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Also known as: abstract vs executive summary dilemma,
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or abstract vs executive overview.
In this page, you will find:
My 100% guaranty: Here are both the place and the lever allowing you to move your world. So, you won't leave this page without new ideas, enthusiasm, and eagerness to start writing your own executive summary.
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Abstract Definition |
| An
Abstract is an abbreviated summary of a research article, thesis,
review, conference proceeding or any in-depth analysis of a particular
subject or discipline, and is often used to help the reader quickly
ascertain the paper's purpose.
When used, an abstract always appears at the beginning of a manuscript, acting as the point-of-entry for any given scientific paper or patent application. (Wikipedia) |
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Executive Summary Definition |
|
An Executive Summary is, basically, anything but a product
presentation, and nothing but a persuasive sales pitch. Far more than an abstract
merely presenting the rest of the document, it's your unique opportunity
to convince the reader that your proposal provides the best value
proposition: the best benefit at the lowest cost.
The more technical your proposal, the more critical the executive summary is likely to be, because, unlike the abstract, the executive summary forbids technicalities to instead concentrate on substantiating the benefits for the customer. |
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Common misspellings: excutive summary, exective summary, execitive summary, eccutive summary,
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Question:
Are executive summary and abstract the same?
Answer:
If you think so, you have just lost your chance to persuade first hand.
Advice:
Make your unique selling point (USP) from your executive summary.
This is the "executive summary vs abstract summary" battle. All so-called experts say that you should write the executive summary when the rest of your proposal is written. Because this part is called the summary of the whole document, logic dictates that you should write the document first in order to be able to summarize it.
There is a significant difference between an executive summary and an abstract.
And that's exactly the pitfall to avoid when writing an executive summary for your proposal: the executive summary is not an abstract. We may even say, paradoxically, that the executive summary, unlike the abstract, is not a summary, it's your value proposition, your best, unique opportunity to sell your solution!
These are the differences between Abstract vs Executive Summary:
| Abstract | Executive Summary | |
| Nature | Abbreviated summary. | Unique selling point (USP). |
| Audience | Specialized (researchers), or mere readers. | Decision makers,
e.g. corporate managers. |
| Scope | Informational, academic, administrative, and other general documents (thesis, articles, patents). | Solicited or
unsolicited sales
proposals and bids (P&B). Job résumés fit in this case! |
| Purpose | Give
information. Ascertain the purpose of the whole document, give an overview or preview of its content. |
Call for
action. Persuade readers to buy on the recommended solution addressing the problem, namely, make your unique selling point (USP). |
| Content | Mainly
technical:
|
Mainly managerial (The 4 rules of persuasion):
|
| Length | Short. Shorter than the executive summary. |
Short. Longer than the abstract. |
| Style | Technical, static, and more academic. | Managerial, dynamic, and more enthusiastic. |
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Shhh...I'll tell you a secret. You'll never believe me. Since I have advised all my friends, relatives, and other acquaintances to write their résumé and, most importantly, their résumé cover letter like if it were an executive summary, this led, so far, in 93% of the cases to a phone call from the employer. Amazing! | |
As revealed by the side-by-side comparison above, the key difference between an abstract and an executive summary resides on their antipodal purpose, and consequently on the format used to achieve this goal.
Indeed, while the abstract aims at convincing the reader to go through the whole document in order to quash his thirst of information, the executive summary, at the opposite, aims at persuading the reader, who is supposed to be a decision maker, to take of forgo an action, whether usually buying a product, or approving another action.
Having understood the differences between abstract vs executive summary, you now want to write your executive summary. To do so, read the discussion How to write an Executive Summary that will help you identify the needed information for laying down your value proposition through the use of win themes. You can write your own executive summary following the proven S.P.A. rule, which is unveiled in the executive summary template.
Persuasive Business Proposals
Persuasive Business Proposals
The Consultant's Guide to Proposal Writing: How to Satisfy Your Clients and Double Your IncomeThe Consultant's Guide to Proposal Writing
Handbook For Writing ProposalsAbstract:
In this easy-to-use, concise, and
thorough handbook, two veteran business professionals guide you through the
entire proposal-writing process, from the initial contact through completion
and follow-up.
You'll benefit from the authors' expertise and insight on:
Abstract vs executive summary:
Unlike other books, there are 20 pages dedicated to the executive
summary, that is 10% of the book, which gives more information to address
the abstract vs executive summary dilemma:
Read more about:
Handbook For Writing Proposals
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The Art of the Executive Summary by Guy Kawasaki (You really have to know Guy Kawasaki and read his books). |
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Noise and Elimination of the Nonessential by Presentation Zen |
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Bill Gates' Executive Speeches and Keynotes by Bill Gates |
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Informative Abstract vs Executive Summary by The University of Western Ontario |
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Collection of Articles on How to Write Abstracts vs Executive Summaries by UK-Student.net |
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