The Importance of Writing

By Jesse Gettemy
 
When people write well they not only differentiate themselves from their peers, but they stand out to their future employers. Throughout college, students are required to write in a variety of different platforms. These assignments cover goals and purposes; and most of the time, students are able to write about personal experiences. This is just the beginning of what should blossom into a great résumé builder.
 
Not only is writing an important academic skill, but it is also an important skill that carries over into any career field, not just in pr. Nearly all professions require some type of writing on the job. In fact, recruiters for jobs look at writing before they even pass along a résumé. During a session at the PRSSA National Conference in Atlanta, “Writing Right: The Number One Skill Employers Want” presented by Ron Culp and Ryan McShane, some touchpoints were made on why quality writing is so important.
 
Specifically, writing for PR has many perks. It is interesting to know that when a pr professional knows how to write in various formats, it increases their chances of being offered a raise or a promotion in the workplace. That being said, when a professional doesn’t know how to write well in these formats, typos on résumés and cover letters don’t go anywhere but in the trash.
 
Some types of writing for PR are: releases, internal email, point-of-view papers, speeches, media outreach, campaign presentations, vendor requests and performance reviews.
 
In the session with Culp and McShane, they broke down a list of 10 writing tips for young professionals to follow, to ensure future success and an equal opportunity for being hired in future careers.
 
Ron and Ryan Writing Tips

1. Keep It Short and Simple (K.I.S.S.)
2. Trim the fat
3. Answer the 5 W’s and H
4. Design your draft
5. Call to action
6. Use real, everyday words
7. Mind your grammar. Use active verbs, plural nouns and ensure pronoun agreement
8. Know your audience. Who are you? To whom are you writing?
9. Find your focus
10. Proof! Proof! Proof!

 
Proofing your work in this industry is critical. It isn’t safe to just go over your writing once or twice to check for style and grammatical errors. It is something that we as pr professionals need to be constantly checking for at all times. If you aren’t good at editing and proofing, you can always ask a friend to help you, too. Don’t forget: writing for media needs to be technical and practical.
 
These two experienced role models left the audience with an improvement plan for writers. This is to not only help less experienced writers in the field, but to give a reminder to those who do know a lot about writing to always keep educating yourself and to never stop learning.
 
Improvement Plan

1. Read Business Journalism
2. Participate in student media
3. Remember professor feedback
4. Follow your favorite brand
5. Read! Read! Read!

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