Cut Through the Clutter manual and cheat sheet

Hands-on techniques for making all of your copy easier to read and understand

Is your copy easy to read?

According to mass communication guru Wilbur Schramm, that’s one of the two key questions people ask to determine whether to read your copy — or whether to toss it.

Fortunately, academics have tested and quantified many aspects of readable copy. (Stories with an average sentence length of 29 words, for instance, are likely to be understood by less than half of your audience members, according to a study by the American Press Institute.)

Hacks never bother to dig up this information. Real pros study the stats, use them to create quality standards and craft their copy so it measures up. Have you done this heavy mental lifting? Or are you just cranking out your copy without understanding how it affects your readers?

This manual includes the numbers on readable paragraphs, sentences and words. Use them to make your copy clearer — and to show your approvers why you can’t run their 47-word sentences.

With this manual, you’ll learn:

• A seven-step system for condensing your copy that will save you time and make sure nothing falls through the cracks
• How to measure the length of your piece. (Hint: It’s not in words, inches or pages)
• How Procter & Gamble, The Body Shop, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and other organizations make their copy tighter
• Three ways to reduce the length of your piece — and which is the most effective. (You’re likely using the worst approach now)
• How to edit your copy before you write
• Nine ways to condense your piece
• How to keep readers from skipping your paragraphs
• The right length — in words — for the lead paragraph
• How using the word-count function can make your copy more accessible
• Three ways to shorten your paragraphs
• How to keep readers from getting lost in your sentences
• Eight ways to make your sentences shorter
• A trick for making even the longest sentence easier to read and understand
• How to identify the passive voice — and eliminate these slow, bulky, bureaucratic sentences from your copy
• The one-minute sentence sharpener: How to search and destroy noun phrases
• Mark Twain’s priceless advice about dealing with adjectives
• A test for determining which modifiers to use and which to cut
• The length of a word that readers find easy to read
• How to get the “fog” out of your copy
• Plus 14 resources for cutting through the clutter
• And more ways to avoid “information pollution”

Note: If you have Ann's 14-page Cut Through the Clutter handbook, you have only a fraction of the techniques you'll find in this manual.

Reduce your learning curve

Ann’s learning tools are brisk and loaded with tips. In fewer than 77 minutes, you can be putting these techniques to work.

Plus, get Ann’s Cut Through the Clutter cheat sheet of formulas and checklists — all the action steps of the manual on one sheet of paper. Keep this checklist by your computer to use on every piece you write and edit. Our clients tell us that this job aide is one of the most valuable tools they receive for applying new skills to their daily writing.

What do these writers know that you don’t know?

With Ann’s Cut Through the Clutter manual, you’ll soon be making every piece you write easier to read and understand. That’s been the experience of these communicators who have practiced Ann’s techniques:

“I got a new client by applying one of Ann’s principles. (Cut Through the Clutter) was a breakthrough for me.”

 

— Marsha Strong,

92.7 KKBS Boss Radio

 

 

“The most concise, outstanding ‘short course’ on cleaning up copy.”

 

— Kevin Trenga,

manager, marketing communications,

The Raymond Corp.

 

 

“I’ve noticed that both my writing and editing have become cleaner and more concise. I've received unsolicited, favorable comments from numerous colleagues regarding pieces on which I've used the techniques. ”

— Rachel George-Leidenfrost,

internal communications associate,

M&T Bank

 

 

“Thank you for the information-packed Cut Through the Clutter. The nuggets you offer are pure gold!”

 

— Jill C. Garman Neiger,

communications specialist,

American Red Cross, Northern Ohio

 

 

“Useful tips to help you achieve the goal of ‘quit whining, start measuring.’”

 

— Kristi Mallory,

marketing communications specialist,

Research Triangle Institute (RTI) International

 

 

“Learning how to think like a reader instead of a writer has been extremely helpful. The last press release I wrote was 20 percent shorter, had a catchier headline and short, punchy paragraphs.”

 

— Jen Baldassari,

media and marketing coordinator,

National Center for Victims of Crime

 

 

“Very beneficial for a young practitioner as well as a seasoned veteran. Important to use as our world becomes ‘cluttered’ with more and more messages. You have to learn to stand out.”

 

— Alexandra Bowman,

media relations specialist,

XanGo, LLC

 

 

"I just posted these tips on my bulletin board and intend to refer to them for all my writing projects."

 

— Christine Holley,
director of market communications,
Interactive Intelligence Inc.

 

 

"Our payment processing company loves multi-syllable words stuffed into multi-phrase sentences. Now we have better tools, such as the funnel system, to work through the clutter. We're already writing crisper marketing messages. The best result is that our VP of Sales and Marketing is thinking about readability now, too! (We had a nice little talk after I edited a 26-word sentence down to 15 and told him why!) I'd say that no matter how experienced you are, or how good you think you are, you'll learn something [from Ann's Cut Through the Clutter material] you can use immediately."

 

— Janice Owen,
public relations manager,
Mercury Payment Systems

 

 

"Editing the newsletter did not seem so tedious and using the funnel system allowed me to easily capture certain mistakes which I believe I would have previously overlooked. The [Cut Through the Clutter] tips and information are to the point and helpful in everyday practice."

 

— Melanie Miller,
public relations specialist,

Gwinnett County

 

 

"I am deleting more words, phrases or entire sentences to reduce clutter and boost meaning. A Program Manager asked me to write a brochure for him last week. He asked me to include a great deal of information. I showed him the chart comparing average number of words per sentence with the percentage of comprehension. That helped persuade him to keep the text simple and to the point. Even experienced writers can improve the quality of their work."

 

— Sharon Foote,
public information specialist,
Mecklenburg County Water & Land Resources

 

 

"Communicating information to the public in their terms rather than industry jargon was very helpful. My writing is tighter and more direct. [Cut Through the Clutter] is invaluable to anyone whose job responsibilities require written communication."

 

— Linda McDonald,

president,

Transportation Marketing Strategies, LLC

 

 

"My copy is tighter. More succinct. The ideas are still there, but the filler is gone or trimmed considerably (and better off for it). The other night I was proofing my latest blog entry and I thought, 'What would Ann think about that second paragraph?'"

 

— David Shoffner,

public relations strategist,

Pavone

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