Sentence economy

Every sentence earns its space or gets cut. Four tests: | Test | Rule | | ----------- | -------------------------------------------------------------- | | Removal | Delete the sentence. Meaning unchanged? Cut it. | | Opener | "In order to," "It is important to note that." Cut the opener. | | Length | Over 25 words? Split. | | Restatement | Says the same thing as the headline? Cut it. | ## Dead-weight catalogue | Pattern | Fix | | ------------------------------- | ------------------------- | | "We believe that..." | Make the claim | | "X is a Y that helps you Z" | "X does Z" | | "Whether you're an A or a B..." | Pick your audience | | "Our mission is to..." | State the user benefit | | "Designed to be..." | Show it | | "Powerful yet simple" | Show one specific quality | | "Featuring" / "With built-in" | Lead with the benefit | ## Before/after ## Why bloat happens Warmth comes from voice, not word count. "Easy to use. Built for ease. Designed with simplicity in mind." Pick one, kill the rest. "Click below to get started. [Get started]." The button is the CTA. ## The 25-word test ## Consecutive sentence test Two sentences in a row. Second adds nothing? Cut it. "Our analytics are real-time. You'll always have up-to-date data." Cut the second. "Our analytics are real-time. See which feature drives retention before the user churns." Keep both. ## When length works Story openings. Founder letters. Reference docs. In hero copy, CTAs, and microcopy, brevity is non-negotiable.