IELTS Writing Task 1: long noun phrases

 One feature of many academic task 1 answers is this: the verbs that we use are often easy, but the noun phrases that we write are long and relatively difficult.

Look at the following examples from my most recent sample answer:

Verbs are highlighted in green.
Noun phrases are highlighted in blue.

1. Export revenues in all but one of the five product categories increased.
2. The country’s export earnings from these goods went up by 8.5%.

So, don't try to impress the examiner with the verb structures that you use in writing task 1. Work on your noun phrases instead.