Standing out in the vast digital realm can prove to be challenging. One thing is for sure, though: Brevity is a quality that stands out and is much appreciated in the online marketing world.

What Is Brevity and Why Is It Important?

The Merriam-Webster definition of brevity is the “shortness or conciseness of expression.” It refers to the ability to present a though in an impactful yet concise way.

Observing brevity as part of an online marketing strategy targets a person’s need and preference for convenience. It considers the fact that most people today lead busy lives and have little time to spare to listening or reading lengthy articles, spiels, product descriptions, benefit lists, and more.

Aside from constantly working through hectic schedules, most people who regularly go online share that they simply do not have a long attention span. After about 10 seconds into reading something on the Internet (which may not be particularly interesting), their mind begins to wander, and they long to do something else.

Therefore, making a conscious effort to be concise is an essential solution to creating an effective marketing program, especially one that is implemented online.

Also Read: 5 Common Mistakes to avoid in Digital Marketing Strategy

How to Practice Brevity?

How do you practice brevity to communicate effectively with your target audience? Here are seven great tips to follow:

1. Use animated explainer videos –

If you have graphic designers in your company who have Adobe Photoshop training and animation technology experience, tap into their talent more. Produce animated explainer videos to showcase a new process, product, or service.

An animated explainer video usually lasts two minutes or less, which is not a long time. However, a thoughtfully produced animated explainer video can pack everything you need to say in a compelling way in that limited amount of time. Studies reveal that netizens gravitate toward videos, and the recall is always better for such content compared to text, audio, and still images.

2. Use Grammarly for written content –

For online content that needs to be read, the best practice is to keep your sentences short and sweet, even for long-form content. This can be tricky sometimes, but if you use Grammarly, you can get help in writing concise sentences.

Grammarly flags sentences that are too long. You can either chop off parts or divide a long sentence into bite-sized pieces. The bottom line here is that if you use Grammarly, you can keep your sentences short and punchy to get people to stay on your website or page.

3. Take a business letter writing course to craft better emails –

Similar to other written content, marketing emails should also be short, sweet and to the point. You can learn how to do this by taking a business letter writing course which will teach you how to put together all the information that you need to share in under 200 words.

With business letter writing, you will learn how to use power words and make sure that you are clearly getting your point across even if you are using much fewer words. Plus, it will also cover the importance of a call to action that will inform the recipient of what’s expected of him right away.

4. Use infographics more –

Infographics present the best combination of text and images. You can write shorter text and let the images that complement them communicate a complete thought. An infographics offers much shorter readable content that is therefore more consumable. Plus, you can inject a bit of humor to them to engage readers better.

5. Use Twitter for important announcements –

The nice thing about Twitter is that even if it has increased its character limit, the standard practice for many remains keeping the post within 140 characters or fewer.

Social media marketing experts say that the more you keep your tweets to 110 characters or fewer, the better. Why? A shorter tweet gives your followers room to retweet your message, which will then help spread it further and faster.

6. Link all of your social media accounts –

This is now possible with Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and even Google+. By linking all of these accounts to each other, you can post your message on one and automatically display it on the different networked platforms. It’s a great way to save time and effort in getting your message to as many people as you can.

7. Write as if you’re directly talking to a person –

One of the keys to concise writing is to use the second person perspective. When people consume content online, they like to feel as if you are talking to them and not some other person. By doing this, you’ll find yourself using fewer but highly understandable words instead of flowery, poetic terms or technical jargon, which tend to confuse many.

Brevity is easy enough to learn and practice. Some courses teach it and there are advanced technologies you can use to help you uphold the rules of brevity in all aspects of your operations. The tips here should get you started. They will simplify many of your online marketing processes without compromising the impact of the message you aim to deliver.

Author Bio:

Jerrin Samuel is the Executive Director at Regional Educational Institute (REI) in Abu Dhabi. Since 1995, REI has been at the forefront of education by delivering quality corporate training courses in the UAE, helping many businesses and organizations achieve greater productivity and higher customer satisfaction levels.

 

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