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No matter what you write, it's important to have your own review process in place, and like the various types of writing we've discussed, the type of review for each one will need to be customized as well.
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With practice and experience, you'll learn
to avoid many of,
0:00
of these commonly confused words, or
grammatical errors that I've mentioned.
0:05
No matter what you write though, it's
important to have your own
0:09
review process, and like the various types
of writing that we've discussed.
0:13
The type of review for each one will need
to be customized as well.
0:18
In the case of our professional
0:24
communications, it's very helpful to have
a
0:25
friend, a relative, or a colleague review
them, especially cover letters or resumes.
0:27
First of all, you should ask them to be
honest about their feedback.
0:33
The last thing you need is, is for someone
to try and not your
0:37
hurt, try and not to hurt your feelings,
you know, because of being nice.
0:40
You know, you want that harsh, unfiltered
feedback.
0:45
And you need to put it to good use by
improving your work.
0:48
At the same time, these people can be
trusted to be discrete
0:52
about what you've written, especially if
you're applying for a new job.
0:55
But by all means, make sure that any cover
letter, project proposal,
1:00
or any other vitally important document,
is free from typos and mistakes.
1:04
Don't only rely on the spell check feature
1:08
you might have to save you from
embarrassment.
1:11
If you're unsure in any way, about the use
of a
1:14
figure of speech, or even a word, Google
it, super easy.
1:16
Search for any word and add definition the
word definition after it,
1:20
and you'll be shown a dictionary type
listing of the term in question.
1:25
One way to improve any instructional
writing that you might create
1:30
for a website, is to put it through a
usability test.
1:34
You can ask users to complete a task that
you know will take them on a path
1:38
through pages with your text, and by doing
so,
1:42
you can gauge the effectiveness of what
you've written.
1:45
You might find that your text is too long
or you might need more detail
1:50
to improve the understanding of it, or in
some cases you don't need text at all.
1:53
But don't forget documentation isn't just
for colleagues or future team members.
1:57
If you're writing documentation or, or
including
2:02
comments in code, you yourself might need
a
2:05
reminder about how code or data or other
2:08
elements work, at some point in the
future.
2:11
So, make your future job easier by writing
effectively about it now.
2:13
One of the most important aspects about
corporate writing, such
2:19
as marketing copy, is that it must be
honest and accurate.
2:24
Part of effective marketing writing is
understanding what you're writing about.
2:30
If you're writing about an app, be
truthful about what
2:34
it does, and why it will bring value to
the user.
2:38
Don't sensationalize or overstate things.
2:41
Marketing shouldn't be about exaggeration.
2:44
It should be about offering helpful
solutions
2:47
that a potential customer simply cannot do
without.
2:50
It's about telling a story that people can
relate to.
2:54
If you write your marketing copy
2:57
effectively, the right target audience
will
2:59
have no choice but to do what you want
them to do.
3:02
One key to effective marketing copy,
especially on a
3:06
website, is sticking to a prepared list of
keywords.
3:08
Now if you've done your job correctly,
3:12
you'll have researched and determined
which keywords to
3:14
use on your site and if so, you'll wanna
use those keywords in your website text.
3:17
However, you wanna use them naturally,
don't overload your
3:21
text with repetitive keywords because you
think that's gonna result
3:25
in positive SEO where actually it'll, you
know, you'll suffer
3:28
from negative readability, and users will
leave because of it.
3:32
And social updates are the quickest to
publish,
3:36
but they can also be the fastest to
spread.
3:38
So, apply the same standards for review
before posting anything.
3:41
But also understand that social updates
have a limited lifespan.
3:46
You know, they generally disappear from
the
3:49
public's attention within days, if not
hours.
3:51
So, if you're hoping to use social
3:55
platforms to publish pieces that would be
valuable
3:57
over a long period of time, consider if
people will still be able to find them.
4:00
And, you know, maybe a different, more
searchable platform
4:04
would be more appropriate for the writing
in question.
4:08
So, in the future, you're gonna write for
many different reasons,
4:12
you know, for many kinds of audiences,
about lots of different topics.
4:16
But before you face these challenges, it's
important to challenge yourself.
4:21
You know if you truly wanna be a better
writer, create
4:23
a place and an opportunity for yourself to
try things out.
4:27
For example, you'll get one of these.
4:32
You have some field notes.
4:34
Buy a notebook and keep it with you.
4:36
Don't be concerned about crafting the next
great
4:38
novel, you know, just take notes, write
some blurbs.
4:41
Make note of anything important that you
wanna remember at a later time.
4:44
You know, if you need some ideas to write
4:47
about, write better slogans for the
products that you love.
4:50
Write a story about your favorite
childhood memory.
4:54
Share your thoughts on your most important
personal challenge.
4:57
You know, share them or keep them to
yourself, put
5:00
them in your notebook, but regardless,
write, and write some more.
5:02
That's how you'll become a better writer.
5:06
And remember that words are just one part
of communicating, too.
5:08
Draw doodles, take pictures, shoot some
video, record things that matter to you.
5:11
You know, inspiration can strike at any
time.
5:16
And if you're more of a digital type of
person, get on EverNote, or GoogleDrive,
5:20
or some other easily accessible platform
where
5:24
you can record your thoughts at any time.
5:27
And remember, not everything you write
will be perfect.
5:31
You know, communication can be
5:34
done instantaneously, but communicating
effectively
5:36
takes planning, preparation,
consideration, and
5:40
it takes a little experience.
5:43
So before you produce that next amazing
writing
5:46
piece, consider who and what you're
writing for.
5:49
Why it's important, and different ways to
tell the story to the people that matter.
5:53
Your cover letters will become personal
mission statements.
5:58
Your project proposals will become
professional road maps for success.
6:02
And your blog posts and social updates
will
6:06
become a reason to follow and engage with
you.
6:09
Your voice and your story are within you
right now.
6:11
So make sure that you share it with great
effective writing.
6:14
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