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Writing with clarity means making your content easy to read and understand. If your audience can’t grasp what you’re trying to say, what’s the point?
Hi, I’m Alana, your friendly neighborhood blog editor. I spent most of my early marketing career in the public health field. We focused on one main writing principle: using plain language.
For years, I turned complex health information into digestible content. I translated complicated vaccination schedules and lengthy health insurance policies into simple guidance for consumers.
I still use plain language principles to write clear content. But I’ve also picked up some new tricks along the way. Here are all of the strategies I use to communicate clearly and create value as a marketer.
Table of Contents
Why Writing With Clarity Matters
Before we get into the how, let’s start with the why.
Why does this matter for marketers?
My experience in health marketing taught me that clear content respects your reader’s mental energy. It matters because it influences their capacity to focus, think clearly, and stay motivated to take action.
Without clear writing, even the most brilliant messages fall flat. Science shows that factors as simple as sentence structure impact comprehension and recall as we read.
That’s why clarity is critical. If you don't communicate effectively, your audience won’t know (or remember) what you want them to do.
Here’s how you can put this thinking into practice.
How to Improve Clarity in Writing: The Basics for Marketers
I’ve included six fundamental tips below to help you improve clarity in your marketing content.
But I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the ultimate clear writing hack: starting from an outline or template. Clarity starts with structure, and that’s exactly what templates (like the ones below) provide.
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Save them for later when you’re ready to start writing. In the meantime, let’s get into the basics of writing clear content.
1. Know who you’re talking to and what you want to say.
The cardinal rule of marketing is this: Know your audience.
It’s easier to communicate clearly when you understand what they need, what they want to know, and how to reach them.
Let your audience guide your writing process. Before you put pen to paper (rather, fingers to keyboard), answer these questions:
- Who is reading this? In my case, this article is targeted toward marketing professionals who specialize in content development.
- What is my main message? Writing with clarity matters in marketing, and there are steps you can take to simplify your marketing content.
- What’s the specific outcome I want to achieve? I want to give my readers actionable, experience-based strategies for writing clear content.
- How will I get them there? I’ll introduce why writing with clarity is important, start with some basic tips, provide expert-level strategies from my marketing colleagues, and wrap up with key takeaways for marketers.
The clearest content is content with intention. Writing with clarity forces you to think about what you’re writing — and who you’re writing it for — before you start spilling words onto the page.
2. Define unfamiliar words (and don’t assume knowledge).
Another simple technique for making your marketing content clear is to explain your terms. Depending on the context, even familiar words and phrases can confuse readers.
At the beginning of this article, I defined writing with clarity. Sure, it may seem straightforward to me. But all it took was twelve extra words to make sure we’re aligned as you continue reading.
Explain key terms early on, so your message is easier to follow.
3. Use a consistent style and voice.
Sometimes, it’s good to be predictable. That’s a big reason why people come back to your brand — they know what to expect.
Take Duolingo as an example. Chances are you’ve noticed Duo the owl on just about every platform where Duolingo does business. He’s featured in all of their marketing content, and he has a very distinct voice and tone.
Take a page out of Duolingo’s book. Give consumers the same experience no matter where they find you. This will help you establish a clear and recognizable brand identity.
4. Use short words, sentences, and paragraphs.
Remember when science told us we have a shorter attention span than a goldfish?
That was about ten years ago, and it still holds true.
The reality is that most of your audience isn’t reading every word you write. Instead, people tend to skip entire words, sentences, and even sections.
One thing that I try to do in my writing is make my content scannable. This includes:
- Simplifying my word choice (e.g., try use instead of utilize)
- Targeting 10-15 words per sentence.
- Focusing each sentence on one main idea.
- Using single-sentence paragraphs to create natural pause points.
- Limiting paragraphs to two to three sentences max.
Reread this section to see what I mean.
5. Emphasize your biggest takeaways.
As readers, we love to skim.
So make sure you highlight your most important points so they don’t get buried.
You can use bold to bring attention to crucial concepts or important statistics.
Bullets are also a great way to:
- Summarize your main ideas.
