When working on a project either as a copywriter and editor, I address the needs of two groups.

First, there is the client who is paying me to do the job.

The second one is the audience the client wants to reach, in other words: “the reader.”

On every product, I provide my best advice to every client. What I also do is advocate on behalf of the reader—the prospect or the customer that my client wants to reach—to give voice to someone who might otherwise not be heard at that important stage.

The reader won’t tell you that they don’t understand your message, or that it’s too complicated to follow. If your message doesn’t connect with people, the reader might simply not buy your products or services.

That’s why it’s important to be succinct and to avoid wordiness in your copy.

You have to engage your reader and keep their attention—and in most cases, you have far less time than you think you do to achieve that goal.

It’s not just that it’s convenient to use fewer words. Lengthy descriptions and jargony expressions also tend to imply that something is a task. Or that it’s too much work. Most people are busy enough already. They don’t want more tasks on their plate.

Concise, punchy text helps avoid that risk.