they buy in to anything else you may say in the future?

They may walk away.

They may complain.

They may tell others – and this further harms your reputation.

They will probably buy in to your competitors’ messages that do make sense.

Regularly refresh your word power

It is important that organizations regularly refresh their writing, so that they are not stuck in the rut of yesteryear. In commerce, words that were right for yesterday may not be right for today; words that are right for today may not be right for tomorrow.

To illustrate, I recently saw a lorry drive past, with the words ‘Quality Bulk Haulage’ emblazoned on its side. I did not catch sight of the company’s name, only these three words. Instead of being impressed, as one might expect, I actually thought what a meaningless expression this is. Does the word ‘quality’ describe bulk? In which case, what is quality bulk? I have no idea. Or is it meant to communicate ‘quality haulage of bulk’? In that case, what does this involve over and above a ‘lesser’ bulk haulage company? Is this one faster? Is it more efficient?

I want the slogan writer to do the work for me. This is not just about choosing correct English words: it is also about spelling out a really good reason why this company is better than the rest. Or it is about grabbing my interest, so that I remember the brand if I want to find out more.

Of course, quality is both a tangible and an intangible standard that we all seek as consumers. But for advertisers to use the word validly these days, it can be better to set it within a meaningful context. Otherwise, powerful as it might be within its right context, when used in isolation it can actually be a cliché: an expression that has been overused to the point of losing its effectiveness.

Another formerly powerful English word that can become devalued through overuse is ‘prestigious’. It has almost got to the point where every award ever given out is now ‘prestigious’. In the same way, ‘diva’, formerly used (in the positive sense) to describe female singers of global renown, is increasingly used to describe female singers with just one best-selling album or even just one single. The moment you sense that your existing power words are becoming clichés is the time to identify new ones.

An introduction to customer focus in writing

Word power can really help you focus on your customers and your audience at any given time. Sometimes you can identify how to express customer focus simply by discarding elements that will not express it. These negative elements can be:

being prepared to let readers see spelling and grammatical errors in English as our company norm;

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