It’s not all about you! When writing for your audience, it’s vital that you hit the mark and not come across as condescending, selfish or holier-than-thou. How?Ok first up, you should already know who your audience is! At the barest minimum, they are folks who are interested in the kind of business you run. No matter what you do – hairdresser, financial planner, restaurateur, nursery owner – there are going to be people who want to hear from you and learn from you. How you treat your audience will determine their staying power on your mailing list or your website address’s staying power on their list of bookmarks.

Make it a conversation
You could write like you’re addressing Parliament, or you could write as though you’re the world’s greatest debater. But where will it get you? What your audience wants is to feel like you are talking to them with respect, and that you might just be interested in what they have to say in return. The conversational style aims to avoid try-hard big words and phrases that are designed to impress. Take it from me; the only thing that will impress your audience – unless you’re a Supreme Court judge – is making them feel welcome, and speaking to them on a colloquial level.

Talk to the people, not the computer screen
Your audience is comprised of actual human beings. Sometimes, in the dark of a late night or in the busy chaos of your deadline-riddled world, it can be tempting to write as though you’re thinking out loud, with no consideration given to the needs of your audience. You’re not always trying to sell. Your audience is not always your devoted customers. There’s a bunch of people out there who may be considering doing business with you and if you turn them off, you can kiss their custom goodbye. Forever.

Go for the relationship
Don’t expect results from each and every item you write for your audience. Some will inevitably hit the mark, some will inevitably not. What you’re aiming for is ongoing attention because at some point in the future, and you may or may not know when, someone, somewhere will pay attention and buy, enquire or tell their friends. Ideally this would be frequently and your audience would be so prolific that you only have to announce that you’ve written something and they’ll jump on it. But in the real world, you  have to work at any relationship and writing for your audience is no different.

Impart wisdom and encouragement
Making people feel good about themselves is a great way to get them on side. But obviously you have to mean it. If you act like the Almighty Guru of whatever industry you’re in, and you’re not approachable or caring, forget it. The whole thing. Sure, you might be an unchallenged authority on a topic but if you declare it to be so or make it obvious that you believe your own press, you’re going to turn people off in droves. Share your wisdom. Tell people the things that they look to you for. Encourage them to challenge you, to provide feedback and to have faith that you will not shut them down.

Audiences are fickle. There is plenty of other material out there and believe it or not, yours is not the Holy Grail of business wisdom. If you respect your audience and behave authentically, genuinely and helpfully, how can they resist tuning in?