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Hey Reader,

5 days ago on LinkedIn, I wrote a post that resonated with new and experienced writers.

Because it tapped into a critical content writing theme: job to be done.

(A fancy phrase marketers use to refer to the job readers want to ultimately get done, and how your writing needs to speak to that JTBD. More on why this matters in a minute.)

The post was about how if people aren't disagreeing with you, you haven't gotten specific enough about who you're speaking to.

I mentioned how the Ship30 guys recently said editing is "not as important as you think."

Receipts:

I KNOW, I KNOW. HOW DARE THEY.

Except...

I'm not offended because I deeply understand that their audience is not my audience.

They're speaking to absolute beginners who are better off (in their POV) shipping unpolished work than overthinking and making zero progress.

When I preach editing's importance, I'm speaking to writers who want to get better at their craft, go from good to great, and make more money. They're better off learning to edit (in my POV) because "first draft writing" will never beat "edited writing."

Here's the fun part: we're both right.

Why?

Because their readers' job to be done is to ship writing. Period. End of story. Doesn't matter how good it is. Just get it out and improve later.

My readers' job to be done is to ship better writing. Every time they post, publish, or send a piece of work to their client, they want it to be as good as it can be. They want to make intentional writing decisions so they can get incrementally better.

What's blocking Ship30's audience from hitting "post"? Editing.

What's blocking my audience from becoming better writers? Not editing.

And this, my friends, is the beauty of targeted writing.

Something you cannot do if you don't deeply understand who your audience is, what they struggle with, and what the symptoms of that struggle look like.

The Ship30 guys spell out their audience's problems like so:

Beginner writers (audience) spend too much time editing (core problem), and the (symptoms of the problem) include messing with adjectives, worrying about structure, and thinking that if they don't edit, their writing won't be good.

If you're a brand new writer who reads that, you're nodding along.

So when you get to the part where it says, "Relax, editing isn't as important as you think," you let out a sigh of relief.

Now, let's look at how I spell out my audience's problems:

Intermediate writers (audience) spend too much, or not enough, time editing because they don't know how to edit even though they want to learn (core problem), and the (symptoms of the problem) include having zero processes and second-guessing every decision.

If you're an intermediate writer who reads that, you're nodding along.

So when you get to the part where it says, "Relax, editing isn't as nebulous as you think and you can process-ize it," you let out a sigh of relief.

Can you see the targeting?

It's intentional and well-thought-out. It's speaking to the job to the done.

But here's where people struggle the most with targeting: They don't want to piss anyone off.

And here's my response to that:

If people aren't disagreeing with you, you haven't gotten specific enough about who you're speaking to.

I'm highlighting that line in yellow cuz it's that damn important.

In order to speak directly to your target audience, you will need to not speak to everyone.

Put another way: Just like trying to please everyone in life is exhausting, trying to speak to everyone in your messaging is a wasted effort.

Targeted writing deeply resonates with a specific audience and repels the "not a match" reader.

GOOD.

You don't want to attract everyone to your writing, your offer, your service, your product.

You aren't for everyone. You're for someone.

And your writing needs to reflect that.

So, if you've been struggling, take the "targeted statement" template from above and fill it in:

[Audience] has [Core problem] and the [Symptoms of the problem] include [...]

Now, if you're new to this email and are on the fence about whether or not editing matters, allow me to state as loudly as possible that editing is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT and don't you dare skip it 😅. Go start with the easiest edit you can make. ​

And if you're ready to become a better writer via editing...

​Check out my Content Editing 101 course.​

Someone with a great name (Erica) recently finished it, and I asked her what her favorite part of the course was.

She said she couldn't choose just one and sent back six reasons why she loved it:

I do love a good example (I believe in show, not tell teaching).

Catch you next week!

Erica

Check out my 3 courses that 1500+ people have taken, loved, and gotten meaningful results from:

1. Long to Short: Turn one long-form piece into a month's worth of posts. A step-by-step system to repurpose, remix, and remaster your best ideas.

2. Hooked on Writing Hooks: Turn your ideas into content that actually gets consumed. Learn to write scroll-stopping hooks on social without resorting to clickbait nonsense that feels inauthentic.

3. Content Editing 101. Kill decision fatigue and build confidence as a writer and editor. A look inside a professional editor's workflow & best practices. Packed with lessons, examples, and a roadmap so you can stop second-guessing your writing & editing decisions.

Each course is AI-powered 🪄

You can go through them manually or use AI to play, get it done faster, and test your new skills in real time. My friend & prompt genius Rob Lennon wrote all the prompts and bots for the courses.

What'd you think of today's email? Reply and let me know.

Erica Schneider

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