Owen Philipson

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How to use Zapier with a systems thinking mindset

February 6, 2017 by Owen 2 Comments

To use Zapier effectively, you must adopt ‘systems thinking’. You need to think logically about how a particular task, event or situation in one application could trigger something else automatically, in another application. It is important to have this productivity mindset before you start using Zapier

What is Zapier? (anyway)

Zapier is an integration tool. It allows your different software applications and services to ‘talk to each other’ and be linked up. It enables you to automate certain tasks or set up automatic systems. This can either save you time or help you to create a workflow that will help you. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Productivity

What is Content Marketing for the construction industry?

January 8, 2017 by Owen Leave a Comment

Content Marketing is the idea that any company can act like a publisher or media company, and market their business by publishing articles, video, audio or other content that offers true value to the customer without being a pushy sales message.

Marketing in this way aims to create customers that know, like and trust your company. The benefit this brings is that it can be easier to convert prospects to customers in the first place, they will remain customers for longer, and will spend more with you.

Content Marketing isn’t a new concept – a podcast called ‘This Old Marketing‘ seeks to prove this. The show hosts, Joe Pulizzi and Robert Rose, are long-time publishers and marketers that are passionate about how better quality content can create better customers.

Is Content Marketing a buzzword?

The show’s eponymous ‘This Old Marketing’ segment looks at ways that quality content, have been used for decades, in some cases hundreds of years. Examples like in-house magazines can create value for customers and consequently the businesses publishing them.

In one recent show, their This Old Marketing example is an article published in a journal called Office Appliances – The Magazine of Office Equipment, in 1916.

The article, House Organs Lower Distribution Costs, covers a keynote speech by Robert Ramsay, advertising manager at Art Metal Construction Company from a conference called The Associated Advertising Club of the World in St Louis in 1916.

The ‘house organs’ mentioned are in-house and external magazines that were used to build an audience in a way that were not about pushy advertising but were about a business acting as a publisher that delivers useful, valuable content to your customers.

Back then, it was considered just as difficult to prove the value of this type of marketing –

There was lots of data, but no proof.

However, Mr Ramsay had spent one year interviewing 72 different editors of in-house magazines and went on to explain 19 ways that the content marketing can provide value for a business, including 4 mentioned in the podcast:

  1. Direct results – you can check the results by including a return card
  2. Creating good will and confidence with our customers (SW Strauss & Co)
  3. Saving salesmen’s time by paving the way for new products (Johnson & Johnson)
  4. Clinching salesmen’s arguments (Marshall Wells Hardware)

How can Content Marketing be used in the construction industry?

What does this mean in real terms for the construction industry? I have listed a few quick suggestions for different areas of the construction industry below, and hope to cover some specific examples in future blog posts.

Content Marketing for construction product manufacturers

  • Compare and contrast the benefits of your type of product with others
  • Be open about the options and factors that affect the cost of the product
  • Address head-on the potential problems of specifying or installing the product

Content Marketing for Property companies

  • Opinion pieces on the state of different segments of the market
  • Predictions on where opportunity lies in the future
  • Assess the benefits and drawbacks of different ways of financing a project

Content Marketing for main contractors

  • Analysis: how can building new assets reduce maintenance costs for a local council?
  • Cost: surface some of the common design / construction implications that could mean the difference between a £5m build and a £10m build.

Content Marketing for interior design consultants

  • Space planning: share ideas on how a homeowner can make the most of limited floor area
  • Share your knowledge and suggest pallettes of colour to match furniture or furnishing styles
  • How colour theory can improve profitability in retail and hospitality interiors

Content Marketing for landscape design consulants

  • How quality play areas benefit the health and well being of children
  • Why high quality public realm can increase footfall in town retail centres
  • How planting and external garden areas can benefit

Vertical brickwork, Forth Valley College, Stirling

Filed Under: Content marketing Tagged With: construction, content marketing

Modernise or die: digital collaboration in the construction industry

December 30, 2016 by Owen 2 Comments

I was inpired by a talk given by Darren Lester, founder of Specifiedby.com, at Scotlandbuild 2016, which looked at running a digital company in the construction industry.

Darren Lestee, Specifiedby.com, Scotlandbuild 2016

Darren Lester opened his speech by referencing the recent Farmer report, which looked at the labour model and skills shortages.

