4. For question #2, what did you do differently from the original post? Please outline, explain and justify what you changed & why. Essentially, what did you learn from this new topic and what did you change and why. (8 Marks)
Based off of my first introductory post, I had to change a lot. I unknowingly got carried away in my previous introductory post and included much more information than just what my audience NEEDED to know. By following Plain English writing, I was able to clearly prioritize the information that my audience NEEDED and in turn, save the time of both myself and my audience, helping ensure I don’t lose my audiences interest along the way.
To summarize the main objective of Plain English writing, you are creating content that is clear, concise, and focuses on providing information that the readers NEED to know as quickly as possible. By asking myself questions like “what is my audience’s problem, how does my product solve it, what do they need to know about my product?” to follow Plain English writing, I was able to clearly highlight the key pieces of information my audience needed to know and build my content based off of delivering those key pieces of information.
In question 3, I listed the important pieces of information that I needed to deliver in bullet point form. Using that list is how I created my introductory post. I summarized the information my audience NEEDED regarding my business and my product. As this is my introductory post, the main thing they needed to know was what my product is and how it works. In my last post, I included the why and almost delivered the information in a storyline format. Instead of coming across as direct and informative, I was coming across as relatable and personal. With that being said, to comply with Plain English writing, I focused on being more informative than personal to quickly deliver the necessary information and prioritize my audience’s needs and time.
By delivering my content in a more informative way, I was able to summarize my last introductory post and shorten it plenty to save the time of both myself and my audience. In my last introductory post, my readers would hear a lot of personal information and witty storytelling in hopes to better connect with my audience and let my brand personality shine but that is not what Plain English writing is about.
Plain English writing ensured I was prioritizing the time of reader and delivering the information in a clear, concise and timely way. There will be many more opportunities in the future for me to connect with my audience and build that business-to-consumer relationship but as for my introductory post, it is simply just that – an introduction to my product and less my brand.
To help with the main objectives of Plain English writing and truly help my users understand my product and why they need it, I included more CTA’s throughout in my introductory post to clearly highlight the next step for my users and lead them to where they can find more information. As this is an introductory post, users might be left intrigued and wanting to know more, so, they won’t have to question where to go or what to do next, as it is clearly laid out for them (this can also help drive traffic to my website for future use).
Furthermore, for this introductory post, I went less in-depth about my product and I just listed the facts – what it is, why they need it, and how it works. Prioritizing this information ensured my content was direct and delivered exactly what my audience would NEED from me.
The initial picture in my introductory post was more of a filler image with not as much of a purpose or meaning other than just being a pretty image that relates to periods. With this introductory post, the first image they see is meaningful and will signal emotion, as it is an image of a girl hunched over on the couch in pain, holding her belly – a common experience shared between all women when menstruating – pain from period cramps. The second image that was also not included in my first introductory post shows the three “TrackHER Calendars” (to my best ability at this time) providing a visual for my viewers, also helping separate the content in my introductory post.
To further comply with Plain English Writing, the content in my first introductory post was already in a more conversational tone. So, for the revised version, I continued speaking directly to my readers by often using the words “you” and “your”. This gives my content a sense of personalization and helps empower my readers as I am letting them know my product and menstrual tracking can change their life. Lastly, I continued speaking in a simple tone of voice using simple, everyday terms, ones which a 6th grader would be able to understand to ensure all potential audience members would be able to clearly understand my writing, not dread reading my content and prioritize the needs and time of my audience.