Keep clients coming back · Every business
Writing to Customers: Plain Language for Policies, Texts and Emails
More than a quarter of U.S. adults read at the lowest level measured in the national literacy survey, so the policy, reminder or estimate a business sends is often read in a hurry, on a phone, by someone who needs it to be simpler than the owner thinks.
At a glance
- Plain language is writing a customer can understand the first time they read it, then act on without calling to ask what it meant.
- In the 2023 national literacy assessment of U.S. adults, 28% scored at or below Level 1, up from 19% in 2017, which means simple, short texts are the only kind a large share of customers can read with ease.
- Readers also judge the writer, and experiments published in Applied Cognitive Psychology found that needlessly complex words lowered how intelligent readers rated the author.
- Four habits cover most of the gap: lead with the action, use the customer's words, put one idea in each sentence, and show numbers and dates in full.
- In an illustrative example, unclear policies and messages cost a small business about $4,500 a year in front-desk time and customers who leave after a surprise fee.
Part 1 | Most customers read faster and less closely than owners assume
A business writes to customers dozens of times a week, through the booking confirmation, the cancellation policy, the estimate, the invoice, the aftercare note and the text that says the technician is on the way, and each of those messages is read the way people read on a phone, between other things, often in a parking lot or a waiting room. The owner usually writes from inside the business, where words like "service window," "diagnostic fee" or "maintenance interval" feel ordinary, and the customer reads from outside it, where those words need a second look.
The national numbers explain why that second look matters. The Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies, run in the U.S. by the National Center for Education Statistics, sorts adults into literacy levels, and in 2023 the share of adults aged 16 to 65 at or below Level 1 rose to 28%, from 19% in 2017. Adults at that level can read short, familiar texts and find a single piece of information, but long paragraphs with several conditions, which is how most policies are written, are harder going.
The difficulty is not limited to customers with less schooling. Among adults with more than a high school education, the share at or below Level 1 rose from 6% to 13% between 2017 and 2023, so the client who runs a company or holds a graduate degree may also skim a dense policy and miss the line about the 48-hour notice.
Part 2 | Simple wording earns more trust, not less
Many owners hold back from plain wording because of a quiet worry, something like If I make it sound too simple, people won't take us seriously. The research points the other way. In a series of experiments published in Applied Cognitive Psychology, readers who were given the same text with complex words swapped for simpler ones rated the author as more intelligent, and needless long words lowered those ratings, which suggests a customer reading a clear policy is more likely to think the business knows what it is doing.
Government writers have been held to the same standard since the Plain Writing Act of 2010, which requires federal agencies to write public documents for their specific audience; the federal guidance defines plain language as content that is clear and easy to understand. A small business has no such legal duty, but it faces the same practical test, because every unclear sentence comes back as a question at the front desk, a dispute at checkout or a customer who quietly decides the business is hard to deal with.
The cost of unclear writing tends to arrive in small pieces that never get added up, such as the text that asks "wait, what time?", the call about a fee the customer didn't see and the review that says the business "hid" a charge that was in the policy all along.
Part 3 | Four habits that make any message easier to act on
Plain language is a set of habits a team can learn in an afternoon and check in a minute, and the test of each message is whether the customer can act on it without asking a question. The four habits below cover policies, texts and emails alike.
- Lead with the action. Put what the customer needs to do, and by when, in the first sentence; background and reasons come after.
- Use the customer's words. Write "the visit," "the price" and "the time we arrive," not "the service window" or "the diagnostic fee," unless you explain the term the first time.
- One idea per sentence, one topic per message. A reminder carries the time and place, while the deposit policy goes in its own message or link.
- Write numbers and dates in full. "Tuesday, March 4, between 8 and 10 a.m." beats "Tues 3/4 AM," and "$50 if you cancel with less than 24 hours' notice" beats "a late-cancellation fee may apply."
| Message | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Cancellation policy | "Appointments not cancelled within the stipulated notice period will be subject to a fee." | "If you cancel less than 24 hours before your visit, there is a [amount] fee. To cancel or move a visit, reply R or call [phone]." |
| Arrival text | "Your technician is en route and will arrive within the scheduled service window." | "[first name], your technician is on the way and should arrive about [time]. Please put pets in another room." |
| Estimate email | "Please find attached the proposal for the scope of work discussed." | "Your estimate for [job] is attached; the total is [price], and you can approve it by replying YES. It is good for 30 days." |
| Clarifying questions per week (Assumption) | 15 |
|---|---|
| Minutes per question (Assumption) | 4 |
| Weeks open per year (Assumption) | 50 |
| Front-desk hours per year (Calculated (15 × 4 × 50 ÷ 60)) | 50 |
| Front-desk hourly pay (BLS median for receptionists, May 2025) | $18.27 |
| Time cost per year (Calculated (50 × $18.27)) | $913.50 |
| Surprise-fee disputes per month (Assumption) | 2 |
| Share of those customers who leave (Assumption) | 25% |
| Customers lost per year (Calculated (2 × 12 × 25%)) | 6 |
| Yearly spend per customer (Assumption) | $600 |
| Revenue lost per year (Calculated (6 × $600)) | $3,600 |
| Total yearly cost (Calculated ($913.50 + $3,600)) | $4,513.50 |
Illustrative example; replace every assumption with your own numbers.
The time figure is small on its own, and the larger share of the total comes from customers who leave after a fee they didn't understand, which is why the cancellation policy and the estimate are usually the first two documents worth rewriting.
How you compare
- Your reading level: most word processors and free online checkers report a grade level; a policy that scores above about eighth grade is likely harder than it needs to be for many readers.
- Your question count: for one week, have the front desk tally every message or call that asks what something meant, and note which document caused it.
- Your own baseline: compare the count after rewriting the two documents that drew the most questions, since the national figures describe readers in general and your tally describes yours.
Questions to ask this week
Which message draws the most "what does this mean" replies? Start with that one, because it is already telling you where the confusion sits.
Does the first sentence say what to do? Read the opening line of your confirmation, policy and estimate, and move the action up if it is buried.
Would a new customer know every word? Circle any term your team uses that a customer would not, and swap it or explain it once.
Are all fees written as dollar amounts with a clear trigger? "A fee may apply" invites disputes, while "[amount] if you cancel with less than 24 hours' notice" settles them in advance.
Pick the one message that drew the most questions last week, rewrite it with the four habits above, and count the questions it draws over the next two weeks.
About this research: This article draws on the National Center for Education Statistics' 2023 PIAAC results for U.S. adults, experiments on word complexity published in Applied Cognitive Psychology, federal plain language guidance under the Plain Writing Act of 2010 and Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data. The before-and-after examples and the worked example are illustrative.
Sources
- National Center for Education Statistics. PIAAC 2023 U.S. National Results. U.S. Department of Education, 2024. Adults aged 16 to 65.
- Oppenheimer, D. M. Consequences of erudite vernacular utilized irrespective of necessity: problems with using long words needlessly. Applied Cognitive Psychology 20(2), 2006.
- Digital.gov. Plain language guide. U.S. General Services Administration.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Receptionists, Occupational Outlook Handbook. Median pay, May 2025.
Related reading: Appointment Confirmation Messages That Prevent Confusion · Refund and Cancellation Policies Customers Find Fair · The Pre-Appointment Instructions to Send Clients and Patients · The Running-Late Message: What to Send When You Are Behind · Email or Text: Which Messages Customers Actually Read
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