Business Writing Is Different
Writing for business audiences is very different when compared to writing for people in other fields. This is especially true when the style is set side by side against academic disciplines such as the humanities and social sciences.
In many forms of writing, there is an equal attempt to elicit emotions as well as communicate clearly. When putting together business documents, the tendency is to focus only on the latter, striving to churn out words that are crisp, succinct and to the point.
If your writing exposure has been to magazines and newspapers, you may have noticed the tendency to be evocative and creative. They’re reaching out to an audience after all, rallying them to a degree. The same doesn’t hold true in business writing, where such use of words are likely to be construed as either being unprofessional or too confusing. Like the industry that spawned it, the point of business writing is to provide the information in as short a time as possible, so that your writing doesn’t end up impeding on anyone else’s productivity.
Every time you write a business document, whether it is an email to a colleague or a report designed for upper management, you have to assume that your audience has limited time. Rather than push your agenda making emphatic pleas, you’ll usually be better off firing numbers and statistics, with a clear lead-in to the bottom line. The simpler the path from the introduction to that all important recommendation, the more effective your writing will be.
So, what makes business writing different? More than any other field, it’s that one industry where you’ll have to write pointedly and accurately, lest lose your reader’s favor. It doesn’t matter how creative you get, they’ll stop off midway if you turn into a showcase of your writing skills. By all means, use a good writing software – but make sure you use it for clarity, rather than padding.
