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We were doing one of our writing workshops in London earlier this month. One of the most illuminating exercises we do is headline appraisal. May sound dull, but it’s actually good fun. We take a bunch of headlines from local, national and trade press, and discuss what makes some of them work and why some of them just leave us cold.

Now, there are probably dozens of different ‘formulas’ for headlines, but we’re not big fans of formulas at Wordsworks. We prefer to keep our business copywriting plain and simple. And with headlines that means keeping it specific.

Take this headline: ‘Why writing skills are key.’

It’s OK I suppose. It does a job. But it’s vague. It leaves me thinking, key to what?

Try making it more specific:

‘Why writing skills are key to attracting more clients.’

Now that’s immediately going to grab my interest. But you can take it further still. As well as being specific, qualify the statement, too:

‘Why writing skills are key to attracting more high-paying clients.’

Its short, specific and clearly explains to readers why they should carry on reading. If you can make all your headlines do that, you’re half way there.

Anyone who subscribes to Write Words, our tips newsletter for better writing for business, knows how we feel about conciseness.

Conciseness is the foundation on which all good business writing is built, while wordiness and unnecessary verbosity are the enemies of clear, effective communication.

It’s not only us that say that, honest! Check out this great post on Vigorous Writing by Jesse Hines, another writing blogger waving the flag for better written communication.

Since when did revert mean the same thing as reply? In business communication, the use of ‘revert’ in emails is becoming scarily prevalent - e.g. ‘Please revert as soon as you have obtained a copy of the contract.’

It seems to be a classic case of over-inflated language, deliberately used to try and sound more impressive. Well it doesn’t sound more impressive. It sounds silly. And pompous. And just plain incorrect. What’s the matter with reply? It’s shorter. It’s easily understood. It’s language we use every day.

Does anyone actually use ‘revert’ anywhere other than work? I mean, when was the last time you ‘reverted’ to a letter from your granny? Or used ‘revert’ in a normal, non-work conversation with your pals?

The foundation of effective business writing is clear, concise, simple language. So, please, can we all stop reverting and get back to replying?

Could politicians finally be getting the message that clarity trumps jargon every time?

The Local Government Association (LGA) has issued a list of the 100 most over-used buzzwords, including such gems as “step change”, “holistic” “sustainable” and “synergies”, and asked local councils to stop using them.

LGA chairman Sir Simon Milton said that if councils did not explain things in proper English, “local people will fail to understand its relevance to them or why they should to turn out and vote. Unless information is given to people to explain why their council matters, then local democracy will be threatened with extinction.”

Extinction may be pushing it, but certainly, talking to people in clear, plain English instead of hiding behind buzzwords, jargon and bluster might help retain people’s interest, rather than turning them off politics at both the national and local level.

You may have heard the tale of how, in the 1920s, Ernest Hemingway bet ten dollars that he could write a complete story in just six words. He wrote: “For Sale: baby shoes, never worn.”  He won the bet and often referred to the story as his best work ever.

There are now dozens of websites devoted to six-word stories (just try Googling it). One of the best, recently featured on Radio 4, is from US online magazine Smith, which tweaked the rules by asking its readers to sum up their own lives in just six words.

The results are surprisingly poignant; often funny (”No more kisses, whisker burn lingers.”), sometimes sad (”Two sons. One died; now none.”), sometimes regretful (”Wishing I’d jumped sooner, missed mark.”), even a little scary (”He seemed ok at the time”). You should try it; we did.

As business copywriters, we’re always banging on about conciseness and short sentences. And while we don’t expect you to turn your firm’s client newsletters, your website or your marketing material into heart-wrenching six-word stories (wouldn’t that be fun, though!), it’s a reminder of just how emotional and powerful words can be, even just six of the little blighters.

So think of that, next time you’re trying to explain to your boss why your ten word sentence is better than his 30-word jargon fest.

When he wasn’t busy painting masterpieces or inventing helicopters, all-round-Renaissance man Leonardo da Vinci found was one of the leading thinkers of his day.

He was a simple man though, Da Vinci. The illegitimate son of a country girl and a rural notary, he regarded simplicity as the foundation of his genius. His motto was: “simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”

Although writing wasn’t one his greatest strengths, we can learn a lot from the bearded Florentine.

