You’ve been in it for years. You know the acronyms, the process, the “why” behind the policy.
But there's a trap; what’s clear to you isn’t always clear to the person reading your website, walking into your branch, or opening your email.
That’s the curse of knowledge. You forget what it’s like not to know.
So, you say “ACH” instead of “automatic transfer.” You say “minimum daily balance requirement” like it means something. You explain too little, or way too much, in a language nobody uses outside a boardroom.
Here’s the fix: write like you're explaining it to someone smart, but unfamiliar. Not dumb. Just not in the weeds like you are.
Swap jargon for plain words. “Account” beats “product.” “Card” beats “payment solution.”
Use short sentences. One idea at a time.
Read it out loud. If it sounds like something you'd say across a kitchen table, you're close.
Say what the reader gets, not what you offer. (People don’t want overdraft protection, they want peace of mind when money’s tight.)
Writing clearly is not dumbing it down. It’s respect.
It says, I know this stuff well enough to explain it simply. It says, I see you, not just my checklist.
And in banking, where trust hangs on every word, that kind of clarity is everything.