Focus on the subject - come in CLOSE

In the last post, I talked about determining what you were taking a picture of (or writing a communication piece about).

Now for the next step. Before you hit the shutter button on the camera or the SEND button on your email...come in closer.

Photos; When taking a picture of your loved one, in this case, my husband - David - in front of the White House, focus on the person rather than the building.

In most cases when we are on vacation taking pictures of loved ones in front of famous sites, we step back and take a tiny picture of the person waving in front of the large object. The end result - a photo that isn't really focused on anything CLEARLY.

So come in close - position the person in the left or right corner of the picture - focus on the person with the famous site in the back and slightly blurred. Hey - it's a famous building; we all know what it is right? So why not focus on the person - crisp, clear and close.

In communications: Same story holds true. You've selected the subject you want to communicate. Say you are writing to your customers/prospects about a new product you have to offer. Don't muddle the message with features or extra information that is unrelated to the topic.

Come in closer: look at the message from the reader's point of view. What problem will this new product solve? How will it make the person's life better? What is the BENEFIT to the customer?

Focus clearly on the benefit and your communication will be crisp, clear and close to the heart of the reader!