Give Your Readers Clear Next Steps

Don’t leave your readers wondering, “What am I supposed to do now?” Use this technique instead.

Have you ever read a proposal, memo or email and thought, “What am I supposed to do now?”

Don’t assume that after they’ve read your document, your readers will know what if any actions you want them to take. Include clear actions steps. Some examples:

– Please respond to this email with your thoughts on creating a task force for this project.

– Send me a few specific times next week that work for you to have a follow-up chat.

– Please email Terry and ask her for an electronic copy of the report.

About the Author

Robbie Hyman is a professional communications and public affairs writer. He has 15 years’ experience writing for nonprofits, small business and multibillion-dollar international organizations and is available as a freelance writer for federal agencies.

Robbie has written thousands of pages of content, including white papers, speeches, published articles, reports, manuals, newsletters, video scripts, advertisements, technical document and other materials. He is also co-founder of MoneySavvyTeen.com, an online course that teaches smart money habits to teenagers.