Author: Michelle Troutman

1. Edit.  Some of us don’t want others to see rings around our collars or dandruff on our shoulders because we want to leave a good impression. Likewise, the quality of your writing affects your business or organization’s image. Take care to rearrange jumbled words, remove unnecessary apostrophes, add any missing commas, and to downsize letters that shouldn’t be capitalized. It will make your writing easier on the eyes and the ears.

2. Be active. Sentences about actions done “by” someone or something are a sign of the passive voice.

You can’t always avoid the passive voice, but many times, your sentences will be shorter and people will read them more easily if you rework them. Too many sentences in this style can make people struggle to finish reading.

Example: The telephone pole was hit by a car.

Don’t be afraid to enliven and embolden your passages. “A car hit the telephone pole” is shorter and stronger.

3. Omit needless words.  Don’t use two words when one will do. These days, for busy customers, the fewer words, the less time it takes them to read. You don’t need to write a novel to get your points across.

4. Junk the jargon. Or, at least, explain it to those who aren’t in your industry; to them, it is like trying to understand a foreign language. Plain English should be the official language of bureaucrats and businesspeople in English-speaking countries.

5. Maintain your balance. Too much information, especially if it’s disorganized, can confuse readers and turn them away. With a length in mind, it’s better to plan the scope of your piece ahead of time. Use headings and bullet points to separate large blocks of text or use a table of contents to guide readers through longer works.

Quotes

“Good sense is both the first principal and the parent source of good writing.” ~ Horace

“Writing is thinking. To write well is to think clearly. That’s why it’s so hard.” ~ David McCullough

Comments? Suggestions? Need help? Feel free to contact me.

Michelle Troutman
classywriting.com

1. “Automate” your content creation process. Get content from other sources, but credit those sources. Direct artificial intelligence to write your drafts, but edit them to remove errors and add your brand voice, language, and style.

2. “Pre-procrastinate.” I’ve borrowed this term from a TED Talk podcast (“Slowing Down”) segment which argues that procrastination, especially among creatives, is a good thing. Essentially, you create content gradually in advance, letting it simmer until it’s finally well-done before deadline.

3.  Keep it short. I list this tip in almost every article, but it applies universally, and given how many times people ignore it, it bears repeating. The less you write, the less time it takes — there is truth to the phrase, “the less said, the better.”

4. Repackage, rewrite, or recycle. Update an older piece and you’re done. Take an email you wrote to staff about your company social media policy and rewrite it to advise companies how to write theirs. Simple steps make all of the difference. Briefly interview an expert or two in your field, or have them write an article for their free publicity for quick content.

5. Mine events and important dates. Calendars or almanacs of festivals, holidays, anniversaries, and other dates, including those your business or industry lives by, can be great sources of inspiration.

Quotes

“The secret of getting ahead is getting started.” ~ Mark Twain

“Going forward, real-time marketing is going to be the Holy Grail of marketing.” ~ Jonathan Mildenhall

Comments? Suggestions? Need help? Feel free to contact me.

Michelle Troutman
classywriting.com

1. Stay brief, not just within character limits, which applies to Twitter posts, but to increase engagement.

2. Credit sources and do it right. And, if you share an author’s article through a link from the page you share it from, oftentimes, this information will already be embedded in your post. On Twitter, if you have room, you can add the author’s handle to credit and notify him or her you shared the link. And they just might return the favor and “follow” you.

3. Posts with photos often get more shares, “likes,” or comments, especially on Facebook. The optimal size is 1200 x 900 for Facebook, and for Twitter, 876 x 438, and in my experience, photos with posts on both platforms get higher views.

4. Does the 2022 Honda Civic drive you wild? Did Seth Godin’s latest marketing tip impress you? Posts with specific keywords earn more hits, as do those with hashtags (#) on Twitter, especially closer to the beginning of the text.

5. Show some personality and humor in your social media content. Grammarly, maker of spell-checking software, is among those who do this effectively.

The Classy Writing Blog: 5 Simple Ideas for Content to Post on Social Media

“Are you stuck for great feed fodder? Especially if you’re pitching for regular content in a pinch, it can be hard to find interesting, ‘post-worthy’ material beyond company news and events. These ideas have worked for me, and I hope they’ll work for you….” Read more.

Quotes

“Content-based marketing gets repeated in social media and increases word-of-mouth mentions; it’s the best way to gather buzz about a product.” ~ Marsha Collier

“The strength of your social media is determined by the strength of your content.” ~ Haroon Rashid

Comments? Suggestions? Need help? Feel free to contact me.

Michelle Troutman
classywriting.com

1. Dates and times — When you refer to any of these, make sure that you include them. It’s easy to name an event and then not mention when it happens. Also, ensure they’re correct, and if you’ll include the day of the week, that it’s also right (e.g., Tuesday, not Wednesday), otherwise, no one will attend, especially if you host your grand opening on April 31st.

2. Math — Always check that all numbers you reference truly add up, which is important, not just for the mathematically-challenged.

3. Links — Whether your document is for online or offline reading, always check all links if you want your readers to get somewhere.

4. Incompleteness — If you’ve just hosted a successful fundraiser, and you’ve thanked staff in your newsletter, did you remember to thank any volunteers, and of course, your donors? To them, these are true “sins of omission.”

5. Missing pieces — If you forward someone’s email address to a colleague, it can be embarrassing if you fail to include that email address in your message. So, always double-check your writing and the details within it before other people see it.

Quotes

“Those who seldom make mistakes, seldom make discoveries.” ~ John Marks Templeton.

“Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don’t quit.” ~ Conrad Hilton

Comments? Suggestions? Need help? Feel free to contact me.

Michelle Troutman
Classy Writing
207.332.8379
classywriting.com