- Break down specific steps or recommendations.
- Improve overall readability.
Clear writing makes it easy for people to pick up what you’re putting down (understand what you’re trying to say).
Here’s an example of emphasis in action from another blog post I wrote:
6. Take advantage of free writing tools.
There are tons of writing tools on the market to help you write with clarity. You can even ask your AI BFF to help your content read more clearly. (Talking to you, Claudie.)
However, I have to say, these two are my favorites right now: Hemingway Editor and Grammarly.
Hemingway Editor is so good. You can copy and paste your content directly into the tool. It highlights lengthy, complex sentences and common errors. Hemingway also flags unnecessary jargon and weak phrases in your writing.
The web-based version is free. You also have the option to download the desktop app for a one-time fee of $19.99 or upgrade to Editor Plus for more features.
Grammarly is also a fabulous proofreading tool. In fact, I’m actively using the Grammarly browser extension as I write this article. It provides content suggestions, word choice improvements, and grammar checks in real time.
Grammarly has both a free version and a paid version with advanced features.
OK — now that we’ve covered the basics, it’s time to switch to expert mode.
3 Expert Methods for Writing Clear Marketing Content
Expert mode, activated.
I reached out to three seasoned content strategists (and dear, dear colleagues) for even more clear writing techniques. Here’s how they approach writing with clarity.
1. Follow through on your argument and deliver on your promises.
Marja Vitti, marketing manager at HubSpot, says: “After I have my content written, I read it through and try to follow the flow of my logic. Here's an example of some questions I ask myself:
- Does my content deliver what I promised in my introduction? (If not, that's a red flag.)
- Does the flow of my argument make sense? (This is crucial.)
- Does each paragraph make a specific point? (If not, rework and remove anything extraneous that doesn't serve the argument.)”
I love this framework.
In the intro of this post, I promised to share “strategies I use to communicate clearly and create value as a marketer.”
I also outlined the flow of my logic earlier in this post: “I’ll introduce why writing with clarity is important, start with some basic tips, provide expert-level strategies from my marketing colleagues, and wrap up with key takeaways for marketers.”
I hope you’ll agree that I delivered.
2. Spend time building context before getting into the weeds.
Amanda Sellers, manager of EN blog strategy at HubSpot, says: “Use a framework so your audience imprints on the right things.”
She continues, “A what > why > how structure can help build context before you get into the weeds of the topic. Spending time defining the problem will give your audience the words to get additional context later, regardless of whether they understood the ‘how.’”
This is the exact structure I used here:
- I started with the what: “Writing with clarity means making your content easy to read and understand.”
- I emphasized the why: “Clear content respects your reader’s mental energy. It matters because it influences their capacity to focus, think clearly, and stay motivated to take action.”
- Then, I outlined the how: “How to Improve Clarity in Writing: The Basics for Marketers” and “3 Expert Methods for Writing Clear Marketing Content”
Works like a charm, I’d say.
3. Ask yourself: Does this actually sound good when I read it out loud?
Curt del Principe, senior marketing manager at HubSpot, says: “Read your work out loud. If you can‘t get through it without stumbling, it’s probably not clear enough.”
Those are wise words if I’ve ever heard them. Plus, it’s the perfect piece of advice to wrap up this tip roundup.
This article was brought to you by ten read-alouds and countless edits for flow. Talking through your piece and making refinements are the final bosses of clarity.
The Clearest Voice Wins
Clear writing isn‘t just good practice — it’s a competitive advantage.
In today’s content-saturated world, brands that communicate clearly win. They retain more customers, build stronger relationships, and drive better results.
Writing with clarity takes practice. Even after years of professional writing, I still catch myself falling into jargon traps or building overly complex sentences.
The difference? Now I have systems in place to catch (and fix) these issues before they reach my audience.
Editor's note: This post was originally published in November 2015 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.
6 Free Blog Post Templates
Save time creating blog posts with these free templates.
- "How-to" Post
- "What is" Post
- Listicle Post
- And More!
Download Free
All fields are required.