by Laura Petrilli

Writing for corporate America these days can be exciting and scary! There are endless possibilities of companies who need writers. It’s also scary, because anyone in the world may read your work. We must not offend anyone, ANYWHERE!! We also have to make sure to stay within the guidelines of corporate policies and the organization’s mission statement. Here are some pointers on writing for corporations.

Tips for effective corporate writing:

• Determine your audience – Is this for internal or external use? Is your audience customers, the general public, management and/or fellow employees?
• What are your objectives? Establish 2 or 3 key factors or points to convey.
• What message do you want to convey? What is the 411. What is the organization trying to say?
• What is your writing platform? Are you writing on corporate internal/external websites, blog posts, corporate newsletters, or some other platform? Make sure the medium and requirements needed.
• Keep your writing focused. You may be writing on a broad topic. Narrow the topic into sections. Posting the information in periodic posts or segments make the information easier to digest. Organizations may have requirements for public awareness about a specific issue or to provide direction on certain topics.
• Create a plan. Set guidelines and deadlines for yourself. Corporations may have steps and legal compliance for all written material. There may be requirements for the approval process. Be sure to give in enough time for required revisions. Also leave time for any delays you may encounter.
• Set a deadline for completion. Deadlines may already be established. Set your personal deadline ahead of it to ensure room for error. Strive for an accurate and useful document that will be easily understood by the end user. Try to ensure you provided enough information and content to be complete, but not drag on. Be effective in the content to prohibit unnecessary time needed by readers. If there are sections to the writing, set mini-deadlines in segments to ensure you stay on track.
• Create an outline. Find out the necessary goals and objectives of the writing. Get all necessary required content for the writing ahead of time. Compile and condense whatever is repetitive. Organize all the information and set sections in an organized design. This will make writing each section easier and more effective.
• Always reread. Even after you know your writing is finished, set it aside and reread it again one more time. Check for grammar on one reading, content and clarity on another reading.

Other Reading and information on the topic:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKE2AW444l4

http://business.inquirer.net/206139/effective-writing-in-the-workplace

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRUtzyZqlSA

Next time, I’ll show how to create great content…