Ten steps to a more inclusive copy using plain language

As speaking professionals, we are uniquely positioned – and wired – to understand, deep within our core, that words have power. The words we use can enable or disable our audience, can sway an entire audience in one direction or another, and even, why not, change the world. As long as the message we convey is clear and unambiguous. If not, an otherwise very powerful message can quickly fall incredibly flat.

Consider the following two sentences a speaker might say at the end of a presentation. which one feels easier to understand for you?

Option 01 “Thank you for attending this live, in-person event. Should there be any additional elements on which you require further explanation or details, I will gladly provide such information to you as may be required through email.”

Option 02 “Thanks for attending my session. If you have any questions, drop me an email.”

Arguably, they both say the exact same thing, but I’ll bet you whatever you want that the second sentence feels a hell of a lot simpler to you. It makes perfect sense. We get it. And yet, oftentimes, because we care about sounding smart, educated, thoughtful, and well-spoken, we will use words and sentences that are a little too complex for our own good. And when we do, is it at the cost of leaving part of our audience behind? It’s an interesting question.

One thing for sure, the more you research concepts related to inclusive communication and accessible copywriting, the more you look for simpler, more efficient ways express your ideas and thoughts, the closer you’ll get to one of the core principles of the inclusive communication practice – plain language.

A piece of communication, whether it’s a text, a speech or any other form of content is considered to be written in plain language if its wording, structure, and design are so clear that the intended readers can easily understand it. In essence, they need to be able to easily find what they need, understand what it is that they find, and use that information efficiently.

It’s a simple concept, but applying it in your writing is actually a lot harder than it looks.

Why should you care about plain language?

Glad you asked, it’s a great question! Literacy is one of those things where, when you know, you know. But when you don’t, you’re in for quite the surprise. For those of us who enjoy a high level of literacy or have college or university degrees, it can be very hard to imagine that not everyone is as comfortable as we might be, when it comes to reading and processing written content.

The reality is, reading rates are a real concern in many industrialized countries, including Canada. As it turns out, most people don’t really read, especially online. So, the question becomes, what does that mean for the copy you create? Here are some mind boggling statistics:

1. Approximately 48% of Canadians between the ages of 16 and 65 have literacy skills that fall below a high school level. That’s almost half of the working age population.
2. About two in every five Canadian adults, roughly 9 million people , can’t read well enough to do everyday things. If you add in the people who are older than 65 years of age, that number goes up to 12 million Canadians, or roughly 32% of the population.
3. Finally, a famous 2008 research from the Nielsen Norman Group Research shows that people only read about 18% of what’s on a page, and pretty much guess the rest, based on how they perceived the part they actually read.

This probably doesn’t surprise you much, because your own behaviour might very well be similar. On the web, people are in a hurry. They skim and scan, looking for quick answers to their questions. We can help our audience quickly find what they need with a few web writing tips.

This is how we can introduce plain language principles.

Ten easy steps for a plain language strategy

Plain language is a vast topic and it is certainly a lot more complex, and there are excellent resources out there that can allow you to dive really deep in the topic, including great resources like PlainLanguage.gov and CenterForPlainLanguage.org. But because it can get quite complex, whenever I train or introduce clients to plain language principles, I tend to limit it to a Top 10 of simple best practices that will give them the most bang for their buck. This is the list I’d like to share with you today.

Step 01. Know your audience and what they will typically expect or need

First, ask yourself: why is your audience even reading this stuff? What is it about the topic that your audience already knows? You want to be clear about who your audience is, so you end up writing for the right crowd. Write in the interest of everyone who shows interest in your content, not just the technical experts. Also, make no assumption about the level of knowledge that your audience might have about the topic, and don’t presume that they read a ton about it already. Make sure each of your pages, slides, and documents can stand on their own.

Step 02. Organize your thoughts so that your audience’s questions are answered

Then, once you have some clarity about your audience, organize your content logically, so it is most useful to them! What kind of questions are your audience likely to ask about that topic? If you keep in mind the founding principles of plain language, you want to make sure the audience can find what they need. Adapt your writing and the words you use, so that the vocabulary you choose relies on the same words your audience would use when searching for that content in a search engine.

