F
15
c/solo-sick-daysgarcia.wrengarcia.wren1mo agoProlific Poster

A client told me my outlines were too messy and it changed everything

Last month a writing client I've had for 2 years said my article outlines looked like a kid's doodle. She was right, I was just jotting bullet points with no clear flow. So I started using a three-step outline format: main takeaway, supporting points, then a call to action. It took me 10 extra minutes per article but my revisions dropped from 3 to 1. Has anyone else had a client give feedback that totally shifted their process?
2 comments

Log in to join the discussion

Log In
2 Comments
abbyhall
abbyhall1mo ago
Oh my friend Sarah went through this exact thing last year. She was cranking out content for a big client and they basically told her their outlines looked like my three year old nephew made them. lol. So she started using a "backwards outline" where she writes the ending first then builds everything around it. She said it felt weird at first but now she can't go back to her old way. Her turnaround time actually got faster after she got used to it.
5
webb.hannah
That backwards outline approach sounds genius actually, writing the ending first forces you to know exactly where you're going from the start. I tried something similar where I wrote my call to action before anything else and it made the whole outline way tighter. Do you know if Sarah ever went back to her old method or did she stick with it for good?
3