The 40 tells · Words · No. 09
Why "landscape" makes writing sound machine-made
Flagged "Landscape"
"In the ever-evolving landscape of" is filler that sets the scene for nothing. Markets change. Everyone knows. Saying so takes up the opening line, the most valuable place on the page.
"Realm" works the same way. Unless the page is about fantasy novels, "the realm of marketing" is just "marketing".
Before
In today's ever-evolving digital landscape, staying ahead is more important than ever.
After
Search results changed in March. Pages that answer the question in the first line now show up first.
The fix
Swap it for the concrete thing. What does it do, in words a buyer can check?
Write this instead
- name the change
- the date
- the field itself, with no metaphor
What the checker matches
Any of these, in any case:
- landscape
- landscapes
- realm
- realms
- ever-evolving
- ever-changing