I remember when I was an English student at San Jose State University. My professors would tell me, semester after semester, that lots of career choices would be available to choose from because companies would be looking for different styles of writing. Tech, marketing, public relations, and advertising writing were just a few that they mentioned.

As I reflect on those conversations today, I realize how entirely correct my professors are. It’s almost funny to think about the different styles of writing I’ll use just today alone. I’ll be writing marketing messages for a music technology client, SEO-focused blogs for a medical client, and an eBook for a home improvement client. And that’s just before lunch.

So if you’re thinking about a career in writing, or you’re trying to break into the field, let’s talk about just a few different styles of writing that can make you attractive to future employers and clients.

Different Styles of Writing

Marketing Copy

Post-college, crafting marketing and public relations copy was where I really honed my craft. I felt confident that I was already a solid writer with a keen eye for grammar and punctuation. What I didn’t have was a clue about writing a press release, website copy, product descriptions, newsletters, and much more.

This is why I’d highly suggest an internship with a marketing, PR, or advertising firm. You’ll be writing every day. You’ll be editing every day. You will become a machine – in a good way, of course. Without even knowing it, you’ll be able to write a press release in a single day that your client is happy with. You’ll learn buzzwords that resonate when crafting a product description. Just as importantly, you’ll learn which words you must stay away from, such as “revolutionary” or “turnkey.”

You’ll learn a ton about marketing writing. But it’s much more than that. You’ll learn to be efficient with words. Ever cut a bunch of fat off of a steak before throwing it on the grill? Who wants to gnaw on all that fatty rubber before getting to the good stuff? This same principle holds true for writing. When you eliminate useless buzzwords and adjectives that don’t add much (It’s really great. It’s truly great. It’s pretty great), you get right to the core of what you’re trying to convey.

SEO Blogging

Notice I didn’t just say “blogging.” Sure, if you want to start a blog in your free time then go for it. This can be a great outlet for your thoughts and for those of you that just straight-up enjoy the art of writing.

But what if you could use your blogging skills to help drive traffic to your client’s website or your own? Now that’s value!

In future blog posts, I’ll be talking about SEO writing extensively and how I’ve been able to get over 75  keywords on the front page of Google for my clients. If you’re looking for more information right now, however, I’d suggest you head on over to Copyblogger. They have tons of great info on how you can turn your writing skills into web traffic for you and your clients.

Grant Writing

When thinking about the different styles of writing, don’t forget about grants. From my own personal experience with grant writing, it felt just like college all over again. I had to answer intricate questions with compelling facts I had discovered through research. It was like proving my hypothesis in a term paper.

Once again tight and concise language is the key. Remember that there’s another human being on the other end of this grant. They’re probably reading hundreds of these in a month. Don’t make your reader wade through needless adjectives and sloppy sentences. State the facts. Get to the point. Use compelling language to engage your reader.

One more note: Many nonprofits need grant writers. Often the pay isn’t all that great – or they can’t pay you at all – but it can be a nice way to get your writing career off of the ground while building up that resume.

Are there any other styles of writing you’d like to know about? Just let me know in the comments below and I’ll address them in future posts.