Our Best Writing Tips
Your content is a reflection of you. Make it a good one.
Words, words, words.
No matter your industry or niche, your content marketing is going to demand a lot of words from you. Blog posts. Video or podcast scripts. Quotes. Memes. Tutorials. And more.
Anyone can write, but to write well is how to stand out from the crowd.
With so much content flooding our social media feeds, email inboxes, and search results, your writing needs to be better than average if you want to engage and retain followers.
So the $64,000 question is: but how?
Let’s dig a little deeper.
Create a Content Mission Statement
If you remember from high school English, good writing always has a clear purpose and audience. Why are you writing it, and who is it for?
Your content is exactly the same: It must have a defined purpose and a defined audience. The best way to ensure consistency with this is to create a content mission statement for your platform.
It should answer the question as to what your platform is about should someone ask. It’s your elevator pitch. Think it out, and write it down.
It’s usually a short sentence that looks like this:
Need some inspo?
"To inspire people to do the things that inspire them so that, together, we can change our world."
"To empower and educate people everywhere so that they can improve their lives and achieve their goals."
"To build relationships so that we enrich the lives of others."
"To reimagine fashion by creating, assembling, improving and rethinking so that all can benefit."
"To connect millions of people in real life all over the world, through a community marketplace – so that you can belong anywhere."
"To serve and facilitate so that others can elevate themselves and experience more happiness and love."
Be Consistent in Tone and Voice
How would you describe your brand in a couple of adjectives or less?
Fun and flirty? Rigorous and detail-oriented? Empowering and uplifting? Serious? Frivolous? Formal? Laid-back?
There is no right or wrong answer here, although your industry will obviously influence your description. A fun and flirty funeral home or a strict and rigid indoor playpark is probably not the way to go.
What do you want people to associate with your brand? Identify that, then keep consistent in your content.
Use Good Grammar
Would you be inclined to do business with someone whose writing was full of spelling and grammar mistakes? Of course not.
There’s no excuse for shoddy grammar, anymore. Spellcheck and tools like Grammarly, Hemingway, or Slick Write make it fast and convenient for everyone to have nearly flawless prose, be it email, blog, script, or social media post.
Use the active voice. Know the difference between homonyms like there, they’re, and their. Learn how to properly use a period, comma, colon, and semicolon. Avoid overusing the same word. Vary your sentence length. Don’t use a fancy word when a simple word will do. When in doubt about a grammar rule or spelling, confirm.
Check. Your. Work.
Twice.
Then ask someone else.
Twice.
Read It Aloud
There is no better or simpler way to check your writing than to read it out loud.
Pay attention to the sound and flow. Is it smooth or clunky? Are you naturally pausing at spots without a period or comma, or rolling through places that do? Adjust your text.
Running out of breath reading a sentence? Break it up.
Even without an advanced degree in grammar, you’ll notice problem spots if you take the time to read what you wrote out loud. It will just sound wrong, and that’s your red flag to take a closer look.
Make It Scannable
As readers, we like to quickly glance at a chunk of text in its entirety to see how long it is and what it’s about. A long, unbroken piece of text without any discernible sections, and many people simply won’t bother.
You can increase the chances they will read your writing by making it more scannable:
Short paragraphs
Subheadings in bold
Bulleted or numbered lists
Bolded text
Highlighted words
Links
Break it up and draw the eye to important passages and sections.
Is this an exhaustive list for better writing? Far from it. But if you take these suggestions to heart, your writing will be stronger and more compelling with minimal effort.
Then, you can take it to the next level by exploring the topic in greater detail with the hundreds of websites and books devoted to it.
You just may find you become addicted to it.
Sarah Whyte is Bright Light Content’s Copywriter and Brand Strategist. She’s a quick talking, avid reader who delights in noticing big truths in everyday places.
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