A good contact called me this week to ask for advice on report writing, having recently had their important report politely but savagely attacked by a well-meaning senior figure in the organisation. This can be a disappointing, humbling and time-consuming experience for any author in going through the amends and deletions in order to re-write the publication to a stage where it is approved or at the very least, tolerated. In producing any form of editorial for approval, we are always of course at the whim of the reader, their individual likes and dislikes, but aside from personal subjectivity, there are some constants which will contribute to a readable and well-received report.
In planning for the meeting with my contact, held at the traditional business venue of the Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem, I decided to produce a handy guide of top ten tips to help produce reports that are interesting, enjoyable and look professional. It turned into a list of 15 tips, reproduced here and I hope it is of some use to you. It hardly needs saying of course that a PWP speciality is the production of business reports, annual reports, newsletters, and editorial and photographic content for all sorts of corporate publications. Email pleaseimprovemyreport@pwpcomms.co.uk for more information.
Fifteen ways to get your reports read and accepted:
1) Remember the reader. Who are you writing this for? Who are the intended audiences? What would you like them to do once they have read the report?
2) You can be interesting and clever. Writing for a high-level/senior/academic audience does not necessarily mean you have to fill your report with dry, dull terminology. Shock them with something genuinely interesting that is clearly explained and understood.
3) Clarity. Write so that an 11-year-old can read and understand it. If you have to use industry specific terminology, explain it. Try to avoid jargon or acronyms wherever possible.
4) The killer stat. Grab people’s attention with an amazing statistic. Take the number and put it in another context. This is frequently used in comparisons such as ‘to fill Wembley Stadium, end to end x times around the world,’ or ‘a country the size of Wales’. When land mass is mentioned, it’s always compared to Wales. No-one knows why.
5) A picture is worth a thousand words. Use photographs to brighten your report. Make them relevant and ensure they’re in focus. Use shots of people smiling, talking, looking engaged and positive.
6) Fonts. Stick to the classic fonts (eg Arial, Calibri, Helvetica). Don’t choose a ‘whacky’ or ‘different’ font. It makes you look like someone who wants to be ‘whacky’ or ‘different’.
7) Include an Executive Summary – make this interesting, direct and to the point. Most readers will look through the Exec Summary to get a feel for the report and then signpost their way through the publication using the Table of Contents.
8) Break up the copy into short sections. Use headings and sub-headings to help the reader quickly understand the content.
9) Edit it down as much as possible. Would you rather read a 10-page or a 100-page report?
10) Avoid complicated diagrams that only a subject specific expert could understand. If you haven’t got a clear and genuinely helpful diagram, summarise the findings in your copy instead.
11) Use first-hand quotes from people or ‘did you know’ facts in text boxes to break up the copy.
12) Consider inviting feedback from contributors or a readers panel prior to publication.
13) Always get the report proof-read by somebody else. They’ll pick up on some silly mistakes and may have ideas to improve it.
14) Look at the memory file size of the document. If it’s large (ie. over 2MB) pdf it via Adobe Acrobat as it will make it easier to email or download from a website.
15) Send people the report when you said you would.
