Short & Sweet.

During my internship with Momentum Forum Events, the founder Barbara McNaught has taught me a number of valuable lessons when it comes to PR and writing. I have learnt that today you have an average of six seconds to gain someone’s attention and encourage them to read further. When you think about that in the scope of PR writing that is not much at all!

Barbara once mentioned this quote, which I think, is a great way to look at any sort of writing:

“I have only made this letter longer because I have not had the time to make it shorter."

-Blaise Pascal

It takes time to make sure something is succinct and to the point. I think we’ve all been guilty of blurting out everything we are trying to explain and have ended up writing useless information. However, there is definitely no place for that in PR.

One aspect of my internship where this has become apparent is in writing emails to potential sponsors and donors. Barbara has taught me to firstly think of an interesting title that will grab attention and get the recipient to open the email. The next step is to write what needs to be said in the least amount of words possible. Admittedly my first attempt ended up a bit longer than needed. However, after looking at it again and editing all the unnecessary information out, I learned that I could still say everything I needed to without writing an essay. Thinking about it from the recipient’s point of view, I would much prefer to receive a short email than a long one.

The six-second rule is something I will definitely take with me when writing in any form in the future. Not only does it keep your writing succinct but also keeps it interesting. 

For those who want to read more about the rule, here is a link to an article that explains it in relation to resume writing.

Kiara Bonasera

15523055