“The construction industry is in dire need of change. What is clear to me following the nine months spent conducting this review is that carrying on as we are is simply not an option. With digital technology advancements pushing ahead in almost every other industry and with the construction labour pool coming under serious pressure, the time has come for action. The construction industry doesn’t have the impetus needed for this change; it requires external action to initiate change.

– Mark Farmer

In his talk, Darren looked at a raft of easily adoptable digital tools that any company can use to work collaboratively, productively and efficiently, starting right now.

Bridge support couplings

Collaboration is a term that has been used a lot with the introduction of BIM but a collaborative mindset must be adopted in everyday working as well as for specialist design and construction disciplines. Construction News Editor Rebecca Evans recently wrote:

Calls for greater collaboration… are frequent and well-meant. The term was heard in almost every debate, discussion and presentation at last weeks Construction News Summit. What is needed is practical action by individuals right now, combined with a medium to long-term overhaul of the way all players in the built environment interact and take responsibility.

From print to digital publishing

Digital innovation and productive working are topics that hold great interest for me. During my career, I started as an editor focusing on printed product directories aiming at construction industry specifiers. The rise of digital publishing and search engines created huge disruption in the publishing industry, which was forced under duress to adopt digital methods of working and create online products.

Many companies died. The ones that survived were able to move away from print publishing and adopt digital publishing. I have lived through a shift from old ways of working to new. Other new disciplines included:

  • well-designed metadata and taxonomies that give easy-to-navigate websites
  • robust and organised databases
  • efficient and innovative software development
  • search systems
  • search engine optimisation
  • social media marketing

I have recently joined a large construction company and can see opportunity in every direction. As per the Farmer Report, many contractors have to modernise, and the good news i the hard work to begin this process has been started.

Top 3 free collaboration tools

Slack – instant messaging that can help you organise discussions into topics, teams and sub-teams. Helps to reduce the pressure that our email exerts on us.

Google docs – functional and effective file sharing system for collaborating on documents, spreadsheets and presentations. Files can be downloaded

Trello – productivity tool that organises team tasks on Kanban-style boards.

Adopting a digital culture

For a large organisation, moving towards a digital mindset is more than just adopting new software and processes. It is also about a change in culture. As I see it, some of the most important things to adopt are:

  • Communicating freely outwith the confines of your team or department. Tools like Slack, the messaging software mentioned above; and Skype and Zoom, videoconferencing tools; are other ways to communicate without the need to be in the same place.
  • Setting up systems that allow location-independent working – at home, on the move, on site or in another office. Most modern software is ‘in the cloud’ – in other words, you can access your information from wherever you have an internet connection.
  • Sharing information in more productive ways – less email attachments, more file sharing; less information hoarded on our own hard drives, more on shared drives and systems

Slack, Google Docs and Trello are largely free apps that small construction businesses can easily adopt if there is a will and aptitude to learn new systems.

For large organisations, the Microsoft Office 365 suite of applications provides a secure system to satisfy corporate needs and gives remote access. Office 365 offers many innovative features that offer much more than just remote access to Word documents. But that’s for another blog post.

With a collective effort, the construction industry can move forward together to learn new ways of collaborative, productive working.

 

Filed Under: Productivity Tagged With: construction

15 words and phrases to avoid in construction marketing

November 13, 2016 by Owen Leave a Comment

Here’s a list of 15 words and phrases to avoid in your construction marketing copy.

In construction marketing, especially in building or landscape products, I advocate the following objectives:

  • avoid exaggeration
  • be truthful
  • provide easy-to-access technical information

A technical, objective style of writing is best for construction products because:

  • it helps specifiers to do their job (assess and select construction products)
  • builds trust with specifiers

Words to avoid in construction marketing

Any – as in ‘suitable for any application
Boasts – exaggeration
Both – exaggeration
Complete with – a cliche
In the heart of – a cliche
Maximum – not truthful
Not only but also – avoiding exaggeration
Optimum – exaggeration, not truthful
Solution – a cliche, obscures clarity
Stand the test of time – not technical or objective
State of the art – one of the most overused cliched
Timeless – not suitable for a construction contenxt
Ultimate – not truthful
Unique – more information on building trust in this post
a Wide range of – a phrase that is generally not needed

Cobbles

Filed Under: Writing tips Tagged With: construction, words to avoid, writing style

Words to avoid – ultimate, maximum, optimum

November 2, 2016 by Owen Leave a Comment

There are many words to avoid when writing marketing copy for construction products. One of my core principles is to be objective. The reason for this is – architects and other specifiers just need the technical information.

