Reading Conditions Matter to Writers
When you write, do you consider the conditions in which the words and message will be read? Consideration of the reading environment should be a routine part of exercising your communication skills when writing.
Let’s say you’re writing for people who work in a manufacturing plant, so you’ll have a plan for that. On the other hand, if those people are administrative staff working in offices you’ll likely take a different approach.
More specifically, if you’re writing for difficult reading conditions, such as a factory floor, you’ll focus on simplicity and ease of reading. Given the noise and distractions in such areas, you’ll focus on just a few key points, use larger font sizes, and so on.
If you’re writing for people in offices, you can be more subtle with your messages, and you can focus on the look of the document. Fonts can be smaller than those used for communication with the factory floor, for example. Color is a useful tool in office environments, but on the factory floor plain black and white will be more effective.
Think, too, about the differences in lighting. High gloss paper may look good, but it may reflect and make reading harder in brightly lit offices, and harder reading means the document won’t get as much attention as one that is easy to read.
Where will your printed newsletter be read? If a majority of your readers are in harsh or very bright reading environments, then go with non-glossy paper.
One other note: Will your document be an email message, or a printed document? Recipients generally treat email as disposable, but written letters as permanent records. That may not be your view, but write for posterity when you write for print.
Summing up, you can increase the odds of your message being read, and understand, if you consider the reading conditions before creating it. Tailor the medium and the message to meet the prevalent reading conditions.
For more tips on effective communication, visit Business Writing Skills .
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