Edward Gately

A great test to see if your copy is too formal is the "comma Mary” test. The test comes from Bruce DeSilva, a thriller author and former journalist. The test: put ", Mary" at the end of a statement. Then read it aloud. If it doesn't sound right—namely, too formal—turn the word-choice dial toward less specialized, more conversational until it feels right. Example: “Undergoing regular cancer screenings is the expert-recommended approach to discovering cancer early enough to optimize treatment options and improve health outcomes, Mary." or "Regular cancer screenings help find cancer early, which is why experts recommend them. Treatment works best then and can help patients live longer, Mary." Which one are you most likely to say to a person? Now, it's no silver bullet; you'll want to go deeper and look at your writing decisions—sentence length along with word choice and order. But the "comma Mary" test is a great tool to judge your copy's readability. And to make changes toward making it more human—if that's what it needs, Mary. Alexandra Howson and I talked shop about voice last year. #writing #storytelling #medicalwriting

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A great test to see if your copy is too formal is the "comma Mary” test. The test comes from Bruce DeSilva, a thriller author and former journalist. The test: put ", Mary" at the end of a statement. Then read it aloud. If it doesn't sound right—namely, too formal—turn the word-choice dial toward less specialized, more conversational until it feels right. Example: “Undergoing regular cancer screenings is the expert-recommended approach to discovering cancer early enough to optimize treatment options and improve health outcomes, Mary." or "Regular cancer screenings help find cancer early, which is why experts recommend them. Treatment works best then and can help patients live longer, Mary." Which one are you most likely to say to a person? Now, it's no silver bullet; you'll want to go deeper and look at your writing decisions—sentence length along with word choice and order. But the "comma Mary" test is a great tool to judge your copy's readability. And to make changes toward making it more human—if that's what it needs, Mary. My friend Alexandra and I talked shop about voice last year. #writing #storytelling #healthcare

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Communications best practices apply to IR, just as they do for all strategic communications. Learn more about IR website essentials in the in-depth guide from PR Newswire ➡️ https://lnkd.in/e9wW2QaH #IR #InvestorRelations #Comms

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Data only goes as far as how it's designed, so this is a huge change in the government's data gathering process that will hopefully yield more nuanced information that will really help cater to the communities that may be falling through the cracks because of being lumped in larger categories. Thanks to the The 19th for reporting on this with more detail, including the continuing challenges moving forward, even with this change. "The federal government announced in March that it had updated its race and ethnicity standards in response to “large societal, political, economic and demographic shifts in the United States,” according to the Office of Management and Budget. Within five years, all federal agencies that collect demographic data will be required to start collecting more detailed race and ethnicity information beyond the current minimum categories... Now, race and ethnicity information will be collected using a single question in which respondents can select multiple categories. Middle Eastern or North African (MENA) will be added as a new category, separate and distinct from the White category. And federal agencies will be required to collect more disaggregated ethnicity data. For example, instead of just providing “Black” as a designation, federal forms will also have to include options to identify as African American, Jamaican, Haitian, Nigerian, Ethiopian or Somali." #data #census https://lnkd.in/g97e2Kbh

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The team at Cision has put together an excellent tip sheet on how to increase your organization's visibility through earned media by putting the “relation” aspect of public relations at the center of your strategy. Cision’s data-driven recommendations highlight the importance of articulating your organization's unique value proposition, cultivating authentic relationships, and precisely targeting your media outreach. #mediarelations #publicrelations 

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