Avoiding overused words that exaggerate meaning will improve trust in your reader and make it easier for them to do their job. They need to select the product that is suitable for the application based on its materials, dimensions, features and suitable applications.

There are three words that tend to be mindlessly thrown in to marketing copy:

  • Maximum
  • Ultimate
  • Optimum

If you find yourself including these, imagine a warning siren going off. Stop and review whether the sentence is still true or not. Consider editing out the word and focusing on the facts.

The temptation of the eager marketer or copywriter is to over-emphasise features and benefits. This is appropriate in many industries, but not in construction specification.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Writing tips Tagged With: construction, words to avoid

Is ‘in the heart of’ a cliche?

October 13, 2016 by Owen Leave a Comment

In marketing copy, I see this phrase a lot. Is ‘in the heart of’ a cliche? When people use it in a lazy, meaningless way, my first instinct is to remove it if at all possible.

It doesn’t tend to appear on lists of ‘worst marketing buzzwords‘ but I would still put it on my list of phrases to avoid, especially in a construction products context.

Examples: why ‘in the heart of’ is a cliche

A recent example referred to a project provided building components for the NEC. The Exhibition Centre was being described as being ‘in the heart of’ the West Midlands.

‘In the heart of’ is just a flowery way of saying ‘in the centre of’. This is one reason to avoid it. In construction marketing, it is my opinion that overly decorative language serves no purpose. Get to the point and convey the facts. Your audience need facts and information to do their job, whether that is specifying products or assessing a tender document.

Although the heart is a metaphor for the centre of something, ‘in the heart of’ also implies an emotional connection with a location. Does your business or location have a strong emotional connection, with its wider location? If so, then you can use a phrase like this to evoke a connection with your reader.

It is worth stopping to think whether it’s appropriate to try to conjure up emotion in your marketing. At the heart of this security fence is a unique anti-vandal fixing system. It’s true that theft and vandalism are emotionally upsetting for the victims, but for a public sector buyer or urban design specifier this is not relevant!

When it is OK to use ‘in the heart of’

When is it appropriate to use emotion when marketing building products?

An example of appropriate use is the strapline on the signage for my home town, Stirling  – ‘Scotland’s heart’. The historical connection between this location and Scotland as a country is relevant and there’s a play on William ‘Braveheart’ Wallace, who fought and won the famous battle in 1314 at Bannockburn.

This is a marketing identity though, not a construction product. For the most part, when we are marketing building components, emotion shouldn’t be high on the list of requirements.

I racked my brain for suitable examples – ceramic tiles or made in the Stoke area could be described as ‘made in the heart of the Potteries’. The area’s association with earthenware could be used to show a manufacturer’s heritage and traditional skills.

Maybe public art could be designed with a strong connection to its location, and legitimately be described as being ‘in the heart of’ a town. What about historic buildings?

Let me know what you think in the comments.

Filed Under: Writing tips Tagged With: construction, objectivity, words to avoid, writing style

Is ‘solution’ a dirty word?

September 27, 2016 by Owen Leave a Comment

Avoid the word ‘solution’ – it is a lazy marketing cliche that should almost always be replaced with simpler, clearer phrasing. However, in some situations, is the best word for the job.

The phrase has been overused to the point of losing its original meaning of ‘a solution to a problem’. It was rated the seventh most overused marketing word in an extensive study (behind unique in fifth) and there are numerous articles deriding its use in marketing. The satirical magazine Private Eye even dedicated a regular column to mocking real examples.

Why do people use the word ‘solutions’ in marketing?

Writers sometimes use the word ‘solutions’ to make the product or service sound more important or valuable. If you place the word at the end of a product description, that would make perfect sense without it, you should drop it without hesitation. For example,in the phrase ‘carpet tile solutions‘ – it is completely redundant. ‘Carpet tiles’ is sufficient here.

Marketers will use the word to overcomplicate products or services when it would be better to use simpler language. This may be due to a belief that making things sound more important, or using complex language, is better for your marketing. (This is the usage that Private Eye would make fun of – ‘hosiery solutions’ instead of ‘tights’, for example.) In a construction products context, I’ve seen reference to ‘under-desk power solutions’. In reality this product would be better described as a module or unit. Specifiers need to know exactly what the product is, and what it does – don’t make things a guessing game for them.

