5 tips for giving great copy feedback.

The beauty of writing is that it can almost always be made better. Sometimes it’s just about refining a few words. Sometimes it requires sharpening the larger ideas behind the language. Other times, it’s about scrapping it all and just rethinking the whole damn thing. The challenge for creative directors, editors, and everyone who reviews copy is this: How can the feedback that you give actually help writers improve their work?

I think this quote from General Patton pretty much sums it up: “Don’t tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results.” His approach sounds great in theory. But how do you really pull it off effectively–especially when you’re a writer reviewing another writer’s work, and you have your own bright ideas about how to tweak a sentence and really make it sing?

The truth is, you have to learn how to give good feedback, and it’s an art that can always be further refined and perfected. Some people never learn to do it well, but there are masters among us–the corporate executive who routinely gets great results (and complete loyalty) from her team, the creative director who brings out the best in every designer and copywriter he works with, and the editor who somehow helps her writers improve their work without bleeding comments and copyedits all over the page. Here are just a few things they’ve taught me:

1. Start with the positive. There’s always something of merit–even in the most half-baked first drafts. Remember to start your feedback by praising what’s working in the text. Focus on very specific things, instead of throwing out “great job” platitudes.

2. Ask questions instead of offering solutions. Resist the urge to fix the writing yourself, even when you’ve got a great solution. Instead, ask questions that point writers in the right direction. Instead of just implementing your changes, they’ll take the writing to places you could’ve never thought of on your own.

3. Be critical without criticizing. Really think about the writing and give very specific comments on what you’d like to see change (not how to change it, just what needs to change). Watch out for comments that merely criticize–things like “falls flat,” “boring,” and “misses the mark” aren’t just unkind, they simply won’t make the writing better.

4. Let some things go. Focus on 1-3 things that can really help improve the draft. Sometimes, this means you’ll have to gloss over a few things that you really think should change. But if you give the writer too many comments, your feedback can be overwhelming and hard to follow–and you may find that many of your comments haven’t been adequately addressed in the next draft, because you gave the writer way too much to think about.

5. Trust the writer.  If you don’t trust your writer, you need to find someone you do trust. Because none of this can work unless you allow the writer to be fully in command of his or her own work. As a reviewer, your job is to think carefully about whether the writing has met its goals, give specific and direct feedback to help push it to the next level, and then get out of the way and let the writer surprise you–or maybe even amaze you.

What else can we do to be better reviewers? Share your ideas with us.