Tell them what you're going to tell them.
Tell them.
Tell them what you told them.
The first and last parts are missing from this article. You have to take a gestalt approach and scan the whole thing to get an idea of what it's about.
Tell them.
Tell them what you told them.
The first and last parts are missing from this article. You have to take a gestalt approach and scan the whole thing to get an idea of what it's about.
1. Tell them that you are going to:
1. Tell them what you are going to tell them.
2. Tell them.
3. Tell you what you told them.
1. Tell them what you are going to tell them.
2. Tell them that now you will tell them what you will tell them.
3. Tell them.
4. Tell them that you are done telling them what you will tell them.
5. Tell them that you will tell them what you told them.
6. Tell them what you told them.
7. Tell them that you are done telling them what you told them.
1. Explain how to tell if this is worth their time.
2. Tell them.
3. If there was a lot, suggest what's worth remembering.
The focus here is on how it benefits the audience and not on some arbitrary structural form.
Other ways:
* Describe a problem that the audience also has, so that they understand that you are aligned with them.
* Tell an engaging anecdote so that they expect it will be a rewarding experience. (The idea that a piece of writing should entertain, inform, or persuade and that those are mutually exclusive is another canard that I find to be completely toxic and antithetical to good writing. Good writing should entertain, inform, and persuade.)
* Telegraph that the time investment will be smaller by getting started and making the overall thing shorter.
* Describe previous failures to solve a problem.
* Give them an interesting insight right off the bat, which implies there may be more to come.
* Tell them something personal which conveys whether you are likely to be a person with interesting things to say.
* Throw out a detailed, hard to acquire fact, which implies that you have other hard-won knowledge.
Note that what all of these have in common is that the intro material is unique and is not simply a pre-statement of information they will encounter lately.
Also, the fact that I made step 3 optional is significant. Most writing and presentations don't need a summary and a summary will often detract. If you want to stick in the audience's memory, what you really need is a climax, and "here's what I just said, said again" is about the most anti-climactic ending you can imagine.
The outline you gave is more appropriate for slide-deck talks where the audience is captive and they're apt to be unconscious during the middle.
more’s the pity.
In a sense, I need part 1 because I'm not a captive audience. If this were (say) a lecture in a college class, then it's a foregone conclusion that I'm using the time, so I might as well pay attention.
But since it's a web article, I have the choice to keep reading or close the browser tab. I'd prefer to be able to make an informed choice.