If it is difficult to describe a product or service, people sometimes use ‘solutions’ as a convenient way to summarise things. In an example such as ‘erosion control solutions’, (a) the product solves a problem of erosion control, and (b), a ‘textile formwork that acts as a surface sealing system while protecting against erosion, mechanical damage and buoyancy forces in waterbodies’ is a complicated concept. 

Gabion basket

It is used as a catch-all term to cover a broad range of products. I have seen ccompanies providing ‘hard landscaping solutions’ when various types of paving, kerbs, drainage, car parking areas and traffic management – everything but the asphalt. Companies often claim to offer ‘complete solutions’, though, when in reality they only offer a few products.

‘Welded mesh fencing solutions’ in reference to vertical mesh, double-skin mesh, anti-climb mesh, ball-stop fencing, etc. In these situations, it is simply many different products, not a solution.

When to avoid the word ‘solution’?

  • 1: when it serves no purpose in the phrase or sentence.
  • 2: when your product is simple and you are tempted to make sound grandiose.
  • 3: when it is difficult to write a useful, clear and informative description of your products or services.
  • 4: as a substitute for a broad range of products.

Alternatives to ‘solution’

In situations 1 and 2, simply drop the the word.

In scenario 4, use the word ‘products’ instead. Alternatively, another umbrella term to describe a group of the type of products described. This often isn’t easy, so instead it is worth looking at ways to rewrite your text to avoid the need for this word in the first place.

Scenario 3 is more interesting – when the product or service is complicated, ambiguous or difficult to describe. Sometimes describing something as a ‘solution’ is OK if the product requires many words to explain and you don’t have the space. However it is worth examining closely ways to communicate the product and its benefits in shorter phrases.

  • Re-focus on your customer needs
  • Employ the skills of a copywriter!

When is it OK to use ‘solution’?

In the past, I would vehemently and doggedly avoid the word ‘solution’.  Over time, my stance on it has softened a bit. Maybe I have been ground down into submission. As an editor, I came across various grey areas where I felt that using the word was OK.

Where more than one product type could solve that problem, the specifier is looking for a solution. For example, if you claim to offer ‘erosion control solutions’, you should provide more than one way to solve problems of erosion. However, most suppliers still provide and systems, not solutions. I use the word ‘solutions’ for companies who offer design and technical advice, to help the specifier make the right choice of products and systems.

Some companies manufacture or supply very broad range of products, as well as helping the designers with selection. You could say they solve the problem of a particular area of a building or landscape. A  supplier like Broxap and Marshalls can provide “lots of hard landscaping products from the same supplier used together in an integrated way”. A “full external landscaping solution”, if you will.

I’m comfortable if innovative techniques can be referred to as solutions, such as off-site manufacturing, or genuinely bespoke design. A ‘prefabricated concrete floor panel, with integrated thermal and acoustic insulation is more than just a product. I’m not sure it is a solution but it certainly solves more issues than standard products would.

When you have a limited word count, sometimes it is the best word for the job. For example, it can be difficult to describe a complex product or a range of products, in a 140-character tweet or email subject line. Bear in mind the above guidelines if you do this.

Recommended posts about usage of the word ‘solution’

MarketingProfs: The Most Overused Word in Technical Marketing
Walker Sands: Over-used Words & Clichés: What’s Another Word for “Solution”
Turner Ink: If this is the solution, what was the problem?

Filed Under: Writing tips Tagged With: construction, words to avoid, writing style

Usage of ‘stand the test of time’ in construction marketing

September 7, 2016 by Owen Leave a Comment

Whenever editing or proofreading marketing copy that promotes construction products, the phrase “designed to stand the test of time” would jar with me. As a technical editor who favours objectivity and facts over exaggeration and hyperbole, it didn’t sit right.

I think of a stone building or monument standing the test of time, for 100 or 500 years. However, if you want to use the phrase with integrity, it does depends on the context.

Dictionary definitions of ‘stand the test of time’

Cambridge, Oxford and Macmillan all define it in a similar way: to remain popular, strong, effective, successful, etc, after a long time.

The thing that bothers me about this phrase, is that in a construction context, time itself doesn’t actually wear a product. Instead, it is affected by weathering (rain, wind, sea-water, sand, freeze-thaw), people using it, animals or things bumping into it. These things will have a different effect on the product depending on the application.

