Plain Language Basics
So you want to learn more about writing in plain language?
Well, you’ve come to the right place!
This resource guide is intended to help you learn the basics of writing in plain language, and help you understand why writing in plain language is an important skill for all professionals.
Plain language isn’t just about simplifying: It’s about making your message more direct and memorable.
A very common, but misguided, belief is that writing in plain language might be seen as diluting the sophistication of your messaging. This sentiment is even more prominent coming from individuals working in high-level and technical industries. Despite this pervasive belief, however, research consistently demonstrates that even technical audiences prefer reading in plain language.
Usability studies show that highly educated online readers across science, technology, and medicine crave succinct information that is easy to scan. This is particularly true for business communications.
At its roots, plain language is the language that individuals understand the first time they read it. Long sentences and complex vocabulary—while encouraged throughout formal education settings—result in huge sacrifices to both readability and credibility.
So, what exactly is plain language?
Writing in plain language means choosing the right words to express your points succinctly and efficiently—using the words your audience actually understands.
Writing in plain language means using clear, straight-forward language to help remove unnecessary barriers to comprehension. This makes your content easier to engage with for everyone—including those with cognitive and learning disabilities, non-native speakers, and individuals who are unfamiliar with your industry.
The Benefits of Writing in Plain Language
Plain language communicates information both succinctly and efficiently, so that your ready can understand your message quickly.
Clear Messaging
Plain language benefits everyone; especially if your content is meant to appeal to international or diverse audiences.
Universal Benefit
Plain language is more easily searchable, and often results in a better SEO ranking. This is because the words used better reflects the words people enter into their search engines.
Stronger SEO Rankings
Consumers also perceive organizations with clear writing styles to have stronger credibility and greater transparency than their competitors.
Consumer Trust
Studies demonstrate that writing in plain language makes you appear smarter, because individuals understand more of what you’re saying.
Perceived Expertise
The Basics of Writing in Plain Language
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Active Voice makes it clear who is supposed to take action.
“It must be done” is passive, and does not tell your reader who must act. When we edit the phrase from passive to active voice, the phrase becomes “you must do it”, making this clear to the reader.
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We often lean on more “flowery” language in order to make our communication sound more sophisticated or “professional”. Oftentimes, using simpler terms can improve the clarity of your message.
The following are a few key examples:
Instead of “commence”, use the word “start”
Instead of “obtain”, use the word “get”
Instead of “assistance”, use the word “help”
Instead of “require”, use the word “need”
A more detailed list of simple word alternatives can be found in the Plain Language Campaign’s A-Z Alternatives List, found here.
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It’s important to remember that when we’re writing about a subject or industry in which we’re very familiar with, we’re writing through a sort of cognitive bias. We wrongfully assume that others have the same foundational knowledge we do, and fail to define technical terms and industry jargon, assuming that our readers will know what they mean.
Best practices are to define any technical terms and industry jargon used within your content.
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Best practice is to define acronyms the first time you use them within a piece of content. Once you’ve defined an acronym, you can freely use the acronym on its own throughout the rest of the content piece.
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The words you choose to use can be perceived as an early signal to your readers that a piece of content isn’t meant for them. This can happen when language is oversimplified or unnecessarily technical.
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Metaphors can be vague and confusing for many, because they rely on your reader interpreting your message beyond the literal words used.
Best practice when using a metaphor is to comprehensively explain how it relates directly to your message, and not assume that your ready understands the underlying meaning.
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Use short sentences. The Plain Language Campaign recommends an average sentence length of 15-20 words.
Similarly, aim for one idea or topic per paragraph, use bullet points to break up lists of information, and provide sub-headings to help your reader scan information.
Ready to Learn More?
Looking to dive deeper and refine your accessible communication skills?
Check out our hands-on Accessible & Inclusive Communications workshop.