Put the reader first
There are three groups of people likely to read Commission documents:
1. EU insiders (colleagues in the Commission or other institutions)
2. outside specialists
3. the general public.
The third group is by far the largest and most important. As more Commission
documents are made accessible to the general public, criticism of FOG will
increase.
Always bear in mind the people you're writing for: not your committee, your
boss, or the reviser of your translations, but the end users. They are in a
hurry. Don't overestimate their knowledge, interest or patience.
Whatever the type of document - legislation, a technical report, minutes, a
press release or speech - you can enhance its impact by writing clearly. Try to
see your subject matter from your readers' point of view; try to involve them
("you" is an under-used word in Commission documents); and try not to bore
them.
You can avoid irritating half your readers by replacing gender-specific words
(replace "layman" by "lay person"; "salesgirl" by "sales assistant"; "workman"
by "worker").
Avoid "he, she/ his, her" by using "they/ their" instead.
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