We talk a lot about conversational voice and tone in these pages. Conversational style engages and persuades people. That's the gist of it.
A lot of businesses still shy away from this type of writing in their Web sites, eBay listings and marketing collateral.
I came across validation for the conversational approach in another book (which is great, by the way). It's called Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas On Presentation Design and Delivery and it's written by Garr Reynolds.
Here's a quote from the book (p. 83):
"When you are in a conversation with someone you are naturally more engaged because you have an obligation to participate. You are involved. Formal speech and formal writing devoid of any emotion whatsoever is extremely difficult to stay with for more than a few minutes. Your conscious mind has to remind you to "stay away, this is important!" But someone who speaks in a natural, human, conversational style is far easier to stay engaged with."
I urge you, as always, to write with conversational tone and style. That means speaking as if in a one-on-one conversation, asking questions, adding emotion, using imagery, and communicating as you would with a friend.
I think this approach is valid in many settings. However, the demands of your audience should ultimately dictate the style in which you write your materials. For example, in my company's industry--enterprise risk and compliance management--being too conversational can have a negative effect. Our prose needs to convey both information about our product as well as confidence in how we do business. Our audience brings a wealth of industry knowledge and expertise with them, and our collateral must reflect our understanding and capabilities for solving industry problems. Our products, therefore, must be presented in a professional and clear manner. In summary, your style must meet the demands of your audience. Often, the simpler more conversation style is by far the best method to communicate. However, depending on your industry, this may not be the best fit for your audience. To see how my company works to walk the line between conversational and complex language, check out our website at www.archer-tech.com.
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