I thought the rules of business content meant putting a lid on my personality. Don’t you need to be formal to be taken seriously by other grown-ups within the world of work? Allow me to caveat this by saying formality has its place. I’m a lover of context, conversational writing is not a B2B panacea. This article isn’t like all the other bullshit writing advice online which commands you to follow absolutist nonsense but rather a cheeky push to allow you to have a little fun (if, when and where applicable).
Here’s what we’re covering:
Attracting your people.
Your people probably aren’t my people. Even if they were, for example, freelancers and SME types looking for a digital content strategist/writer, they still might not hire me. And that’s because I’m a bit niche. My conversational, irreverent and direct tone attracts folks who want that——yes, but it also attracts those who don’t want that for their content but who share a similar personality.
Potential clients like to feel confident they’ve hired the right person. If they click with you, they’re more likely to use you on the regular. That happens when you share personality traits and it’s not a stretch to assume you’ll also share some business sensibilities.
Your task is to figure out what professional means to you and how it translates to your content. This is part and parcel of attracting the people you really want to work with. That’s why I make my tone unavoidable and publish my approach across my website.
Being you can be risky.
It’s easy for freelancers to be themselves because they are a one-man band. Everything is them because they almost always do everything. I can implant my personality into my business because I am my business. But for larger organisations with stakeholders, running a business isn’t straightforward.
For example, I can easily deal with the fallout of referencing Julian Clary’s ‘fisting Norman Lamont‘ joke. No one much cares but a bigger company might have a colossal social media backlash. People still get offended and one or two might tell me how offended they are but it’s no big deal. Yes, I might lose a prospect but it’s better to find out about my sense of humour before we’re chained to a contract.
When to keep things formal.
There are no hard and fast rules (despite what LinkedIn influencers might tell you). And sometimes it’s fun to give your audience something they don’t expect, as long as you appreciate things might not go your way. As a freelancing content writer, I get to bend the rules. My business content is smart casual. It often veers into leisurewear and sometimes it ends up being stained pyjamas.
As a freelancer, you might write your business content using your personality. However, your market might dictate how you style your content. Perhaps your clients require formal dispassionate writing. In this case, you won’t be able to monkey around with slang or swearing. For example, a few fucks and lols might liven up technical writing but not only is that inappropriate, it isn’t making the message any clearer.
And that’s ultimately what you’re doing with content. You’re relaying a message that will be understood. The last thing you want is for your style to distract from that message.
Writing for your business.
Finding your natural style will attract people. That’s a given. Clients will be drawn to you because of how you present your business. They’ll also be turned off by you for the same reason. None of that matters when you’re competent. Once upon a time a perfect stranger, from internet land, bought my eBook. He said it was obvious I knew what I was doing but he didn’t care for my “brand personality”. He hoped one day I’d change it. That’s a good example of someone not being your audience.
Listen, if you’re quiet and unassuming, be that for your business content, if you’re brash and bombastic, be that for your business content——and if you’re none of those things, just be whatever the hell it is that you are. And if you need to decide on that stuff via a committee, I’ll pray for you, that shit must be terrible.
Article updated, 16th June 2024.
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