October 31, 2022

Introduction

A thesaurus is a helpful tool (I use it quite often in my own writing), but just like any other tool, it can be overused.

When I say “overusing the thesaurus” what I mean is it’s usually pretty easy to tell when a writer has gone out of their way to hunt down as many big, impressive, and uncommon words to sprinkle all throughout their writing.

While I can’t read the minds of the writers who I’ve seen do this, I can surmise that their goal is to impress their reader with their vast knowledge of vocabulary. As a wordsmith myself, I am indeed impressed by large vocabularies, but is using these big, impressive words actually helping your writing? Let’s explore.

It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that using complex language will make you sound more intelligent or professional. However, this is often not the case. In fact, using big words can often make your writing seem cluttered and confusing.

So, what’s the best way to strike a balance between sounding smart and maintaining clarity in your writing? Keep reading to find out.

First, An Example

Here’s an example of a passage written in the style I’m referring to:

“As an astute business owner, you are likely always scrutinizing novel ways to increase your clientele and thus your bottom line. One avenue that you may not have explored, once obfuscated by mysterious algorithms but no longer, is that of search engine optimization (SEO).

Imagine heading to a website homepage and reading something like that (I have numerous times). There’s nothing technically wrong with this paragraph, but it does feel a bit like the writer is trying to show off. However, the homepage of your website is not the place to show off. Rather, it’s to hook the reader into whatever you’re trying to communicate to them. In this instance, clarity is king above all else.

The Importance of Clarity in Writing

When you’re writing for a business audience, clarity should be your top priority. Your goal should be to communicate your ideas clearly and concisely, without using unnecessary words or jargon.

In my opinion, “unnecessary words” constitute both words that can be edited out and words that are a bit too fancy for their own good. Both the former and the latter can be seen in the example passage above. How can the passage above be rewritten to increase reduce its length, make it simpler, and increase clarity?

Like this:

“As a business owner, you’re always looking for new ways to increase your clientele and bottom line. One avenue you may not have explored is search engine optimization (SEO).”

See? Much simpler.

Readability

Another important thing to consider here is readability. Readability is, quite simply, how easy it is for your reader to understand what you’re writing. And as we just discussed, clarity is key when writing for a business audience.

There are many factors that affect readability, but one of the most important is sentence length. When you have shorter sentences, they’re easier to read and understand. The example passage above has some very long sentences, which can be difficult for readers to digest.

Another factor is word choice. Simple words are easier for more people to understand. That’s not to say that you should avoid using “big words” altogether every single time. But if you can say something with a simpler word, that’s usually the best route to take. It’s important to remember that the average person in the United States reads at a sixth grade level.

For more information about readability and its importance in writing for a business audience, check out my free ebook How To Improve Website Readability For Western Audiences. To get it, just click here and enter your best email to have it sent directly to your inbox.

Conclusion

So are big, impressive words always bad to use when writing? Of course not. But it’s important to use them sparingly and only when they help you achieve clarity. More often than not, big words will actually clutter your writing and make it more difficult for the reader to understand your message.

Remember, when it comes to business writing, clarity is key. So the next time you’re tempted to reach for that thesaurus, ask yourself if using a more common word would actually help your readers better understand what you’re trying to say.

If you’d like to significantly increase the readability of your business writing (and do so quickly) then the best way is to work with an expert. Here at English Outsourced, we specialize in helping business owners like you to make sure that your online presence is professional and polished. For more information on how we do that, click here!