Tip of the week: Put yourself in your readers' shoes when writing for business

Looking to brush up on your business writing skills? According to Lynn Gaertner-Johnston, founder of Syntax Training, a Seattle-based consulting and education firm, “A big mistake is to focus on what one has to say rather than what the reader needs. We end up writing a lot of information that the reader may not need and that may not be useful to us in achieving the goal of the communication.”

To solve this problem, imagine that you are having a conversation with your intended audience, whether it is the chief of staff or the entire peer review committee. Think about what questions they might ask you. For example, if you’re writing an e-mail to the members of the peer review committee regarding the next scheduled meeting, they might ask:
 

• What time does the meeting start and end?
• Where is the meeting taking place?
• Do you expect the meeting to run long?
• Are there any documents I need to review beforehand? If so, what are they and where can I find them?
• Will we be ordering lunch, and if so, how do I submit my lunch order?   
    

After answering all anticipated questions, be sure to include any attachments (if e-mail) or directions to help the reader follow through with the task you are asking of him or her. Gaertner-Johnston says that one of the most typical e-mail messages is the “oops” message. The sender realizes that he or she forgot to include a vital piece of information or attach an important document, so it’s worth double checking every piece of correspondence to ensure the reader gets what he or she needs.

For clarity, close your message with an action point, such as “Please e-mail me by Monday with this data,” or “I will call you on Friday to follow up.”
   
 This week’s tip is from the August issue of Medical Staff Briefing.