You may remember from some point in your schooling a lecture about a little thing called plagiarism. Wikipedia states, “Plagiarism is defined in dictionaries as ‘the wrongful appropriation, close imitation, or purloining and publication, of another author’s language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions, and the representation of them as one’s own original work,’” attributing this definition to…
Tag Archive: research
How Good Are Your Business Writing Skills?
In companies or agencies without a writer on staff, others may get thrown into the role of copywriter, grant writer, promotional writer, web copywriter, or proposal writer. These people don’t necessarily want to write, or feel comfortable with business writing. While they have no choice but to muddle through, they may wonder how good…
Working With Word Count: How Long Should Your Business Document Be?
At its simplest, word count is just a number: the number of words in your case study, brochure, website page, or e-book. You may wonder, then, why you need to be concerned about it. It’s the number of words; so what? When you are preparing to write a document, you should know the intended word…
10 Questions to Ask Before Writing Any Business Document
If there’s one thing that can help you be more successful in writing, it’s careful planning. Before you even begin researching or drafting a website, blog, article, brochure, case study, elevator speech, e-book, grant proposal, or other business document, you need to ask yourself some basic questions. Here are a few to get you…
Effective Interviewing for Convincing Copy
One of the things I love most about my work is asking people questions. Because, if I can understand it, then I can write about it, and the better I understand it, the more like my clients the documents I prepare for them will sound. Sometimes, my clients just let me loose to find information…
5 Keys to Writing Project Success – Part III: Drafting
This is Part III in a five-part series on keys to writing project success. In Part I, I introduced the topic, suggesting that a document may be good (i.e. well written, well organized), but not successful. I defined a successful writing project as one that “delivers not just the necessary content, but also the higher-level factors…
5 Keys to Writing Project Success – Part II: Research
This is Part II in a five-part series on keys to writing project success. In Part I, I introduced the topic, suggesting that a document may be good (i.e. well written, well organized), but not successful. I defined a successful writing project as one that “delivers not just the necessary content, but also the higher-level…
5 Keys to Writing Project Success – Part I: Planning
Good writing and successful writing are two different things. In the context of developing a website, brochure, newsletter, press release, or case study, you could thoroughly understand organization, flow, theme, brand, and grammar. Your logic could be flawless. You could compose a stunning document that is a pleasure to read. And you could still miss the…
How to Write a Fantastic First Draft
Before we start talking about HOW to write a fantastic first draft, let’s talk about WHY you should do so. You should write a fantastic first draft because it will lead to a superb second draft, splendid subsequent drafts, and a fabulous final draft. A good first draft provides a solid foundation on which to…
How to Write for Your Hidden Audience
We all know how important audience awareness is in writing. In business writing, your audience is typically clients, customers, and colleagues. Right? Yes and no. Yes, you must consider one or more of those audiences. But, no, it’s not that simple. Often there is a hidden audience to think about, and leaving them out of…