Structure your copy in this order to engage readers

Hello fellow human writer,

We all rely on mental shortcuts to make sense of the information being thrown at us all day long. How we perceive things and how we buy into ideas can be influenced by the order in which this info is presented.

Last week I gave some examples to illustrate the importance of not just what we say as writers, but how we say it. Read that post here.👇️ 

This week I’m going to show you that when we say stuff matters too. (Who knew?)

I want us to write something together in an order that engages readers from beginning to end — all without acting like an unscrupulous online marketing prick bro.

Yay, this is gonna be fun, fun, fun.

1. Prime the reader by starting with values

Yes, prime the reader. But not in a creepy way. 

Priming is just the process of presenting your initial info in such a way that it sets up how all the info that follows it is interpreted. 

Leading with common values is the most powerful option when it comes to effective priming (particularly with big topics like social, economic or political issues).

By including big value statements in your headline and opener, you’re priming your reader to tap into their value system and establishing a common ground. (There’s overlap here with this article, where I talk about leading with finding common ground.) 

Let’s write a piece — yes, you and me champ! — focused on education. We want to draw attention to the lack of good funding in certain areas, which is affecting educational and economic outcomes.

Instead of opening with boring stark figures and budget deficits, we’re going to start with a something like this:

Leading with these shared values means that any info that follows is now filtered through the lens of the common aspirations we all have for the next generation. This opens up people’s thinking so they don’t shut down our ideas before we even get to them.

2. Highlight the wider problem

Whether we like it or not, it’s been found that people tend to assign social and economic outcomes to the choices made by individuals, rather than looking to the wider issues. This disengages people, shutting their thinking down because they don’t believe they can be part of the solution.

This means you need to explain the systemic root cause of an issue before delving into its impact.

That’s not to say you can’t talk about how individuals are affected. But presenting the wider context first helps readers to open up their thinking at the point when you need them to be the most open and engaged.

With our education example we could say something like:

This approach helps readers to understand the wider implications of the problem and the need for comprehensive solutions.

3. State the big idea / solution

Those details that support our idea, cause or argument? We need to hold onto them for a bit longer.

We must be able to relate our big idea without overwhelming readers. Presenting our overarching idea or solution before getting into any specifics will help readers stay tuned in. 

Let’s add this to our education example. We might say:

This approach means we dazzle our readers with our big idea and potential solution before giving any details they could potentially get bogged down in before they’ve understood the issue.

4. Add details, stories, stats

Any details that back up our big idea / solution can now be added. This stage should guide people through a clear and compelling narrative.

Stats work well when brought in at this point. But I like stories best.

For our piece, let’s go with:

By weaving in a personal story and backing it with compelling data, we’ve painted a vivid picture for our reader.

Bringing these details in at this point means that our big idea becomes personal, powerful and persuasive.

5. End with a punch

We can leverage the recency effect (where people are impacted by what they read last) by concluding with a powerful statement and call to action. 

This is the last thing people will read before they decide whether to respond or not, so we need to make it memorable. Let’s go with:

This comes back full-circle to our big values and directly invites the reader to be part of the solution. 

Bringing it all together

So, we started with values, followed up with the wider context, stated our overarching idea, added compelling details and, finally, ended powerfully.

Chuck in a few transitional words and here’s our finished copy.👇️ 

There. How do you think we did?