11 simple ways to make your written communications more credible

When you are the name and face of your business, then the quality of your written communications are one of the key areas that people use to assess whether or not they think you’re credible. 

This is even more true when you’re holding yourself out as an expert who makes their living via communicating that expertise to others. If you can’t communicate well in print, then people will necessarily doubt whether you can communicate well in person.

Don’t make it harder than it should be for someone to buy you. Here are 11 simple things to check before you release a document online or to the printers.

GRAMMAR/SPELLING ISSUES 

1. The document has been spell-checked

Don’t make basic mistakes - it makes you look basic (which, in today’s slang, means “Someone devoid of defining characteristics that might make a person interesting, extraordinary, or just simply worth devoting time or attention to”). You want to be someone that your potential clients consider worthy of devoting time or attention to, so spell-check your document. Then wait 1 hour. Then re-read it to see if there is anything that spell-check has missed. Better yet, ask a trusted other who is great with words to read it.

2. The document contains no jargon, and no words that someone with a 10th grade reading level wouldn’t understand

A quick Google search defines jargon as “Special words or expressions used by a profession or group that are difficult for others to understand.” I get that it’s convenient for you to talk in the language that you’re used to - but you must think and speak from the perspective of your client if you are to reach them. They only care about your expertise to the extent that it solves their problems, therefore you must communicate in a way that they understand. 

I’m going to take jargon a step further: I see too many thought leaders make up words (or use a word that is like a 100th grade reading level word) to define a concept that they’ve come up with, and then treat that word as if it is self-evident to their client base. It isn’t. You look pretentious. Stop doing it. 

It takes discipline to make your ideas really accessible, and if your potential client base can’t get what you’re on about then you’ve missed the point. As Einstein once said: “Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler.” 

3. If your document was written in a language other than your first language, get a native speaker to proof read it

Every language has incredible subtleties and nuances to it. If you haven’t grown up speaking the language that you’re writing in, it’s wisest to assume that you don’t understand all of those subtleties and nuances, and your communications won’t be as effective as they could be. Get into the habit of having your documents edited by a native speaker.

READABILITY ISSUES

4. Do not capitalise any words mid-sentence

Let’s be very clear: you can only capitalise a word mid-sentence without looking silly when:

1. it is a defined term, and that definition has been clearly set out somewhere else in the document (preferably in a glossary of terms); or
2. it is the name of a person, place, or industry body.

You cannot capitalise a word mid-sentence simply because you want people to somehow understand that you mean something other than that word’s usual meaning, or because you (for some other reason) want to draw attention to that word.

5. Ensure there is a healthy amount of white space in the document

Having enough space around words helps us to focus. Another way to think of this rule is: “Don’t cram shit in.” Either find a way to say what you need to say with less words, or add another page.

6. Lists must be neat

A neat list is one that starts with a colon:

1. drops down onto the next line and finishes with a semi-colon;
2. drops down onto the next line and, if it is the penultimate point, finishes with a semi-colon, followed by an “and” or “or” or “and or”; and
3. drops down onto the next line and finishes with a full-stop.

7. Use page numbers

Page numbers are required for documents over 5 pages long. Consider it a common courtesy to the reader, so they can keep track of where they are.

8. Kill any overly long sentences

Get into the habit of using short sentences, as they’re much easier to read. If you need to use a long sentence to explain how several ideas or things are connected, then use lists to break it down for your audience.

DESIGN ISSUES

9. Font and colour usage must be consistent

Human beings are wired to notice inconsistencies or things that “aren’t right”. For example, our eyes will always be drawn to the black mark on the otherwise white piece of paper. The same is true of inconsistent font or colour usage. 

Our brain uses both font and colour as a way of categorising information. For example, when we notice that there are headings that are blue and sized at a particular size, and then there are other headings that are pink and sized slightly smaller, then we understand that there are two different levels of information being presented.

When you use font or colour inconsistently, you’re making it very hard for someone to understand the structure of the information that you’re presenting. Many of us need to see the high level structure, in order to appreciate how the detail of each section slots in and works together.

10. All of the photos you've used must be in the same style/ vibe

When you’re using stock photography, it can be really tempting to grab whatever image shows the thing you need. However, all images have different filters applied to them, and show different styles of photography. Do your best to find images that have the same kind of filter (so, they’re all cool, or warm, or bright, etc) and the same kind of style (they’re literal, or abstract, or creative). 

We notice when the style of a group of images is the same, and it looks much more professional than a group of images that have different styles.

11. All of the photos you're used are high resolution, or are sized small enough so they don’t look pixelated

Nothing screams amateur like the use of grainy photos. 

There is no excuse for grainy photos when it comes to stock photography. Go to unsplash.com if you need to find free, high-resolution and high-quality stock photography.

Anna Stanford helps thought leaders, artists, academics and sole practitioners stand out with great branding, graphic design, and websites. You can see what she gets up to over at annastanford.com.