Category: business communication

business communication, business newsletters, business writing, newsletter advice, newsletter marketing, newsletter tips, newsletter writing, writing a newsletter

5 Elements of Effective Newsletters for Business

DISCLAIMER: The following emails — as examples of effective newsletters — don’t necessarily reflect my beliefs. I’m not affiliated with their creators, either. I simply admire their work and present it for educational purposes only.

1. Brevity – I subscribe (pardon the pun) to the notion that people don’t like to scroll much for information. The average e-newsletter should be less than 1,000 words. Just tell us what we need to know.

Example: The Conservation Law Foundation E-News

The CLF does well at consistently featuring short content that supports their mission. News items with catchy headlines at the top link to more info at their website to drive more traffic to it. It’s enough to incite action among liberals and conservatives alike.

Because the CLF doesn’t tell the reader everything, the reader becomes curious enough to click on the links for more info. An effective “call-to-action” for donations is at the bottom of each e-newsletter.

2. Error-free – Nobody’s perfect. Mistakes happen in all types of content.

Example: MICS UNICEF Newsletters

The MICS (Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys) UNICEF newsletter regularly features clean, tight copy written in British English to give readers the results of surveys of children and women that the organization has conducted in over 100 countries.

3. Engaging – Your content must be interesting and useful for your audience to keep them reading and subscribing. The copy shouldn’t blatantly be an advertisement. That’s not always easy.

Example: MaineHealth Health Matters e-Newsletter

The MaineHealth e-newsletter truly informs, with healthful recipes, links to health tips and videos, and news everyone can use.

4. Organization – How content is presented — the text alongside the graphics — really affects how we absorb information in effective newsletters. If it’s well-formatted, everyone finds it easy to scan quickly.

Example: MaineGeneral HealtheMatters

MaineGeneral Health is one of my healthcare providers, so I subscribe to their newsletter. They present their information in a visually appealing way while projecting a positive image of their organization to build trust to keep patients and get donations. Donors can give money with one simple, easy-to-find click.

5. Originality – No one wants to read a “McNewsletter” that’s available elsewhere. Effective newsletters make reading a uniquely enjoyable experience.

Example: The Maine Humanities Council compiles their intellectual, thought-provoking content, such as news about upcoming events and poems by poet laureate Gary Lawless, with flair in “Notes from an Open Book.”

Need help with your newsletter? Contact me for a free e-news audit today! No strings attached. Just good, solid advice to help you increase profits and get more leads.

business communication, business writing, editing, editing your writing, writing advice, writing better

5 Useless Words and Phrases to Cut From Your Business Writing

1. are able to

Example: We are able to wash dishes, mow lawns, or do any of your other household tasks.
Revised: We can wash dishes, mow lawns, or do any of your other household tasks.

When you cut these useless words, you avoid using a “to be” verb (“are”) and a preposition (“to”). They bloat your writing. Use them only when they’re absolutely necessary.

2. as well as

Example: The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s MyPlate nutrition guide includes grains, vegetables, and fruit, as well as protein.
Revised: The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s MyPlate nutrition guide includes grains, vegetables, fruit, and protein.

People tend to use “as well as” in favor of “too” or “also,” especially if they’ve already used them, as a way to vary their word choices. They’re good alternatives, but you can also insert an “and” every now and then for better variety.

3. along with

Example: High winds and frigid temperatures, along with snow and ice, make for hazardous winter driving conditions.
Revised: High winds, frigid temperatures, and snow and ice create hazardous winter driving conditions.

Replace these useless words with plain old “and.”

4. there are/there is

Example: There are several action movies released during the summer.
Revised: Several action movies are released during the summer.

In many cases, you can trim these seemingly harmless phrases entirely.

5. in order to

Example: In order to finish processing your purchase, we need your payment information.
Revised: To finish processing your purchase, we need your payment information.

Trim the first few words to the essential: “to.”

Read more about cutting Filler Words in Your Speech at Ivypanda.

Quotes

“The best sentence? The shortest.” ~ Anatole France

“If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.” ~ George Orwell

business communication, business writing, writing well

5 Steps to Using Verbs and Tenses Correctly in Business Communications

1. When you work with verbs and tenses, pay attention to the plural and singular forms of the subjects and objects of your sentences.

Example: Most people have an opinion about religion and politics.
Revised: Many people hold opinions about religion and politics.

“People” refers to more than one person, and in this case, “opinions” is more correctly matched to the plural form of the subject.

