Important Writing and Editing Skills That Employers Value

When it comes to developing solid communication skills, it is essential that your writing skills are up to scratch. In fact, one of the qualities most sought after by employers is a candidate's communication skills. This means that, regardless of the industry to which you belong, you must have strong writing skills. Although not all positions will require you to write extensively, it is still vital to polish your writing skills as they are necessary not only in the process leading up to landing a job offer, but also more generally in daily life.

As Dr. Rizvi, a writing expert from one of the best writing services in Europe, where you can buy an IB extended essay or hire him to write you a letter, told us: "While it’s alright to hire a specialist to revise your baccalaureate essay, for instance, once an employee, you still need to have a strong base of writing and editing skills to fall back upon. Remember, being a thoughtful and efficient communicator gives you an edge over other applicants in the eyes of an employer."

First, let's define what we mean by “writing and editing skills”.

What exactly is writing and editing?

Written communication is not as simple as jotting down the thoughts in your head as they occur to you. You are choosing words to explain a specific matter or your perspective on a subject, just as you do verbally every day. However, without the recipient present to interpret your expressions or tone of voice, there is always room for misinterpretation if you do not pay close attention to the way in which you are conveying information.

Perhaps you have written for more ludic purposes before, such as composing creative short stories or keeping a diary. Writing in a professional context is entirely different.

Even professional writers will um and ah over the most suitable way to summarise a point. Of course, experienced editors were not always masters of words; writing is a skill that progresses with time and practice. The same goes for editing: slowly but surely you can train your eyes to spot little inconsistencies or phrases that could be expressed in a more clear, concise manner.

You would be surprised how often people repeat themselves unnecessarily in casual conversation or spout empty phrases with no significance; in professional writing, this should not happen. Each phrase you type should be meaningful and provide the reader with new information.

Why should you work on your writing skills?

It has already been made clear that solid communicative skills are important for presenting yourself as a promising candidate. Yet once you have dazzled your employer with your CV or cover letter, and aced the interview with your elegant discourse, you cannot throw those wonderful communication skills out the window!

Firstly, you will need to be able to express yourself politely and precisely during daily correspondence via emails with your colleagues.

Secondly, but equally importantly, you might need to write professional, persuasive emails of presentation to potential clients or companies with which your own business could collaborate. You would have to explain in a condensed, comprehensible manner what it is that your company does and what they wish to achieve by working with the client in question.

In addition, resumes are considered a first impression when you sit in an interview. The interviewer judges your professional skills and your attitude towards work from your CV. Therefore, it is essential for you to present one that can impress others and increase your chances of landing the job. The resume builder: https://designstudio.smallseotools.com/resume-builder provides you a chance to get a resume that can impress your interviewers without making any efforts. You can get your hands on a vast collection of templates offered on this site to make a resume instantaneously.

What are the main writing and editing skills you need to focus on?

Getting a grip on grammar

Although software like Grammarly can be convenient, automated text-checkers cannot correct your writing style so you should not rely on them! It is true that such software can correct basic punctuation or spelling mistakes, but if your sentence structures are clunky or illogical, you may fail to impress your employer.

Do not be afraid of colons and semicolons, they can help you to blend phrases together, rendering your writing less choppy. In terms of your job application, the first hurdle is basic communication, so get practicing your clauses and polishing that grammar!

The trick is to remain coherent. For example, if you begin writing in American English, you have to commit! It is unprofessional to start alternating between British and American spelling midway through your text. Or, if you use the verb “tend”, you do not need to use the adverb “normally” as it is implied in the meaning of the verb and is rendered redundant.

Of course, it is easy for the eye to miss such minor mistakes, so when editing, try proofreading your texts from the last to first sentence. You are less likely to go on autopilot and skip over errors when reading a text in an order that does not flow naturally.

Working on your research skills

At some point in your career, you are likely to be asked to carry out some form of research regarding a subject or product. Although this may sound as simple as a few clicks on a search engine, simply copying and pasting information from Google to form a disorderly summary is not sufficient.

Before gathering information, you must first verify whether the sources you are consulting are trustworthy. Not everything you find on Google is accurate so be sure to fact-check against reliable websites.

Next, here are some key points to focus on to develop your research skills before committing to writing a proper analysis:

Use keywords in search engines to pinpoint the exact information you need
Analyse data and interpret the findings insightfully (where necessary)
Write a summary of your research, piecing together only salient information
Convince the reader with the tone and register of your writing

It is usually best to make rough notes on all the material you find bit by bit through your Google searches or journal readings and then reorder your findings, excluding repetitions or tangential information.

Word processing software

It is 2020 – the world has gone digital. Naturally, you need to be up to date with the most commonly-used word processing software, in addition to website templates, blogging platforms, collaboration apps, and file-sharing sites. You probably already got to grips with the basics of Word or Pages during school or university whilst churning out weekly essays. However, with a few Youtube tutorials, you can discover all the nifty shortcuts and extra features you never knew existed. Then you can move onto learning more about the aforementioned up-and-coming platforms in order to stay connected and au courant whilst the world bounds forward.

In brief, writing skills are a basic requirement in the modern digital world. Improving your communicative competencies allows you to stand out and get your job applications noticed among hundreds of other potential candidates. Communication skills are therefore not only vital in the office when discussing with colleagues or negotiating with clients, but also to land you that spot in the company in the first place. Just as you work on your recruitment profiles and CV-making skills, polish up your writing and editing skills as well.

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