IMG_7502

How to prove products ‘stand the test of time’?

When writing for product directories, one of the most popular case studies I ever developed for a client was a ’14-years on’ piece. Here, an engineering company revisited one of their projects to see how it had performed over time. The a spun-galvanised cast iron viewing platform had been installed on a seafront, so resistance to corrosion was important.

An of objective analysis like this is the sort of thing that helps architects make the decision on a product that will need to last a long time. How has the finish lasted? Are the welds sound? What about the fixings, if they are a different material?

‘Stand the test of time’ usage in construction marketing

Here are some examples of usage of the phrase ‘stand the test of time’ in construction marketing. (I have altered them – I’m not looking to criticise specific companies)

Shower enclosure

The Souplesse enclosure can be supplied with or without a shower tray to be fitted directly onto a tiled floor. With its 10mm safety glass and an innovative non-slip hinge design, the Souplesse will stand the test of time.

In my opinion the usage of ‘test of time’ is completely inappropriate in this instance. The thickness of the glass and design of the hinge will provide durability but a domestic shower enclosure is hardly going to be subject to heavy weathering or usage.

Contract carpet

Full Moon fibre-bonded carpets are designed for applications subject to heavy wear and tear. They are a highly cost effective solution that meet the relevant performance tests and have been proven to stand the test of time.

The word ‘test’ is suitable here, as commercial carpets are subject to specific testing to British Standards. These establish their durability in contract applications.

Although they need to withstand wear, it isn’t ‘time’ that tests their durability. It is the number of people that walk over them, and the application. A carpet might be tested to withstand daily use in an office corridor, but in the entrance atrium of a secondary school of 1500 pupils, it will wear it out much more quickly. Let’s say the building is used for sport at weekends, and rugby teams are passing through the area – this would drastically shorten the life of that carpet.

A bronze plaque

Historical events are traditionally commemorated with a plaque and the material should be able to stand the test of time. Cast bronze is favoured, due to its long-lasting properties and its classic look.

I can almost forgive the use of the phrase ‘stand the test of time’ here. Plaques convey a feeling that is associated with the importance of the event that is to be remembered, so more emotive language feels appropriate. On the other hand though, the text above communicates this idea in plainer terms – long-lasting properties. This is sufficient to convey the concept of longevity to an audience like architects. In fact, they’d probably prefer specific details on how many years it could be expected to last, and how the finish might age in different atmospheric conditions.

 

In theory, there is nothing wrong with using the phrase ‘stand the test of time’ if your construction products do last for a long time. As always, though, I advocate a fairly objective approach and let the facts speak for themselves in order to gain the trust of architects and other specifiers.

It may sound boring (that’s the aim) but be more literal about things. How much time do your products last?

To be pedantic about things, though, weather and everyday use aren’t a ‘test’ – they are just things that happen as part of normal everyday life and the passing of time.

Related post: Marketing words to avoid: ‘timeless’

Filed Under: Writing tips Tagged With: construction, objectivity, words to avoid, writing style

Why to avoid the phrase ‘complete with’

September 4, 2016 by Owen Leave a Comment

The phrase ‘complete with’ is overused in construction product marketing and usually comes with an exaggerated or emphasised meaning. This goes against one of my mantras for writing about construction products – be objective. The meaning that is usually intended is actually at odds with the conventional, dictionary definition of the word. In my view this erodes trust with your reader.

Definitions of the phrase ‘complete with’

‘Complete’, as an adjective, means:

  1. having all the necessary or appropriate parts. ‘a complete list of courses offered by the university’
  2. (often used for emphasis) to the greatest extent or degree; total.

The definition of ‘Complete with’ in the Oxford Dictionary, is the usage I see as problematic:

“Having something as an additional part or feature: the detachable keyboard comes complete with numeric keypad.”

It is usually used in reference to accessories a product can be supplied with. These are often optional extras or features that are included in addition to the essential basic qualities of the product. I was quite surprised to read what I see as a ‘bad’ definition in the Oxford Dictionary, but it is simply reflecting how the phrase is used in reality.

Examples of the phrase ‘complete with’

Let’s look at a couple of examples.

A comprehensive collection of paving complete with a choice of finishes.

This is the sort of phrase that appears frequently in construction product marketing. Is the collection ‘complete’ with finishes? The product is not incomplete without a choice of finishes – it can be installed and perform adequately in some applications. What about colours, a guarantee or associated installation products? (Guarantees are another thing that are often described as ‘completing’ a product.)

