Are you a small business owner who uses web and social media content to promote your business? Do you want to improve your social media, email, or article writing skills?

In a world of information overload, simplifying your message may be the best advice for improving your online communication. That’s right, to be seen and heard, simpler is better. No longer is it advantageous to embellish your web content writing to make it sound more extravagant. It’s too time-consuming for most individuals to get caught up in reading wordy emails, posts, and newsletters. Long-winded sales pages are often pointless timewasters too. Instead, would-be customers will appreciate getting to the point of your online communication quickly.

A Look at Reading Habits

To understand this simplified writing concept, look at your own reading habits. How often do you skip Facebook posts that require clicking on the more feature to read the entire thought? How often do you bypass long posts, wordy articles, and click out of long emails saying you’ll read them later? How often do you avoid tweets or Facebook posts that require you open a link? Your time is short. You don’t want to get bogged down in Social Media Town any more than your customer does.

Some small business owners simply load too much information into their communication. The result is lost opportunities. Most individuals prefer to scan articles, emails, blog posts, and status updates. With that in mind, when writing for your audience, get to the point quickly and succinctly.

Succinct Writing

There are a few basic guidelines that can help you improve your web content communication skills. For instance, don’t get caught up on long introductions. Count on readers getting to know you better in bits over time. Let them enjoy simpler more entertaining posts and articles instead of putting it all out there.

When readers decide they want to get to know you better, they will look you up further or respond to your posts with questions.

Twitter has been good training ground for helping writers become more concise. Twitter requires abbreviated thoughts due to their character restrictions. The art of tweeting short bits of information has revolutionized communication and it will serve you well to follow suit. To be seen and heard on any platform, adopt a tweet-writing mindset.

Tips for Easy-to-Read Posts

Writing simply takes practice, but in time, you can become a pro. Start by deciding who you are writing to. Why would your reader care about what you’re writing? How will you inform, entertain, or educate them? How will your post invite interaction with you?

Next, cut the fluff in your content writing with these simple tips:
1. Leave out information your reader already knows.
2. Start with the main point.
3. Minimize background information.
4. Use lists and sub-headings in articles.
5. Write in logical order.
6. Use simple terms.
7. Remove excess words.
8. Divide posts or articles into several separate thoughts.
9. Proofread your work.
10. Read your post back through the eyes of a possible reader.
Use Caution

Be advised, once you put a statement out there you invite feedback. The simplest feedback is a post like or positive comment, but negative feedback may also arise.  Before you hit the post or send button the first time, mind-search possible miscommunication that may occur from what you’ve written. Consider if you’re ready and willing to respond to upsetting feedback. Only post a thought if you’re ready to deal with the consequences.

Communication in this era continues to evolve for everyone. Staying abreast of simple changes and adapting your writing style will help your ideas get to the audience you want to speak to. Build these ideas into your writing, and you’ll be sure to see good results.