With the help of YouGov, I got to ask more than 1,000 people how much bullshit they saw in the things they read. It varies, with an average of 56%. And it’s about the same across a variety of demographic categories. YouGov has a massive panel of people who answer online surveys: 1.5 million people. They gave…
The typical business writing process is a disaster. I’ve seen it; I’ve lived it; I’ve picked up the pieces afterwards. And bad process creates bad results. For better quality with less angst, you need the discipline to work in three distinct stages. The 3 P’s will mess you up This advice is for writing projects that take a…
Today I release “The State of Business Writing, 2016,” my first research report about the challenges of writing at work, based on a survey of 547 business writers. This is the first public release of the whole set of research. Biggest takeaways: 81% of people who write for work agree with the statement “Poorly written material wastes my…
As I’ve reviewed the data from the WOBS Writing Survey, one thing stood out: managers read a lot, and they think the quality of business writing is poor. By improving the writing culture in their departments, they could save themselves and their workers a lot of time. The data shown here comes from my survey early…
My survey of 547 business writers found one big pain point: managing editorial feedback. Only half of business writers get the feedback they need, and only one in three feels that their process for managing feedback works well. Business writers have little love for feedback processes In this table, the first data column summarizes all the responses; the other columns…
Does clear writing make you vulnerable, or boost your career? According the business writers I asked, it’s more likely to help than hurt you. And the older you get, the bolder you get. When I surveyed 547 business writers early this year, I asked whether they agreed with the following two statements: I make a strong,…
What’s wrong with your writing? If you think it’s too long, you’re probably right. While you may not realize you have organization and clarity problems, your readers do. Early this year, I surveyed 547 business writers (details below*). This is my first post about the data from that survey. One question I asked was this: In…