Do you know what separates the professional writer from the non-professional? Amateurs are more likely to write for the sake of writing. They spend their time creating tons of content (although most is negligible), it doesn’t really do anything to increase business or inspire their audience.

So what is the goal of great writing? Professional writers have one main goal in mind with their writing: to change their audience. Great writers try hard to help their audience see through different eyes, act differently, and change the way they interact with the world.

Anyone can throw a few words together to make a complete sentence (case in point: most of the blogging world), but if you want to have real power throughout your writing, you must learn to write for impact. It’s the difference between being merely educational and being influential. There are three simple steps to powerful writing: 1) writing for a particular audience, 2) using the right location, and 3) choosing and executing the right type of conversion.

Precise Audience

If you want to get in touch with your audience, it’s absolutely crucial you understand them. Get out of your own viewpoint, and write from their perspective. One of the first things I do with everything I write is identify my target audience. Consider things like age, gender, location, income level, purchasing habits, hobbies, talents, interests, etc.

Once I know whom I’m talking to, I custom tailor the message to resonate with them exclusively. For example, words such as revolutionary, cutting-edge, fresh, will more likely resonate with an 18-25 age group. The 60+ age group will almost certainly have a negative response to them; they have a preference for things that are proven, safe, and prudent.

Right Medium

By location I mean the medium used to communicate your message. This includes things like magazines, newspapers, journals, books, radio and TV ads, as well as blogs, websites, and other online means. Your audience, in large part, determines the venue you choose.

For instance, if I’m writing an article on monetary policy (my intended audience might be economists), the best venue is probably an academic journal rather than an online method. Few people can stand to read long blocks of important text on a computer screen without eye fatigue.

And I probably won’t have enough space to make my case in a magazines or newspaper. Alternatively, if my content is concise, uncomplicated, and intended for a broader audience, possibly a newspaper article makes sense.

The typical reader will skim over the words looking for things that catch their eye, especially when reading online. But if you were to publish in another medium – one more suitable to your readers expectations – they are far more likely to slow down and read. Choose the medium that best fits your topic and your audience.

Right Conversion

Conversion can come in three main forms: knowing, feeling, and doing. The know form is when your article is looking to inform the reader of something new. It can also be something they already know, but you are casting in a different light. The point is when they finish reading they know something. A feeling piece is just what it says – you’re trying to invoke a feeling or emotional response from the reader. And when you write for doing, you’re trying to get the reader to do something, to take some kind of action.

When it comes to conversion, what separates the amateur from the pro is focus. The amateur tries to hit all three in the same article. It’s too much. The professional covers just one area, knowing it will affect the other two naturally. Before writing a single word, the professional asks how the reader’s life will change by reading this piece. They know what they wish to see happen to the reader. And they know if the reader will feel, do, or know something in the end. By sticking to one focus, the professional knows if they write well, the others will simply fall into place.

Maximum impact only occurs when you seek to change your audience in some way. Identify your reader, and then choose the correct medium to reach them. Focus on one conversion style and then write well. If you do that, your reader will change in some way, and I believe change is the only writing worth reading.

What separates a beginner from the pros? Amateur writers write just to write. While this may create tons of negligible content, (or offer them private enjoyment), it does nothing to help them get noticed, increase business, or move their audience to take action.

So what is the goal of great writing? Professional writers have one main goal in mind with their writing: to change their audience. Great writers try hard to help their audience see through different eyes, act differently, and change the way they interact with the world.

Just about anyone who’s made it past the 4th grade can slap a few words together and a complete sentence. (Need proof? Look at most blogs out there.) If you really want to have power in your writing, you have to write for impact. This is what separates educational from influential. Powerful writing can be had in three easy steps: 1) writing for a specific audience, 2) using the right medium, and 3) choosing the correct conversion.

Targeted Audience

To get in touch with your reader, it’s critical that you understand them. You must get out of your way of seeing things and write from their point of view. Whenever I write, the first thing I do is define the specific audience I’m trying to reach. I look at things like age, income, gender, hobbies, interests, education level, and on and on.

Once I’ve nailed down the exact audience I’m trying to reach, and identified their characteristics, I craft a message specifically for them. Younger readers respond to words like revolutionary, cutting-edge, fresh, or innovative. Someone in the 60+ age category will be turned off immediately by such wording. They prefer safe, effective, and proven.

Right Medium

Right medium means the location of your message. There are many different places you can publish, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. You can use magazines, newspapers, books, journals, even radio and TV. There are also blogs, websites, ezines and other online mediums, as well. Which medium you use is determined largely by your audience.

As an example, if I’m targeting economists and writing an article on economic policy, most online methods would fail, whereas an academic journal would have much credibility. An article of that nature requires huge blocks of detailed text; something most people cannot read on a computer screen.

A newspaper or magazine would not generally work in this instance either. There’s simply not enough space. However, if I am covering a topic that is short and sweet, it makes perfect sense to use newspapers.

The typical reader will skim over the words looking for things that catch their eye, especially when reading online. But if you were to publish in another medium – one more suitable to your readers expectations – they are far more likely to slow down and read. Choose the medium that best fits your topic and your audience.

Appropriate Conversion

Conversion can come in three main forms: knowing, feeling, and doing. The know form is when your article is looking to inform the reader of something new. It can also be something they already know, but you are casting in a different light. The point is when they finish reading they know something. A feeling piece is just what it says – you’re trying to invoke a feeling or emotional response from the reader. And when you write for doing, you’re trying to get the reader to do something, to take some kind of action.

Amateurs look at this and try to do all three (When they even recognize it at all.) Professionals focus on only one, because doing so affects the others. How do you want the readers life to change because they read your message? What do you want to see occur in them? Do you primarily want them to know, feel, or do something? Pick one – yes, just one – and carry it out well, and the others will take care of themselves.

Maximum impact only occurs when you seek to change your audience in some way. Identify your reader, and then choose the correct medium to reach them. Focus on one conversion style and then write well. If you do that, your reader will change in some way, and I believe change is the only writing worth reading.