Effective Business Writing

Effective Business Writing

Communication - Effective Business Writing (This picture: Trinity College, Cambridge) Contact Email Design Copyright 1994-2013 © OxfordCambridge.Org

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Effective Business Writing
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Aim of publication
To introduce readers to effective business
writing in order to enhance their business
administrative skills


Learning Objectives
After developing the KeyPoints outlined in this publication, you should
mainly be able to:
☺ describe how to plan a communication and set the right context
☺ explain how to identify the subject, the audience, and the purpose of a
document
☺ outline how to gather the relevant material
☺ identify the differences between descriptive and persuasive
documents


Learning Objectives
☺ explain the importance of structure, the use of headings, and the
value of an executive summary
☺ understand the value of accurate spelling and grammar
☺ explain the significance of writing style
☺ outline how to write conversationally
☺ point out the importance of avoiding excessive jargon, clichés, archaic
language, and negatives
☺ describe the effectiveness of using the active voice


Effective Business Meetings - Sections list
☺ Planning the communication
☺ Devising an effective structure
☺ Developing an effective style
☺ Effective Writing


Planning the communication

To show how to plan a business document.


Planning the communication: Learning Objectives
☺ After completing this section you should be
able to:
• describe how to plan a business
document

Communication - Effective Business Writing (This picture: Harcourt Hill, West Oxford) Contact Email Design Copyright 1994-2013 © OxfordCambridge.Org

Planning the communication: Summary
☺ When you are planning a business document,
you need to consider its subject, its
intended audience, and its purpose.
☺ You can gather information about a subject
by researching it or by using techniques
such as brainstorming to come up with
ideas.
☺ You should consider the people who will be
reading your document and decide which of
their characteristics are most important to
your subject matter.
☺ Most business documents fall into one of
two categories
• they can be descriptive and intended
to convey information
• or they can be persuasive and used to
convince the reader to take some
course of action.


☺ Good communication is essential in the business
environment because it ensures that you put your
point across in the workplace and in dealing with
other businesses.
☺ Writing memos, reports, and letters are all part of
working environment in businesses.
☺ Personal Computers (PCs) can make the process
friendlier and easier.
☺ Still it is important to know how to write in an
effective manner.


☺ Professional business writing is affected by
its context - for instance, when using a
different style for an e-mail sent to a small
group of colleagues than for a letter sent
to a bank manager.
☺ Therefore when planning our document,
there is a need to consider the following:
• the subject of the writing
• the audience for which it is intended
• the purpose we want it to fulfil
☺ On one hand the subject on which we are
writing may already have been set - we may
need to write a letter to a prospective
employer, for example.
☺ On the other hand, we may have to decide
the subject for ourselves.
☺ In either case we need to gather relevant
material.


☺ One way to collect material for a document
is by searching for relevant terms on the
Web.
☺ We can also excellent ideas by
brainstorming or free-writing - typing as
many ideas and words about our subject as
possible in a short period of time.
☺ If we use a word-processing program to do
this, you can even paste some of these
ideas and phrases into the initial draft of
your document.
☺ If the subject we are dealing with is quite
general, we can clarify it by asking
ourselves few questions about it.


☺ Shall we say we are writing a memo about
how productivity can be increased in our
organisation.
☺ We may narrow this subject down to more
specific issues with questions such as what
follows:
• why is productivity that important?
• is our situation similar to that in other
organisation, and if that is the case,
how have they handled productivity?
• what part of the organisation is most
affected by a low productivity?


☺ For instance, if we are writing a work-
related memo to our colleagues, we don’t
usually need to consider their social
backgrounds or pastimes.
☺ As our audience is very important, when
possible, we should talk to the people who
are going to read and use our document.
☺ This will help us to get an idea of their
requirements, so that we include solely the
information that is important to them.
☺ We can make our writing easier to
understand for readers by creating links
between our subject and facts these
readers already know.
☺ Also we can use statistics and examples to
illustrate our points.


