One thing about my job that occasionally makes me grind my teeth is letting other folks write. Which is unfortunate, because my job title is “Copy Editor” and not “Lone Wolf.” I probably shouldn’t admit to feeling this way, but what are blogs if not text-based confessionals?

I expect that I am not alone among editors. All our co-workers speak and write the language, so we often feel compelled to justify our jobs by rewriting. Add to that fact I’ve mostly been a doer in my career up until this point: a writer instead of an editor.

And so it was with much glee that we recently had an internal project written by someone else, with only advice from me. It was not painless — I wasted half a day floundering with a pale rewrite. The original draft from our CEO had the message, but not the style. My draft had the style, but completely missed the point.

Eventually, Steve (our CEO) pointedly suggested that I could simply provide him with feedback. I did, and he used it to hit one out of the park: he created a brand summary for Pop Art that is both intelligent and inspiring.

I don’t mind admitting that Steve had to tear the keyboard out of my hands. He did the right thing.

If I take on too much writing, I will quickly create a bottleneck for the entire company. So with a lot of encouragement (and under a few threats), I’m relaxing my death grip on the keyboard. Trying to, anyway.

Three Tips to Untangle Biz Speak
The most common first draft? The one that funds my dentist’s Hawaiian vacation due to all the teeth gnashing? Jargon choked biz-speak. You know the style. If your goal is to hide what you’re saying, that’s a fantastic writing style. Corporate lawyers write like that.

My other archenemy? The first draft that sounds like a fumbling, love-struck teenager who can’t filter what’s in his head before it comes out his mouth. Except we’re talking marketing, so it’s a tumbled rush to squeeze in all the committee-approved bullet points. “Integrated Solutions to a User-Centric Sales Market! And I love you!”

But no one communicates well with writing like that, because no information gets conveyed. The reader will have nodded off or been frightened away.

So if you’re getting those painful first drafts, here’s three quick tips* you can use to throw them back over the fence.

1. Make Them Care

Why? Readers are busy, and they want to know why they should bother reading. Tempt your reader with a “why,” and they’ll bite on the “how.”

How? When you’re writing about a subject you know a lot about, it’s common to assume others know about it as well. And when you make that assumption, you can easily whistle right past the benefit to focus on the mechanics. Don’t do that. Give your readers a reason to care. Take the time to put yourself in the chair of your reader, then explain the benefits as he wants to hear them.

2. Slow Down

Why? Readers need little breaks in the copy to allow them time to digest. Remember, in many ways your copy is teaching them something new, or helping them experience something different. Use language and punctuation to help the reader absorb your message, increase what they remember, and reinforce your brand.

How? Simpler language, examples, repetitive twists, and extra clauses or asides are all great ways to reduce the density of your language and increase reading comprehension.

Think about what happens when you speak: if you jam together lots of business concepts, your listener contorts their face as they try to take it all in. You notice, and so you toss in a few extra words, twist your phrasing, or offer examples or anecdotes to give them context. Doing the same in text gives your readers that space, that time they need, to absorb and comprehend.

3. Become Your Brand Personality

Why? The personality with which you communicate ideas and benefits will set you apart from your competition, create a bond with your reader, and make you memorable.

How? Presuming you have a voice and style guide to lead you, follow it. You must act and write like your brand persona. Your style guide should give you examples of how to make a point to your reader. Some brands use stories of successes or failures (Apple). Some provide context to studies and research (Wall Street Journal). Some paint scenes and create drama (New Yorker). Some teach to the masses (Oprah), while others cultivate a feeling of exclusivity by using carefully chosen cultural reference points (Jon Stewart).

Libraries have been written about how to invent your brand personality. If your company doesn’t have a brand personality, it’s a worthwhile endeavor. You’ll find that it gives you ammo in any confrontation over writing style.

* Some of this advice flies in the face of what you’ve read everywhere else about writing online. “Be brief! Make your point!” And that’s good advice when you’re trying to funnel or point the user to information. You’ll get great headlines and decent blurbs with that advice. But those are way-finding devices online. Eventually, the user will find their way, and they will want usable information there. This advice ought to help you provide it.