Good content gets read. Compliant content gets ignored.

Here’s the thing no one wants to say out loud: a lot of “compliant” content is unreadable.

It ticks all the legal boxes, sure. But it also sounds like it was written by a committee of risk-averse robots. Vague enough to be safe. Long enough to feel serious. And flat enough that no actual human will ever make it past the first paragraph.

And that’s a problem. Because content that no one reads doesn’t build trust. It doesn’t educate, persuade, convert — or even inform. It just… exists. Somewhere on your website. Buried under five layers of navigation and a whole lot of hedging.

Being compliant shouldn’t mean being boring. And it definitely shouldn’t mean being incomprehensible. Because if your audience doesn’t understand you — or doesn’t trust the way you’re speaking to them — compliance won’t protect you from irrelevance.

The myth that compliant = boring

Somewhere along the line, “compliant” became a synonym for “bland.”
And now? Entire industries are stuck writing like they’re afraid to say anything at all.

This is how you end up with phrases like:

• “We aim to provide innovative solutions that may support your financial goals.”
• “We endeavour to ensure accuracy but accept no liability for any reliance placed…”

Technically safe? Sure.
Actually helpful? Not even close.

The fear is understandable — especially in regulated spaces where one wrong word can trigger a reportable offence. But the result is content that’s so vague, so cautious, and so over-edited that it loses all meaning.

And worse: it erodes trust.

Because people don’t trust what they can’t understand. If your product page sounds like legal fine print, it doesn’t sound credible — it sounds evasive. If your super fund explainer reads like a legal disclaimer, it doesn’t feel informative — it feels like a trap.

Safe content still needs to be clear. It still needs to be human. And it still needs to say something.

Why readability matters more than ever (even for legal)

You don’t win points for complexity.
Not with your audience. And, increasingly, not with regulators either.

Clarity isn’t just a nice to have — it’s a compliance asset. The easier your content is to understand, the less room there is for misinterpretation, misinformation, or misaligned expectations.

Here’s why it matters:

🧠 People don’t trust what they don’t understand

If your audience has to read a sentence three times to figure out what you mean, they won’t. They’ll scroll. They’ll bounce. Or worse — they’ll call your competitor.

✅ Readable ≠ risky

There’s this persistent idea that plain English somehow weakens your legal position. But in reality, clear content makes review easier — not harder. It’s easier to spot risks in short, simple sentences than in jargon-laden paragraphs.

🔎 Regulators care about clarity, too

ASIC, APRA, ACCC — they’re all pushing for better transparency. That doesn’t just mean disclosures. It means accessible information. If your content is accurate but unreadable, you’re still missing the mark.

And let’s not forget: SEO loves readability too.
So does CX. So does sales. So do your internal teams who don’t want to wait two weeks for legal feedback.

Bottom line? Clear content doesn’t just get approved faster. It gets used.

How to write for real people and risk teams

Good content shouldn’t feel like a tug-of-war between marketing and legal. You can write content that speaks to humans and satisfies the people with red pens. But you need a better process than “write it, then brace for feedback.”

Here’s how to walk the line:

✍️ Start with plain English

Write it the way you’d explain it to a smart friend — not like you're drafting a policy doc. Once it’s clear, you can layer in nuance, disclaimers, and checks without losing the message.

Trying to write “legally safe” from the first draft leads to content that’s unreadable and unsalvageable.

🧩 Loop legal in early — but on the right terms

The earlier your reviewers understand the intent of the content, the less likely they are to rewrite it.
Give them a short brief:

• Who it’s for
• What it needs to say
• Where it will live
• Any no-go zones

This shifts the conversation from “Here’s a draft — please tear it apart” to “Here’s what we’re trying to say — help us say it safely.”

🛠️ Create reusable compliance-approved phrasing

Every business has tricky lines that always trigger debate. Write them once — with input from compliance — then reuse them.

Call it a tone library, a messaging bank, or an approved language file. Whatever it is, it saves time, reduces risk, and keeps your copy consistent.

This isn’t about cutting corners. It’s about writing like your audience matters — and giving legal less to fix by making clarity the starting point, not the casualty.

Proof it works: what clear, compliant content looks like

You don’t need a case study with heatmaps and conversion rates to prove this point (though I can find some somewhere). Sometimes the proof is in the process — and in the sigh of relief from every team that touches the content.

Here’s what happens when clarity and compliance work together:

✅ Content gets approved faster

When your draft is already clean, reviewers don’t need to spend time deciphering what you meant. They just check what matters — and move it along.

🧠 Legal teams stop being the bottleneck

Not because they’re working faster — but because you’re giving them something easier to work with. You’re not asking them to fix the tone. Just confirm the facts.

🗣️ The message actually gets through

Whether it’s a product explainer, a comparison guide, or a disclaimer — when the language is readable, the value lands. Your audience understands you. And trust goes up.

🔁 You create less, but use it more

When content is both compliant and clear, it gets reused. Sales can share it. Support can link to it. Marketing can repurpose it. You get more value from every piece.

And when you do it well? No one says “Wow, this is so compliant.
”They just say, “Oh, this actually makes sense.” That’s the goal.

Your audience isn’t a risk. They’re the reason.

If your content is technically correct but impossible to read, it’s not doing its job.

Being compliant is essential. But it’s not the whole story. Because content that’s compliant but unclear isn’t safer — it’s just easier to ignore. And content that gets ignored doesn’t build trust, answer questions, or drive action.

So stop treating clarity like a nice-to-have. It’s not the enemy of compliance — it’s what makes compliance work.

If your website reads like a disclaimer, it’s time to rethink what compliant content really means.