It’s a tightrope, and one slip means the loss of potential clients.

Like the rest of this cruel and complicated world, writing and communicating isn’t just black and white. Pepper your prose with jargon and you might alienate the people in need of your expertise. And while ‘jargon-free’ is a selling point, you do have to demonstrate that you’re skilled with the tools of your trade. Want visitors to your site? Your SEO copywriter* needs to draw together a clever combination of industry keywords and plain language key phrases to give you good search engine visibility.

There’s a simple way of getting the jargon balance right.

• Firstly and most importantly, consider carefully the message you want to communicate; the target readership and its level of understanding; and the image you want to convey.
• Secondly use a professional copywriter. Copywriters specialise in crafting custom communications to draw, intrigue and of course explain.
• Finally, work closely together to ensure that any ambiguities are cleared up, your knowledge is beyond doubt and your approach neither patronising nor superior.

Throughout this process bear in mind that every piece of writing you produce, whether advertising copy, email marketing, or even a niche newsletter, should fit your established brand. People beyond your target audience may well be reading, and therefore judging. That can have an impact on recruitment, press perception, sales and more beyond. Walk that tightrope with precision, and take no chances. Above all, write for real people.

*An SEO copywriter is one who specialises in writing search engine optimised text, which in combination with other SEO techniques will boost the website in question up the search rankings for selected words and phrases.

Hmm. The corporate world is full of abbreviations and acronyms. Buzzwords abound in every industry, mystifying and exciting in equal measure.

It’s a tightrope, and one slip means the loss of potential clients.

Like the rest of this cruel and complicated world, writing and communicating isn’t just black and white. Pepper your prose with jargon and you might alienate the people in need of your expertise. And while ‘jargon-free’ is a selling point, you do have to demonstrate that you’re skilled with the tools of your trade. Want visitors to your site? Your SEO copywriter* needs to draw together a clever combination of industry keywords and plain language key phrases to give you good search engine visibility.

There’s a simple way of getting the jargon balance right.

• Firstly and most importantly, consider carefully the message you want to communicate; the target readership and its level of understanding; and the image you want to convey.
• Secondly use a professional copywriter. Copywriters specialise in crafting custom communications to draw, intrigue and of course explain.
• Finally, work closely together to ensure that any ambiguities are cleared up, your knowledge is beyond doubt and your approach neither patronising nor superior.

Throughout this process bear in mind that every piece of writing you produce, whether advertising copy, email marketing, or even a niche newsletter, should fit your established brand. People beyond your target audience may well be reading, and therefore judging. That can have an impact on recruitment, press perception, sales and more beyond. Walk that tightrope with precision, and take no chances. Above all, write for real people.

*An SEO copywriter is one who specialises in writing search engine optimised text, which in combination with other SEO techniques will boost the website in question up the search rankings for selected words and phrases.

But then I came up with my Small Change charity concept, which really demanded a blog. Writing in my natural voice as opposed to the various styles required for project-driven copywriting was a breath of fresh air.

I didn’t want to create something that would become a bind or a drain on my time and neither did I want to generate so much copy that any readership disappeared as quickly as it arrived.

So…an occasional article, when I feel the urge, related to the fields of copywriting, copy editing and proofreading. I’ll discuss everything from articles to website content, style guides to substance over style.

And just because I’ve worked with and for some wise and wonderful people, authorities in their respective fields, the copywriter’s blog may from time to time feature articles from guest bloggers; topics to include branding, design, website design & build, accessibility, SEO & internet marketing, confidence & image, public relations and more.

For some time I fought against the advice coming from various quarters to create a copywriting blog. The number of blogs littering the web seemed so enormous that my instinctive don’t-follow-the-herd attitude went into overdrive.

But then I came up with my Small Change charity concept, which really demanded a blog. Writing in my natural voice as opposed to the various styles required for project-driven copywriting was a breath of fresh air.

I didn’t want to create something that would become a bind or a drain on my time and neither did I want to generate so much copy that any readership disappeared as quickly as it arrived.

So…an occasional article, when I feel the urge, related to the fields of copywriting, copy editing and proofreading. I’ll discuss everything from articles to website content, style guides to substance over style.

And just because I’ve worked with and for some wise and wonderful people, authorities in their respective fields, the copywriter’s blog may from time to time feature articles from guest bloggers; topics to include branding, design, website design & build, accessibility, SEO & internet marketing, confidence & image, public relations and more.