Writing Tips for Accountants : June/July 2011

Get rid of trashy words

Too much trash
Everyone who is working on the XY Partners account should be able to recognize any of the potential obstacles that may arise, and also be able to promptly respond to this client's inquiries over the course of the next two weeks.

Concise
Everyone working on the XY Partners account should recognize the potential obstacles and promptly respond to this client's inquiries over the next two weeks.

Stress the positive

Wherever possible, emphasize the positive rather than the negative.

Negative
If you don't complete the audit report by July 31, our client will be very unhappy.

Positive
Please complete the audit report by July 31 to keep our client happy.

Don't leave out that needed "and"

Incorrect
Before conducting business in foreign countries, we should consider factors such as market potential, regulatory environment, political and economic stability.

Correct
Before conducting business in foreign countries, we should consider factors such as market potential, regulatory environment, and political and economic stability. (The first and joins the three major ideas.)

Use active verbs to be more convincing

Dull
We need to get our revenues to increase by 15% so that we can go forward with the expansion plans for the three new cities.

Convincing
We need to boost revenues by 15% so we can expand into three new cities.

Find the grammar/usage error!

Correct the error in the paragraph below and email Jack with "CPA grammar" in the subject line. See the answer in our next issue.

We are lucky to have such a brilliant leader. As the CEO since 2003, Ron Harper's innovative ideas have helped transform our company from a struggling start-up venture to a thriving corporation with 500 employees in six offices nationwide.

Answer from May issue

This audit report will be much easier to complete than the one last month, because there are far fewer documents to review. For the April report, we had to sort through a 55-page analysis and dozens of other documents ranging from 10 to 20 pages each. (For items that can be counted, use fewer, not less.)

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