One thing you should know about me is that besides this blog, I also have a successful podcast full of valuable information about business, and very often, about business writing. I have guests who are experts in the field and whose insights are so informative that it’s like a small-scale business school. Along with my listeners, I too have learned a lot from these guests and it’s time for you to do so as well. You can check it out here.
There are 3 best practices that will help you write for your business better, but there’s a catch. Most people aren’t willing to practice them. Why? Because they can feel intimidating at first.
In this article, I’m going to teach you how to make friends with these writing practices so that you can stand out above the other people, the people who won’t work through their fear when it comes to creating consistent, compelling writing.
While I do that, I’m going to recap what we learned from the stories of my podcast’s guests throughout Season 1 and give you an idea of what Season 2 will be all about.
Best practices for business writing
For best practice #1, it’s time to leverage your power to focus. Think about all of your writing in two hemispheres of the brain.
On the left side, you have writing mechanics like syntax and diction. The way you write sentences and the choices you make about words both matter. You should aim to be clear, concise, consistent, and correct in the name of effective communication.
On the right side, you need to think in terms of grabbing people with your creativity, your empathy, and your personal stories.
Then there is the third hemisphere of the brain. Just kidding. But there is something you need both sides of the brain to balance: sales. Some people purchase based on facts, and some purchase based on the meaning attached to the results (i.e. their emotions surrounding the results of the offer). While it is beneficial to lean on the right side of your brain for most sales (most people purchase based on their gut feelings), some people are going to want logical, rational reasons to purchase.
During season 1, I noticed that many of the guests were excited to be able to share stories to promote their businesses. And even though I ended most of the guest episodes with a left-brained big business sentence, the things that my listeners commented on the most are…you guessed it, the stories.
Storytelling is such a huge part of being able to speak about why you’re the one people should choose for your specific professional expertise. But you also need to be able to point your story to a way for people to give you money, or you’ll never grow your business. And if you’re struggling to know which stories to tell, I recommend checking this episode and listening to how Jennifer Furlong shares some of her business stories. She’s a communication expert, and when you listen to her, you can tell.
Alright, on to best practice for business writing #2. Are you ready?
It’s like what Genie says to Aladdin, “Tell the truth!” Wait, what? You need to be honest about the kinds of results you get. I’m actually in a class right now on the art of persuasion. You know, I’m a lifelong learner. I can’t help myself. One of the things my professor taught us about was that everyone, including other women, finds men to be more persuasive. That sort of sucks, but it’s life.
Based on this, she suggested that as women, we need to think bigger about the potential of the systems and offers we’re talking about. But we have to be careful about going too far, because once we’ve lost trust with the people we help and serve, we can’t get it back easily.
You can be hopeful about what your organization can do, but don’t throw out information that isn’t based on proven systems or previous client or customer results.
In contrast, when you talk about your own potential, go for it! On that note, if you haven’t already, I recommend listening to this episode where Kristy Tyson explains how to get an ROI on yourself.
Finally, on this exciting and thrilling journey, we are about to unveil best practice for business writing #3. Drum roll, please. It’s learning to be curious.
This ended up being the unofficial theme of Season 1 in a low-key sort of way, which my guests keep talking about. I noticed that a majority of the extremely successful guests I had on kept talking about asking questions, learning more, and being curious. For my favorite chat on curiosity, check out Dan Goodwin’s episode.
Why does curiosity matter when it comes to business writing? Because if you are curious about yourself, your process, your systems, your client, their problems, the solutions you can come up with for those problems, how to differentiate yourself from your competition to get better results, etc., your writing will be so much more compelling.
Your business operations will be better too, and who doesn’t want that?
And the theme for Season 2 is going to be: How curiosity encourages growth. I have some amazing guests already lined up, and I can’t wait for you to hear their business stories and how curiosity has played a huge role in the things that are going well for them right now.
May the sunshine greet you, may you hear the birds chirp, and may wads of money make their way into your pockets because of the amazing things you’re doing for people through your business. Happy summer.
You are amazing, I believe in you, and your business story matters.
Are you ready to learn more about how Literary Symmetry can help you communicate clearly with confidence to grow and scale your business? Awesome! Head here for two amazing, complimentary resources.