An ultra-high security fence complete with anti-climb razor wire.

Is the fence really ‘complete’ when anti-climb razor wire is attached to the top? This additional accessory will provide the right level of security for certain specific applications. For others, barbed wire, electric wire or rotating spikes will be more appropriate. In many cases, the budget will determine the level of security that can be attained.

Brickwork, Forth Valley College, Stirling

Avoid the phrase ‘complete with’!

The phrase ‘complete with’ is frequently used to add emphasis but it doesn’t add any extra meaning. This extra emphasis is unnecessary in my opinion and only serves to erode trust with your reader.

The idea that a product is “complete” is abstract – it’s entirely dependent on the needs of the user or the circumstances of the application.

Macmillan defines ‘complete with’ much more simply:

with the things mentioned.

I find that in the context of construction products, this is a more accurate definition.  The phrase just means ‘with’.

‘Complete with’ is often a misuse of the word ‘complete’. The idea that a product is somehow complete when it is supplied with additional things is subjective. There is is not even any need for this extra word to convey meaning. The phrase would be better replaced by ‘with’ or’ has’.

The points I make about this phrase are the same mantras I have mentioned in many of my other posts on writing tips

  • Be objective in your product descriptions.
  • Don’t exaggerate in your product information.
  • Seek to gain trust, not to erode it, through your writing

Filed Under: Writing tips Tagged With: construction, objectivity, words to avoid, writing style

Use of the word ‘both’ (and why to avoid it)

August 28, 2016 by Owen Leave a Comment

I often see the word ‘both’ in construction product descriptions. Products have more than one feature or benefit, and ‘both’ is deployed to emphasise these benefits. It can be made to show that one benefit or application is not more important than the other.

In other words: a stone effect paving that is suitable for both domestic and public applications is equally suitable for those two types of environment.

Be careful not to misrepresent things though. If a product is primarily for domestic applications, it is much better to say so than to try to cover all bases. Specifiers will not thank you if you say it is ‘suitable for both domestic and commercial applications’ and the product fails when used at a retail park. Be honest and upfront.

In this context, the word ‘both’ is used as a correlative conjunction, in the same was as ‘not only… but also‘. A correlative conjunction joins two parts of a sentence that include related information.

With ‘not only… but also’, the two parts should be related and the second should build on, or be more important than the first. I’ve written about ‘not only… but also’ before, and how this phrase is misused to add emphasis to marketing text.

AJE.com has a good grammatical explanation of how the word ‘both’ should be used.

“both…and” is used as a conjunction relating two nouns, two adjectives, and two verbs, respectively.

Furthermore, as a conjunction, ‘both’ emphasizes that the two entities being discussed (whether nouns, verbs, or adjectives) are included equally.

Buff brickwork, Forth Valley College, Stirling

I find that the use of the word both brings about a sense of distrust. I’m often suspicious as to whether a product really does deliver on both of the things that are claimed.

Incorrect use of the word ‘both’

Of paving products: for both residential and commercial applications

– it’s important to make specific reference to why the product is suitable for either of these applications.

Of street furniture: options are available for both light and heavy duty applications

– if two options are available, that are used for different applications, it’s incorrect to use ‘both’ in this case. The two options aren’t equal, they are distinct and separate.

OK use of the word ‘both’

Of a piece of play equipment: encourages both physical play and social interaction
Of an outdoor gym product: allow you to work on the mobility of both your arm and shoulder muscles
Of synthetic grass surfacing: it is designed to meet the specifications for both amateur and professional sports pitches

I always advocate editing out words if it makes your writing more concise. In most of the cases above, the sentence will still work perfectly if you remove the word ‘both’.

Try removing the word both

Orwell’s rule applies here.

If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.

Usually I will have edited this word out, and the sentence still does the job. For me the word often feels like it is trying to over-emphasise things in a forced or untrustworthy way. A designer or buyer will have one application or another (for example), in mind, so it makes no difference to them whether this fantastic surfacing product is suitable for both children’s playgrounds and airport hardstandings.

Specifiers just want the technical information. They need it as quickly and as clearly as possible. I believe that cutting out words that are traditionally used in marketing for emphasis will make it easier for them to do their job.

Filed Under: Writing tips Tagged With: construction, objectivity, words to avoid, writing style

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