2. Don’t mistake the present for the future tense.

Example: We will be collecting litter at Evergreen Park on Saturday.
Revised: We will collect litter at Evergreen Park on Saturday.

The present tense — “we will be collecting” — is incorrect. Remove “be” and change the action verb “collect” to the future tense, which is correct because the event will occur later.

3. Don’t move from the past to the present tense.

Example: I drove to my appointment, watching for falling flurries along the way.
Revised: I drove to my appointment and watched for falling flurries along the way.

The corrected, properly matched verbs and tenses don’t make us wonder if we’re in the past or in the present.

4. Don’t use the present tense when you should use the past tense.

Example: While clawing my way to the top of Mount Everest, I was dodging frostbite as I was suffering from aching muscles.
Revised: As I clawed my way to the top of Mount Everest, I dodged frostbite while my muscles ached.

Again, we avoid the awkwardness of mismatched tenses.

5. Don’t use the wrong verb tense.

Example: Joe’s scrapbook of old photos were memorable.
Revised: Joe’s scrapbook of old photos was memorable.

The first sentence with these verbs and tenses would make more sense if the subject (“scrapbook”) was plural.

Quotes

“A tense trap is not a trap that makes you tense; it’s when you get stuck in past tense when the phenomena you are describing is perpetual or at least valid to the present moment.” ~ Daily Writing Tips

“The past is always tense, the future perfect.” ~ Zadie Smith

business communication, business writing, capitalization, capitalization rules, capitalization tips, capitalize, capitalizing, caps

Business Writing Capitalization Cheat Sheet

How did business writing capitalization start? Why do we capitalize words in general?

These interesting resources answer those questions. Capitalize on this mini link library to learn more.

The Linguist List: The History of Capitalization
Why we capitulate to capitalization.

The New York Times: Me, Myself and I
English is the only language in which the first-person singular pronoun, “I,” is capitalized. Author Caroline Winter will enlighten you on why it’s all about the “I.”

The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation
Take one of GrammarBook.com’s quizzes to test your capitalization knowledge.

Title Capitalization: Your Online Capitalization Case Tool
This handy site does what it says — it automatically capitalizes titles for you if you lack time to do it yourself or you truly don’t know how. It will help you keep your capitals in line, which is great for homework or for publication to ensure your titles follow the right style.

Case Converter
To ensure you cover all the cases, this tool will convert to the one of your choice: all uppercase, all lowercase, to capitalize the first letter of every word or just the first word of every sentence. It’s up to you. You can then cut-and-paste the results or save them to a text file.

I’ve also covered business writing capitalization rules in my Five-Minute Business Writing Tips newsletters.

Do caps “entrap” you? Do they make your life difficult? If so, contact me for a free consultation.

business communication, business writing, capitalization, capitalization rules, capitalization tips, capitalize, capitalizing, caps

5 More Ways to Use Capital Letters in Business Writing

1. To use capital letters in business writing properly, capitalize “government” when you refer to the U.S. Government or any foreign nation.

Examples: the Mexican Government; Her Majesty’s Government

2. Capitalize “state” when used with a name or in place of the name, but use lower-case with a general term.

Examples: the State of Maine or State government; state law

3. Capitalize “the,” or its foreign equivalent, when it is the authorized part of a geographical name, of a book title or work of art, or when it’s part of a company’s or an institution’s legal name.

Examples:

  • Geographical names: The South
  • Art work titles: The Student Prince
  • Company or institution names: The Hartford

Note: This rule is often disregarded in informal writing when referencing periodicals, ships, firm names, etc.

Examples: the National Review; the Enterprise; the Jones Company

4. Capitalize parts of a work when you refer to them in the same work.

Example: For more guidelines, read Appendix B.

5. Capitalize all names of celestial bodies except for the earth, moon, stars, and sun, unless they are personified or used in an astronomical context.

Examples: Jupiter; the Andromeda Galaxy; Sirius

Source: The Elements of Grammar by Margaret Shertzer
 

Advice from someone who knows how to use capital letters in business writing can help you improve your writing and make you look smarter and more skilled in your field.

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The Classy Writing Blog: Capitalization Cheat Sheet ‏

“How did business writing capitalization start? Why do we capitalize words?…” Read more.

Quotes

“Failure to use capitals properly will mark you as semi-literate just as quickly as mistakes in spelling or punctuation.” ~ Larry Trask, The Linguist List (History of Capitalization)

“One reason capitalization matters is that a word’s meaning can change depending on whether it’s uppercase or lowercase.” ~ Rob Reinalda, “When Should You Capitalize Words?” Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips.