12 Business Writing Tactics To Get That New Client

Marvin H. Swift, a professor, and master of industrial and technical writing, once said, “Clear writing means clear thinking.” Bridging the gap between businesses and customers, business writing is a powerful way to elicit a favorable response for businesses. 

So what does business writing entail? 

From the internal emails within departments to the business plans and proposals and the email blasts companies send out to clients, business writing is, without a doubt, essential. 

The next question would be: What is the purpose of business writing? 

In a nutshell, the general purpose is to seek a business response depending on its primary purpose. 

These are just a few of the ways on how you can apply business writing in your company. You might also need this skill for:

• Reports
• Brochures
• Letters
• Case studies
• Presentation slides
• Business documents
• Training materials
• Memos
• Promotional materials and more! 

So you see, any entrepreneur will find that business writing is vital for communication in and out of business establishments.

Benefits and Importance of Business Writing 

Aside from a thorough communication that prevents misunderstandings among your business circle, there are other benefits of business writing:

• Establishes credibility compared to poor writing with misspelled words and grammatical errors. People are likely to trust those who are meticulous on even the slightest emails and memos. 
• Influences others more. Pertaining to the adage that Swift said, clear writing means you have clear thinking. And when you get your message across, this can help persuade clients. 
• Displays a level of intelligence that others might not have. For example, you can tell that someone is up to par with your business from the way their resume is crafted. 
• Presents your company’s products and services in the best light possible. In turn, this can prove to be beneficial for your company as you gain many customers. 

12 Business Writing Techniques That Persuade Clients 

1. Define your goals and objectives

First off, make sure you know the difference between the two. Goals are what you want to accomplish while objectives are the steps in accomplishing your goals. 

A cornerstone in goal and objective setting is the S.M.A.R.T. method. This is an acronym which means:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Achievable
• Realistic
• Timebound

Let this formula guide you when creating your business writing goals and objectives. 

2. Avoid fluff

As with any other writing projects, concision is key to present a clear message across your audience. 

Since there’s an information superhighway at our disposal 24/7, people tend to look for details that are straight to the point. 

No one likes to read a 2,000-word business proposal when you can get all the information you need from a 500-word print. Be clear and concise. You’re not writing a science textbook. 

Take this Twitter post from Grammarly, for example. The simple caption defines how both phrases mean different things. It’s concise but definitely makes an impact. 

3. Pay attention to grammar 

As mentioned, your credibility as a business relies on how you present yourself through written communication. 

Learn grammar by reading a lot of books and resources online. And never publish anything with typos, misspelled words, and syntax errors. 

Yikes, I would be embarrassed if I were the person behind this Nike CS team.

4. Stick to the five W’s and one H 

One journalism rule is sticking to the five W’s and one H: Who, what, when, where, why, and how. 

The purpose is to make sure that your writing is relevant and precise containing all necessary information like how Forbes always does it. 

5. Cater to your target readers

If you’re using business writing for marketing purposes, make sure it caters to your target market’s pain points. 

For example, if you’re presenting your products, ensure that you enumerate the benefits right after the features. The benefits are the solutions to customers’ pain points. 

6. Avoid complex words

There is no need to use highfalutin language to seem intelligent. Sometimes the simplest words are the most impactful.

If you have to use jargon though, make sure that it’s something your audience understands and is familiar with. 

7. Be precise with important information

Always make sure to be accurate when dealing with people and titles in your business writing projects. Getting these crucial details wrong is off-putting and might repel customers. 

Take a cue from CNN International, a cable and news network.

8. Focus on hierarchy 

With attention spans getting shorter by the day, businesspeople veer from reading blocks of texts that are an eyesore. 

An eye-candy piece though would be one that has bullets, numbered lists, bold headings and subheadings, indented words, and more. 

These are easier to skim and read than one huge paragraph. I’ve always been a fan of HubSpot’s blogs because they have great structure.

9. Keep the tone light and professional

There’s no need to be extraordinarily prim and proper when it comes to business writing techniques. However, don’t push the limits by being overly informal, as this might hurt your credibility. 

Keep the tone conversational without sounding too uptight. People in the business sector would probably prefer a friendlier tone as opposed to a strict, authoritative one. 

This newsletter from Starbucks is a perfect example of a friendly and professional tone.

10. Never forget the call to action

This business writing tactic goes back to the primary purpose of it all. What do you want to achieve out of this piece of writing? Do you want readers to buy? Or employees to attend tomorrow’s meeting? How about when you want suppliers to proceed with the proposal? 

A simple call to action is the last nudge to elicit a response from the reader. Never take this for granted or your writing efforts will be futile.

11. Proofread and proofread some more

What I do with my articles is I proofread them right after writing. Then I leave it for a few hours before I proofread again for submission.

This way, you can be sure never to leave a stone unturned when it comes to embarrassing misspellings or typos. Or there might be a subject-verb usage that you missed the first time.

Proofreading twice or thrice will ensure your piece is flawless! 

12. Consult the experts 

Writing is a skill. How much more when it deals with the complex realm of business? If you’re not very confident about your skills even after reading these business writing tactics, consult the expert. Better yet, take business writing courses.

There are professional freelance writers and content writing providers out there who are willing to help you. 

Always remember that you need to spend money to earn money. Scrimping on a few bucks for business writing projects will jeopardize quality. Overall, this will reflect on the company’s branding. So be a smart entrepreneur and hire content writing services if need be.