Write Group

14/10/2026

If you ask someone what ‘clear communication’ means, most people will say it’s about the right words.

Words do matter enormously. But they’re only part of the story.

Structure and layout matter just as much. If you don’t get these elements right, even if you use the right words, your information can still confuse and frustrate your reader.

Worse still, you might put them at risk — for example, if it’s medication information and the information isn’t well organised.

Write consultant Earnsy Liu recently saw this play out with her friend’s medication schedule. She’s written about what went wrong, and what a more helpful version could look like.

writegroup.io/layout-an-often-overlooked-part-of-clarity/

If you’d like a hand making sure your information is well written and well designed, Earnsy and the team would love to help. Get in touch at [email protected]

Learn how simple layout changes improve clarity and prevent mistakes. Our redesigned schedule helps a patient take the correct medication.

13/10/2026

Final call. Our free Q&A on editing and proofreading in the AI era is this Thursday.

We’ll show you what AI actually catches, what it misses, and why ‘it looks good’ isn’t the same as ‘it is good’. We’ll give you real examples from real projects we’ve worked on — including a few that looked great until someone tried to use them.

📅 Thursday 15 October
🕑 2 to 2.30pm (NZST)
📌 On Zoom

Register at: zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_RdicYayhTWqxvC0lDgMiIw

12/10/2026

A day in the life of a plain language specialist 📸

To celebrate International Plain Language Day, we asked four of our team — Friederike, Deepti, Ryan, and Penny — to share some snapshots of their workday.

From editing dense documents into something readable, to leading workshops on clearer writing, to (of course) enjoying a well-earned coffee, this is what clear communication looks like behind the scenes.

Happy from the team at Write Group.

05/10/2026

A big thanks to Natural Hazards Commission Toka Tū Ake for their lovely feedback.

We recently delivered our ‘AI+Human® — Write Smarter with AI’ workshop to the team. And this feedback is exactly why we do this work. AI can help your writing, but only if you know what good writing looks like in the first place.

Learn to judge your AI output and write with clarity and impact. Book a workshop:

writegroup.io/training/

04/10/2026

Do you sometimes feel using AI for business writing is a bit like being handed the keys to a high-performance sports car before you’ve learned to drive?

Foot down, no map, just a blinking cursor turning your blank page into a 10,000-word draft in 5 seconds flat.

How do you stay in control when AI is speeding down the motorway at 150km/h? Write consultant Jayne Webb has some advice in her latest blog 👇

writegroup.io/ai-gave-me-speed-but-i-lost-my-confidence-along-the-way/

AI tools can erode your writing confidence. We explore how plain language skills and human judgement keep you in the driver's seat.

30/09/2026

What did that last confusing document actually cost you?

The follow-up questions, a rewritten report, a meeting that only happened because the brief wasn't clear the first time.

Bad writing can be expensive — but our workshops are here to fix that.

Here’s what’s on this month.

• Critical Thinking
• How to Write Web Content
• Presentation Skills
• Minute Taking
• AI+Human® Micro-sessions
• Infographics
• Write Smarter with AI
• Business Writing Essentials
• Peer Review
• Editing and Proofreading

Find your workshop and register here: writegroup.io/training/open-business-writing-workshops/

30/09/2026

AI can write a document for you in seconds. It looks good and sounds confident.

But looking good and being good aren’t the same thing. As AI is used more and more for writing, humans must get better at judging, editing, and proofreading.

We’re exploring this in our next live Q&A.

Join us on:
📅 Thursday, 15 October 2026
🕛 2pm to 2.30pm (NZST)
📌 On Zoom

What we’ll explore:
· How to tell when AI-generated content needs work
· Where AI helps with editing and proofreading — and where it falls short
· Ways our team uses AI on projects with our clients
· Why you still might need to proofread
· Steps you can take to be a better editor

Register for free: zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_RdicYayhTWqxvC0lDgMiIw #

29/09/2026

Here are three signs your comms team needs extra support.

1. Your team keeps saying ‘We’ll get onto it soon,’ about things that used to be same-day turnarounds.
2. Senior leaders start asking ‘Why didn’t we know about this sooner?’
3. People on the team regularly say they feel like they’re drowning.

The demands made on comms teams don’t stop because someone’s on annual leave, parental leave, or off sick.

The fix for this isn’t always another FTE. It can be short-term, experienced support that doesn’t need lengthy onboarding time. If you need an extra pair of comms hands, get in touch with us at Write. We’re here to help.

And tell us, what would you add to this list?

27/09/2026

Four reasons why jargon is harmful to your business:

1. It slows progress — people end up spending more time explaining what they mean than getting work done.

2. It excludes people — new staff, contractors, or customers can feel left out.

3. It weakens trust — people are less likely to trust a message that leaves them wondering what it meant.

4. It increases mental effort — instead of focusing on the message, readers spend their time and energy working out what the jargon means.

You don’t need jargon to sound professional or credible. The best communicators can explain complex ideas in plain language. Write consultant Deepti Sur explains more in her recent blog:

Is jargon monoxide polluting your emails? Learn how business buzzwords affect clarity and discover how to write in clear, plain language.

24/09/2026

When things get busy in a communications team, it’s easy to assume that everyone will just absorb the extra work. You might even pass routine tasks on to other teams. The intern writes the newsletter, and media enquiries are handled by whoever has capacity.

But quality communication is so much more than routine tasks. It needs a strategic mindset and expertise. Not just about writing, but also about tone, audience, timing, and good judgement. You can’t redistribute those skills overnight.

In an ideal world, we wouldn’t just ask, ‘Who can cover this work?’ Instead we’d ask, ‘Who has the best experience and can properly step in?’

Sometimes that might mean external support. We love to help clients in these sorts of situations. If you need a helping hand with your comms right now, get in touch: [email protected]