☺ Determining who our document should
be written for is an important part of
the planning.
☺ That means we should consider who our
readers are and what information we
can expect them to know before
reading our document.
☺ For example a group of specialists
requires more complex and technical
information than a non-technical group.
☺ We should decide which characteristics
of our target audience are relevant to
our subject matter.


☺ The purpose of a document, like the
audience to which it is directed, should
affect the way we write it.
☺ It can be said that business documents fall
into two general categories, each with its
own purpose:
• descriptive documents: they inform
readers or make suggestions
• persuasive documents: which try to
convince readers to take some course
of action
☺ After having decided which category the
document we are creating belongs to, we
can determine how to achieve its purpose.


☺ As an example, we have decided to create a short
memo to tell our work colleagues about new
developments in computer technology.
☺ This type of descriptive memo should be straight
forward while including the relevant facts and
maybe our opinions and comments.
☺ If we want our document to persuade the audience
to carry out a task, we need to explain why they
should go on with that task.
☺ We should include convincing arguments that
support our position.
☺ Also we should accentuate how the course of
action will benefit that audience instead of
underlining possible disadvantages.


☺ It is essential we find the accurate tone to
use when trying to persuade readers.
☺ Appealing to our readers’ emotions is valid if
we want them to make a charitable donation,
but it would seem patronising or even
offensive in most business situations.


Devising an effective structure
To show how to devise an effective structure for your document.


Devising an effective structure: Objectives
able to:
• discuss ways of structuring and
drafting business documents


Devising an effective structure: Summary
☺ Word-processing programs are particularly
useful when you are structuring a document,
because they let you change it easily and
save several versions of that document.
☺ There are a number of ways in which you
can organise your document.
☺ If it is relatively short, a simple list of your
main points can work well.
☺ A chronological structure may be useful for
a descriptive document, while a deductive
structure may be better for a persuasive
one.
☺ Whichever structure you decide to use, you
should always place the most important
facts at the start of your document.


Devising an effective structure: Summary
☺ You can improve the quality of your writing
by using a number of drafts to refine your
documents.
☺ After creating a draft, you should set it
aside for a while before you review it or you
should have someone else review that draft
for you.


Developing an effective style
To show how to use an effective writing style.


Developing an effective style: Objectives
able to:
• discuss how to develop an effective
writing style


Developing an effective style: Summary
☺ If possible, you should try to make your
writing style conversational.
☺ To do this, you should where possible use
smaller, more familiar words instead of
obscure, complex ones.
☺ You should also try to avoid using very long
sentences, jargon, clichés, or outdated
language.
☺ Because people respond better to positive
facts, you should emphasize positive rather
than negative facts in your writing.
☺ It is also important to avoid using language
that demeans anyone’s race, religion, or
gender.


Developing an effective style: Summary
☺ Language structure and grammar are
important elements of style.
☺ For example, you can make your writing
easier to understand by breaking it into
coherent paragraphs and varying the length
of the sentences you use.
☺ Because it emphasizes the do-er of an
action, using the active voice also makes
your writing more accessible.


Writing effectively

To show how to write effective memos and letters.


Writing effectively: Objectives
able to
• discuss how to create effective memos
and letters


Writing effectively: Summary
☺ There are specific rules and formats that
you should apply to documents such as
business memos and letters.
☺ Memos consist of a number of sections -
the header, the body, a conclusion, and any
relevant attachments.
☺ In the header section you should include
your own name, the full names of the people
to whom you’re sending the memo, the date,
and a description of the memo’s subject.
☺ In the body of your memo you first
establish why you’re writing, then make your
points, and finally state your conclusion.
☺ Because they are usually sent to people
outside your own company, business letters
are more formal than memos.


Writing effectively: Summary
☺ You should include your own address as well
as that of the person to whom you’re
sending the letter.
☺ Your letter should begin with a formal
greeting and end with a closing statement.
You should type your name at the bottom of
the letter and also include your signature.


Effective Business Writing

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