What tools do you use to structure your messages?

1 Know your purpose

Before you start writing, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to accomplish with your message. What is your main objective? What action do you want your audience to take? How do you want them to feel or think after reading your message? Having a clear purpose will guide your choice of content, tone, and format for your message. It will also help you measure the success of your communication and adjust your strategy if needed.

2 Use the inverted pyramid

One of the most widely used tools to structure your messages is the inverted pyramid. This is a technique that organizes your information from the most important to the least important. The idea is to capture your audience's attention and interest with a strong headline and a concise summary of your main points. Then, you can provide more details, evidence, and context in the following paragraphs. This way, you can ensure that your audience gets the key message even if they don't read the whole text, and that they can easily scan and understand your message.

3 Apply the SCRAP framework

The SCRAP framework is a useful tool to structure your messages and ensure they are Simple, Clear, Relevant, Accurate, and Professional. To apply this framework, simplify your language and avoid jargon, ambiguity, and unnecessary words. Additionally, clarify your meaning and intent while providing examples, analogies, and visuals to support your points. Also, relate your message to your audience's needs, interests, and expectations while verifying the facts and sources you use are accurate and reliable. Finally, maintain a professional tone and style that respects your audience's culture, values, and preferences.

4 Use the RACE model

The RACE model is an effective tool to structure your messages, especially when you’re trying to be persuasive or motivating. It stands for Rapport, Analysis, Change, and Evaluation. To use this model, you should first establish rapport with your audience by demonstrating empathy and credibility. Then analyze the situation, present the facts and data that support your message, and suggest a solution or recommendation that addresses the problem and benefits your audience. Lastly, evaluate the outcome by providing feedback, follow-up, or next steps that reinforce your message and motivate your audience.

5 Adapt to the medium

Finally, one of the most important tools to structure your messages is to adapt to the medium that you are using. Different mediums have different characteristics, advantages, and limitations that affect how you communicate. For example, an email has a different format, length, and tone than a presentation, a report, or a tweet. You need to consider the medium's purpose, audience, and context and adjust your message accordingly. For example, you might need to use more visuals, headings, and bullet points for a presentation than for a report, or more emojis, hashtags, and abbreviations for a tweet than for an email.

These are some of the tools that you can use to structure your messages and improve your strategic communication skills. By using these tools, you can create messages that are clear, impactful, and relevant for your audience and your goals.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?