Day 268: Know when to use the fire hydrant and when to use the garden hose.

Fire hydrants and garden hoses are metaphors for two ways to think about providing information to your readers. Each of these reflects an approach to the quantity and thoroughness of the content you write.

The fire hydrant approach means providing as much information about a topic as possible, including all the various facets, details, explanations, and considerations about the topic. This approach is appropriate when your reader is deeply interested in the topic or is an expert in the subject area. For example, if I am writing about a specific form of online marketing to experts in search engine optimization, I might choose this approach.

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The garden hose approach means providing a limited set of information about a topic. This does not mean the information is superficial, though this might be the case. Using this approach, you will not provide an exhaustive examination of the topic. Instead, you will provide the information desired by a more general reading audience or the answer to a specific question.

Think about your intended audience. Are they experts in the topic seeking in-depth, detailed, and complete information? Do they need the information to address specific questions pertaining to the topic or general information about the topic? Once you determine the readers’ needs, choose the approach that is most appropriate.