Nicky brings her drive and force to the fore in Functional wellness coach programmes. Specializing in recovery support for specific conditions of ME (CFS), Fibromyalgia & long COVID. Her supporting work covers bereaved clients trying to find freedom to move on.
Say hello to creating a quirky spin of persuasive business writing. Let your story shimmy into the hands of your audience. Whether you’re pitching a groundbreaking idea, selling a product that’ll change our lives or telling the world you’re here, this is your go-to guide. Create the ground work to shout that message out. We all have a business story to tell. It’s time the world heard it.
Writing a business book where to start from scratch
Business writing is essential for your brand. Every one of us can write a story in some shape or form. Creating a business story is one such way to sell yourself and your creation. Everyone loves a background to any business. The idea formation. The serendipity of opportunities presented to us, people we met, connections, joint partnerships, dreams and aspirations when we were young. Many form ideas for a business through a passion or a strong craving to make things better or financially driven. Start with these simple steps.
Story writing tips for beginners
Step 1
Craft a list of subjects to write in depth about. These will form your chapters. Decide how many are needed to fully tell your story? If a help guide on your business subject how many subjects will you write about?
Step 2
Add key points that must be considered on the chapter subject. These can be fleshed out later. Chat GPT is useful but using some of the content and not exactly as supplied is essential. Individualise you’re writing and check facts. Do not be picked up for plagiarism of others content. A lot of people write help guides covering tips on a range of subjects, but if the content is standard readers can become bored and your SEO affected.
Step 3
Think what your audience would love to know about you and your business. Look at your introduction is this going to be about how the company came about? Problems encountered on the way? Things to be aware of when setting up a similar business? Admirers love to know behind the door what really goes on. Giving them encouragement that ideas can come into fruition with hard work and grit. It's not always luck.
Let’s explore more icing on the subject
Step 4
Ask employees to contribute on subjects or seek some interesting facts about your business. This could be how long it takes to produce a product, quirky ingredients used, unusual technology. Timing from start of production to selling. However small and simple the product a skill is required. Charts and photos are great but do increase printing cost, with layout more complicated. We want our business writing to compel the reader to want to know more. To know they need your book at all cost. Ultimately they need you and your companies skillset.
Step 5
Design an eye-catching cover. Book designers can be found worldwide on many freelance websites. They allow you to state the job required. Interested parties can accept the job offer, presenting their own services to you to decide what's the perfect match and price. Allowing a winning situation. Quick and efficient. When designing you do need to know how many pages there will be, as the spine of the book is calculated and designed as a wraparound effect to include front cover, spine and back cover. Write the book and edit before the next step of designing the cover. Business writing does not have to be boring but inspiring copy that encourages learning. Whatever your story is.
Is creative writing good for the brain?
Allowing us to get our thoughts down on paper or laptop really enhances our planning for the business too. Seeing a linear line of history and our accomplishments, plus problems we encountered whether successful or not in resolving, can let us plan for the next stage forward. If our book is about education then we may observe other areas of teaching we could encompass in our coaching or services we provide. Planning the book opens the doors of the mind to reevaluate areas, we may well have overlooked or forgotten. Things that did not work out so well can be avoided. Reminding us our future plans may need to be adjusted.
The mind is freed from the endless information we have circulating within it. With a bonus of enhancing our day-to-day memory. Off-loading these thoughts onto paper or online is very cathartic.
Tips for writing a good story
Create a good hook title to catch the readers interest – single word, phrase or question. Think what are the questions your client asks and wants to know or understand.
Create an eye-catching cover – colourful, simplistic, stunning photography or a fun drawing. Most fiction novels are very bland designs. Business can be way more creative.
Plan an appendix the reader can go to for the precise subject they wish to read. Not all of your book may be of interest.
Choose informative or intriguing chapter titles to make the journey of your book an exciting one. Avoid boring and common headings when business writing. Some subjects can be very stodgy to read and need a different approach to allow the amateur reader to enjoy. Accountancy is one that can be a very dry subject. Creating a simple guide for the self-employed may need to be in simple language but also written in a way numbers and the stressful subject fun to learn and absorb. One fab range of guide books on any subject was all the rage a few years ago. Allowing techy, difficult concepts to become simple to follow and understand.
Plan your start, middle and end. The journey must flow and not be too random. If you jump from one subject to another unrelated this is not the correct way forward.
Use sub headings and break text up into bite size chunks. Try to leave some white space. The eye can take in key titles or phrases better this way making it much easier to read, than novels that are heavily word dense. We want to pique interest for more.
Plan how many pages it will have. An average novel is generally 100,000 words, a longer read 130,000. Or a brief quick read maybe 55,000. But with business writing this may well be less words. 50 pages is average, but 400 a good read for a paperback. Remember if selling you need to make the purchaser feel they have had value for money. Don’t scrimp and think a brief pamphlet is a money machine. Reviews can be very derogatory and impact respect of your business.
The four types of business writing
Decide if your business writing book will be a help guide. This could be more in depth for employees, or cover a subject that is very key at the moment in society and that you or your company can help. An autobiography of your climb to success, you are the story teller of your life, career and the key player or a sales promotion manual maybe to draw in the public. Maybe a combination of these. Work out what and how you will use the book once developed.
Many develop a book to help show their expertise off. Fantastic when you are presenting to sell including network events. They can be handed out as a promotion or to sign up for a webinar with a free copy possibly. Sales conferences are excellent for public or business attendees to remember you and your company.
Persuasive business writing in a nutshell
Keep the story specific and plan your goal from the start where the audience will be transported to. Compared to a novel business books are slightly different as the end goal can be to directly sell but in a discreet manner. This maybe to remember the brand you created and its history to modern day or to nudge the reader to utilise your company in the future. If a staff manual attention to details is important, with the option to update key areas easily for reprints must be considered. Rather than a complete rewrite.
Make your story intriguing and fun to read and it will be shared and recommended. Avoid repetition and what has gone before. In some cases, write from the current timeline and go back to the beginning. Include future plans ambition is always attractive. Tips and problem solving always sells.
Sell yourself with your own words and storyline. We all have a life history with individual experiences to bring to the table for others to learn from.
Go be that storyteller.
Read more from Nicky Abell-Francis
Nicky Abell-Francis, Functional Wellness Coach & Bodyworker
Nicky brings her drive and force to the fore in Functional wellness coach programmes. Specializing in recovery support for specific conditions of ME (CFS), Fibromyalgia & long COVID. Her supporting work covers bereaved clients trying to find freedom to move on. Helping to ignite the spark to progress forward once again. Having lost her own husband suddenly, their daughter within months crashed into developing ME(CFS). Nicky went on to train with the Chrysalis Effect programme. Seeing how burnt out & highly stressed clients can tip into crash phase. Developing chronic fatigue and numerous widespread health problems. Over the past ten years Nicky set up her multi therapy clinic.