Step 03. Summarize your main points and front-load all key information

Once your thoughts are logically organized, start break your content down into separate, but related topics. Make ample use of section headings throughout, and use them as sign posts to announce what will come next. Avoid going more than two heading levels deep on any given page, and break down the content over multiple pages as needed. The same goes or lists: use them as a way to break down long enumerations for more scannability, and provide links for more information when necessary. Make it a point to front-load the main ideas very early on (in the very first paragraph if you can), so the audience has a better chance of receiving them.

Step 04. Write short sentences and paragraphs and keep them under 15-20 words

With plain language, less is more! Be concise. Be short. Be brief. Create even shorter paragraphs online than you would on paper. Get rid of all the fluff. Be brutal about it. Don’t use unnecessary words, especially if their only purpose is to make you sound authoritative. Stick to a single idea or topic per paragraph, and keep sentences short. Your average sentence length should never be longer than 15 to 20 words, if at all possible. Also take advantage of whitespace, with sufficient padding and margins around paragraphs, so the content becomes even easier to scan and you avoid big, daunting walls of text.

Step 05. Use everyday words and phrases that the audience can relate to

Given the general level of literacy of the population, it will come as no surprise that most audience members will relate better to information if it speaks directly to them. Overly complex language will fall flat for a lot of people, and meaningless words and phrases are just a waste space of your audience’s energy and time. Eliminate all unnecessary words from your copy, no matter how hard it is! Write your first draft, do your best to cut it down by half, then try to cut it down even more until every word truly earns its place.

Step 06. Keep jargon to a minimum and avoid complex or bureaucratic language

You should never assume that your average audience member will be familiar with your technical jargon, or will understand what your acronyms or abbreviations actually mean. You should always keep their use to a minimum or, at the very least, explain what they mean on their first occurrence in your content. Along the same lines, avoid overly complex speak, and other bureaucratic or legal language whenever possible. Leverage on meaningful link text and avoid calls to action like “click here” or “more info”. The link text you use should clearly describe what your audience will get if they trigger them.

Step 07. Use strong subjects and verbs while avoiding the use of passive voice

With an economy of words comes the necessity to be surgical, for maximum effect. Choose action words and verbs that will efficiently map to the actions you want your audience to take. Make conscious use of active voice and personal pronouns, where the subject performs the action denoted by the verb, while avoiding passive voice, where the same subject is being “acted upon” (which makes the copy feel more ambiguous). You can also avoid a lot of confusion for your audience by keeping the subject and verb in your sentences in close proximity from one another.

Step 08. Define uncommon terms that can potentially confuse your audience

The risk that comes with using overly complex and unusual, or uncommon words in your copy is that they take your audience’s attention away from the content, and introduce confusion as to what the words might mean. It’s pretty simple: when your audience is wondering about what the words might mean, they are not focused on the message. Make it a point to always define uncommon or unusual words as they occur in your content, and use these words consistently. You might even consider providing a glossary for uncommon or unusual words to allow your audience to look them up as needed.

Step 09. Use headings, list and tables so your audience can find what they need

In content, structure is everything. You have many tools at your disposal to leverage structure for maximum impact. Simplify content using lists, tables, icons and other design features. Use short lists and bullets to organize the information, even more than you would in printed content. Leverage section headings and lists for improved scannability, which will help audience members to quickly find what they’re looking for. Introduce each topic or point separately, and make them descriptive, keeping in mind that questions can often make for great section headings as well!

Step 10. Proofread your content with a fresh pair of eyes or by reading it out loud

Finally, last but not least, don’t just write your content. Read it out loud and pay attention to how it sounds when spoken aloud. It’s always beneficial to distance yourself from the content for a while, so you can come back to it with a fresh pair of eyes. Let it sit for a while if you have to! You can even use various text to speech solutions to have the text read back to you. If you feel like you are too close to the content and you can’t be the best judge, then consider asking a peer or a colleague to give you some feedback. Either way, challenge the status quo, and iterate.

Follow these ten general rules, and you will notice that your content will automatically become easier to read, which will, in turn, incite your audience to spend a bit more time reading, and a little less time scanning and guessing.