Dear Uncle Matthew,
The company I work for is planning to launch a new website targeted at people in the US. Although I consider myself a reasonably accomplished web writer, my experience of writing for audiences outside the UK is limited.
I’m certain I could already do a good job of selling our products to people on the other side of the Atlantic. However, I want my copy to really hit the mark.
Short of commissioning a writer in the US and then claiming the credit myself, how can I find out what my audience wants to hear? And how can I crush my Britishness (temporarily) to avoid over-anglicising my copy?
Thanks,
Reluctant Yank
Dear Reluctant,
The British and Americans are, as the saying goes, ‘two people divided by a common language.’ Churchill tells a story about the dangers this can cause. During the war the British Chiefs of Staff wanted to ‘table’ a plan in discussions with their American counterparts. They wanted to propose it. But to Americans, ‘tabling’ something means to take it off the table and cease discussions about it.
So how do you avoid this problem when it comes to writing for an American audience?
There are a couple of obvious things to do:
- Use the US English spell checker and grammar checker in Word.
- Avoid obviously British turns of phrase: ‘sticky wicket’ and ‘spot of bother’ etc.
- Avoid Americanisms unless you completely, utterly understand them and all their nuances. There’s nothing more telling than an ignorant metaphor.
- Generally, when writing for foreigners (and in this context that includes Americans) I prefer to use shorter sentences and shorter words. This is good practice anyway because it improves readability.
- Find an American friend, editors, fellow freelancer who can read through your work and warn you of any howlers. This isn’t the same as proofreading. Think of it as an extra step.
In a more general sense, it pays to:
- Read other American writing in your field. Try to think critically about how it is written as you read it.
- Dissect carefully a piece of writing that is very similar to what you want to write. How is it different from you would have written? (I did this when I used to write for Wired.)
- Think about tone of voice. I have heard that Americans like to be sold to whereas English people prefer a softer approach. I don’t know if that is true but you don’t want to be wearing jeans and a tee shirt if your competitors are all in business suits.
I’m not sure if you need to hire an American writer or editor specifically. And don’t forget that, used properly, Englishness can be valuable differentiator. Think of the Duchess of York selling Cranberry Juice. Or perhaps not.
Hit ‘em for six,
Matthew
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
It really is tough. I’m English, was raised here, and so learnt British English, but my entire professional life has been spent with Americans. I never write for the UK market. Ten years on, I’m pretty convincing, but I still hit into trouble every now and then!
The best piece of advice above is to get an American to read your work – it doesn’t need to be a professional even. You’d be surprised how many words and everyday turns of phrase are associated with British English, even if they’re known of in the US. Even right down to basic things.. they don’t say “half seven” (meaning 7.30) in the US, for example.. but how would you know that unless you’d gotten it wrong once?
Further, if you think something might be an idiom, Google it as a phrase (with google.com) and see if you’re getting primarily UK sites coming back. If so, bin it. (Yes, “bin it” is not American. Google it, and you’ll find a handful of British and Australian Web sites coming back.. compare against “trash it”, “nix it”, or “ditch it”)
Get yourself a good usage guide to American English. I especially like the Merriam-Webster’s Concise Dictionary of English Usage. It is American in focus, but does a good job of distinguishing mostly-British usages from mostly-American ones. It is descriptivist, meaning that it describes actual usage, based on empirical evidence, rather than prescribing usage based on editorial preference and prejudice. And it’s frequently entertaining; since the editors can’t sneer at usages, they sneer at other usage writers instead
Easier than all the above is to (simply) make sure every campaign you write for the USA speaks through some kind of English stereotype (the English Butler, the tweed-wearing English Aristocrat, the English Soccer Hooligan, etc).
Problem solved! No need to send a cheque.
For the Americans reading this post wondering “how should I write like a Briton”, then I suggest they take a look at “The English Style Guide”. A truly riveting read: ec.europa.eu/translation/writing/style_guides/…/style_guide_en.pdf