RIBA Journal advertisement manager Richard Tomlin shares his top tips on striking the right tone when targeting architects
From experience we know that architects are extremely passionate people, full of inspired visions of how to improve the spaces in which we live. The quest to better these environments means they have limited time in which to reflect and inform themselves about what’s going on around them. Getting the right message to them in the correct way is very important. Why should you trust us? Well, we must be doing something right: RIBA Journal currently has an audited circulation of 28,054 which is the largest audience of any UK architecture title, including weeklies and monthlies. Here are my top tips about writing for an architect audience.
Precise – It may seem obvious, but just like the rest of us an architect’s time is valuable. Whatever topic you’re writing about, get straight to the point. Avoid long fluffy sentences, include the facts, inject some opinion (if required) and deliver interesting, timely content. It sounds simple, but it’s difficult to get right.
Educate – Tell them something they don’t know. We are all naturally curious make a story interesting by establishing the facts early on.
Stimulate – Create debate. Not everyone is going to agree with your point of view or order of interest on a story. This shouldn’t be seen as a negative. Just because your opinion on a story isn’t the same as someone else’s doesn’t mean it’s wrong. In fact, articles that stimulate debate often spread the key messages better than those that sit on the fence.
Authority – Take ownership of a topic. There is a lot of noise out there and a lot of ‘news’ and ‘information’ that can just as easily come from a biased source as an independent one. So it’s important to quote your sources and be open and honest about who you are and what you’re writing about – create trust in a world of uncertainty.
Of course, you can always let the experts handle it for you. As a publication that serves a 28,000 architects we understand how to speak to our audience. Across all platforms with daily online publication and social media engagement, as well as our printed magazines, we’ve created an all-encompassing information source for architects.
We will continue to give our audience information that is credible, clear and informative. That’s something on which we’ve based our brand for over 125 years and counting.
For more information on how RIBA Journal can help you reach architects, please email our advertisement manager, Richard Tomlin or call him on +44 (0)20 7496 8329.