New year, new you? Here are five writing resolutions to make your business writing pop this year:

1. Read more – especially the work of people whose writing you admire. Figure out why you like it, and apply those principles to your own.

2. Never write without your reader in mind – whether it’s one person in the company, or all of your customers.

3. Replace adjectives and adverbs with strong verbs.

4. Hire an editor to give your important communication a once-over.

5. Keep things simple – plain, clear language always trumps flowery, jargon-filled writing.