Yesterday, I talked about the importance of making it easier for folks to access your content. Today, I want to elaborate on this subject, and share a few ways to make the content they read more readable.

But not just readable, effective. Meaning readers (and listeners) not only understand your message, they relate to it, and to you.

This isn’t difficult. Just different from what most people do. And that’s what makes it effective.

• Come to them, don’t make them come to you. Unless you have a good reason to do otherwise, send your email or article to them, so they can read it immediately, instead of asking them to click and come to your website to do that.
• Don’t send “a newsletter,” send an email. It’s more personal and conversational, and more inviting to read.
• Keep it simple: one subject, one “lesson,” one offer, one call to action.
• Keep it short. They’ll give you a minute or two. If you have more to say, save it for next time (as I’m doing here).
• Make it LOOK easy to read. Short paragraphs and sentences, bullet points, CAPS and bold and other visual elements.
• Help them or entertain them. Tell them something they can use, and/or tell them something interesting.
• Facts tell, stories sell. More stories make your content more readable, relatable, and persuasive.
• Lighten up. Use warnings and cautionary tales sparingly. You want to inspire readers and give them hope for a better future, not crush them with despair.
• Don’t tell them everything. Tell them enough to frame the problem and possible solutions. Make them come to you to find out more.
• Talk to your readers, not at them. Ask them questions to get them thinking or to make your point, and ask them to reply and/or ask you questions.

I see a lot of lawyers’ content that does a great job of “posturing,” that is, showing readers they know what they’re doing and they are very busy doing it. We all need to do that to some extent.

But there’s something to be said for showing readers that besides being “hard to get,” we are also “good to know”.

How to use email to build your law practice