Simplicity is at the core of great copywriting. The sentences that work best are the ones that use simple, clear, straightforward language and structure. A sentence doesn’t get better the more words you stuff into it. On the contrary, it almost invariably gets worse.

Many people fall in to the trap of over-writing, trying to sound more impressive or to demonstrate their knowledge by using unnecessary words or flowery phrases.

But the most effective corporate writers make their point quickly and clearly. They use precise words and simple phrasing.

Don’t write:
“The company does not intend to remove the automatic bollards, but it is necessary to carry out repairs to the bollards for the purpose of keeping them operating effectively.”

Keep it clear and simple:
“The company does not intend to remove the automatic bollards, but it must repair them to keep them working properly.”

Or how about:
“Overestimating on one type of the relevant material could have a detrimental impact on cost-effectiveness for the client.”

Instead of:
“Overestimating one type of material could cost the clients more.”

So next time you’re tempted to throw in a few ‘corporate’ sounding phrases or flowery language to sound more sophisticated, just remember the words of our old friend Leonardo da Vinci. If simplicity was good enough for him, it’s darn tootin’ good enough for me.

Let’s hear it for Richard Pring! The Oxford University professor was cheered at a education conference earlier this month when he called for an end to the  ‘Orwellian’ language often used in education.

The public sector is renowned for its love of jargon-tastic ’strategies’, convoluted policy phrasing and incomprehensible sentences. It’s not just annoying, it betrays a worrying lack of engagement with the reader - which can be a dangerous a thing when you consider that it’s us, the readers, that public servants are supposed to be ’serving’.

In sectors such as education, the risks are even greater, turning something that should be  about effective communication and clarity and sharing knowledge, into a confusing, opaque world that replaces the simple, basic tenets of education with jargon and management-speak.

Pring calls for an end to delivery and a return to teaching. No more new providers, but plenty more new schools. Enough of performance indicators, how about the quality of teaching?

Oxford professors aren’t generally renowned for their straight-talking , but Professor Pring is right on the button. Let’s hope the policy wonks at the education department (and elsewhere) were listening.

Our word of the month is confabulation (noun). It means familiar chat or informal talk.

Example: “I took Justine by the arm and led her onto the balcony, determined to distract her with a spot of romantic confabulation.”

Or: “You boys, cease your incessant confabulation before I inform the headmaster.”

There is no standard list of rules to follow that is guaranteed to turn us all into first class copywriters. (Or if there is, I haven’t found it yet.)  There are, however, dozens of ‘non-rules’ that can hinder even the most accomplished writer. 
Drilled into us at school by overzealous English teachers, or trotted out by misinformed friends and colleagues, many of them can be safely discarded. Doing so usually results in simpler, more flowing and engaging writing.
Here are six of the most common ‘writing myths’, as collated by Martin Cutts, author of The Quick Reference Plain English Guide:

As well as being a business copywriter with Wordsworks, I’ve been a journalist for over 12 years now (yikes!) And if there’s one thing that’s guaranteed to irritate a journalist (all of them, not just grumpy old men like me, honest), it’s bad quotes. I’ve seen so many press releases where quotes are used as an excuse to reproduce a sentence or two of marketing spiel or some bland self-congratulatory nonsense. Keep it snappy and make it sound like a quote.

Instead of saying: “It’s evidence that the integrated, holistic partnership approach implemented by John Smith Ltd in delivering dynamic sustainable engineering solutions to a range of clients across multiple industry sectors is continuing to reap rewards for the company.” Which a) isn’t a quote, unless the speaker is an android and b) is dripping with meaningless management jargon. Keep it brief, to the point and above all, quotable: “It’s a big boost. It was hard work and there were more than a few late nights involved, but the whole team worked very hard to secure the new contract.”

Similarly, why bother with something like, “We’d like to welcome Joe Bloggs to the team. He’s a lovely man and we’re all looking forward to working with him.” It’s hardly going to set any news editors or readers alight with excitement. Always try and make sure that your quote actually adds something to the story, or don’t use one at all.

This entry is taken from our monthly WriteWords newsletter. Each month, WriteWords contains a top secret tip that you can use to improve your writing. You can sign up here.