A head for numbers: how figures make us think

All evidence points to data being a writer’s best friend...

Pull up an ‘about us’ page on any big company website, and it's a fair bet you’ll see some fancy figures. Employee count; worldwide branches; clients served. Trouble is, these numbers alone don’t really make an impression. Making them meaningful is a job for the data-friendly writer...?

Storytelling by numbers?

Spotify’s unmissable package? ?

The streaming giant’s boffins don’t just shovel a heap of digits our way every December. Instead, we discover our ‘audio aura’; we’re let in on our ‘listening personality’, all based on our stats. Spotify have made their data indispensable: they use it cutely, telling us something about ourselves. (Who knew we all respond to light ego stroking?) If more brands were able to do the same, maybe they’d edge closer to the 120 million customers who un-Wrapped their end-of-year package in 2021.? ?

The psychology of numbers? ?

We know numbers make for clicktastic headlines (‘5 reasons your...’) – and aspirational brands (Chanel No5, Levi 501s). We know to round down for pricing (￡4.99) – but level off for products (Fiat 500). Crucially, we know data helps important people make big calls. That’s why understanding the psychology of numbers is such a difference-maker for any writer on a mission. We don’t manipulate figures themselves but we curate the stories around them – so stakeholders and customers see them in technicolour.? ?

Data that paints vivid pictures? ?

‘Contains 20% fat’, or ‘80% fat free’. Which one are you buying? At The Writer, we’re the ones reading the survey that spoke to 'almost four Glastonburys’, not the momentum-sapping, ‘817,341 global participants’. (There’s time for the sober specifics later). We’re also the ones creating this imagery around numbers with our writing. And teaching businesses how to do the same with training sessions like Numbers are Stories Too, tailored for your brand’s very specific data dilemmas.? ?

From training teams on how to write impactful reports to using data to wow your customers and stakeholders, we have the smarts. If you'd like to work with wordy types who aren't afraid of the numbers then?talk to us.?