One-on- One Written Communication N Communicating through Emails

One-on- One Written Communication  N Communicating through Emails 

D Written Communication:

Written communication has great significance in today’s business world. It is an innovative activity of the mind. Effective written communication is essential for preparing worthy promotional materials for business development. Speech came before writing. But writing is more unique and formal than speech. Effective writing involves careful choice of words, their organization in correct order in sentences formation as well as cohesive composition of sentences. Also, writing is more valid and reliable than speech. But while speech is spontaneous, writing causes delay and takes time as feedback is not immediate.

 

A ‘Written Communication’ means the sending of messages, orders or instructions in writing through letters, circulars, manuals, reports, telegrams, office memos, bulletins, e-mails, social media, books, magazines, the Internet and other media. Until recent times, a relatively small number of writers and publishers were very powerful when it came to communicating the written word. Today, we can all write and publish our ideas online, which have led to an explosion of information and communication possibilities.

It is a formal method of communication and is less flexible. A written document preserved properly becomes a permanent record for future reference.

It can also be used as legal evidence. It is time-consuming, costly and unsuitable for confidential and emergent communication.

 

Written communication, to be effective, should be clear, complete, concise, correct, and courteous.

Communication when there is an exchange of facts, feelings, opinions, and ideas. In what ways do we communicate? By and large, we communicate using three mediums – Verbal and non-verbal communication.

Verbal communication includes written, oral, visual and audio-visual  Depending upon time, distance, and purpose, we choose either of these mediums to communicate. In this chapter, we are going to talk specifically about written communication. Let’s get into it!

 

To be exact in writing communication is essential to getting across accurately. Written communication allows one to think thoroughly and refer back to it whenever required. This means record maintenance in Business. There are different ways businesses encounter written communication.

 

Following are a few examples:

·        Bulletins

·        Emails

·        Memos

·        Instant messages

·        Reports

·        Job descriptions

·        Employee manuals

·        Internet websites

·        Letters

·        Proposals

·        Telegrams

·        Faxes

·        Postcards

·        Contracts

·        Advertisements

·        Brochures

·        News releases

Now that we have a sense of what written communication is, let’s move to some of the requirements of effective written communication.

 

Requirements of Effective Written communication

In most business environments, there’s a lot of reliance on written documents and hence the need to be clear and effective in written communication. Right from the notes, we scribble to the reports we draft, everything involves written communication.

 

Since we return back to our written notes, reports, etc. later. And also most of the written pieces are meant for an audience, small or large, it’s important that it is kept simple, and easily understandable for all. Here are some simple factors that are essential to effective written communication:

1. Appropriate Words

In the Business world, everything truly comes down to communication. Work is executed by people and people are humans. They have feelings, expectations, and needs. Choosing the right words in time is what saves the day.

For example, words like “Could you please”, “would you please”, “requesting you to”, “may I request your kindness”, while addressing a superior on a mail for getting some work done is more appropriate than blurting out an order.

Notice that the action is the same. It’s only the words that will bring about a difference of acceptance of your request or not.

Even while addressing juniors or peers, being polite, respectful and sometimes even friendly goes a long way. Being perceived as a cold boss because of showing lack of empathy also hurts your reputation at work and most likely your work environment.

 

In other situations, knowing your language well comes in handy because you get your idea get delivered as intended. For example, although “too” and “also” the same meaning, “Too” is used in slightly negative senses while all other use cases take “also.”

A simple comma or exclamation can change the meaning of a sentence. Know your language well to communicate appropriately.

2. Clarity in intent or idea

A pre-defined agenda or intent of the idea is like setting a tone for your communication. Imagine you want to give facts in a report and the usage of words like “may” or “could” make it sound uncertain.

Read the paragraph below to see how clearly the intent of explaining marine life statistics is written:

“Altogether there are 230,000 documented marine species, including about 20,000 species of marine fish, and it has been estimated that nearly two million marine species are yet to be documented. 

 

Marine species range in size from the microscopic, including plankton and phytoplankton which can be as small as 0.02 micrometers, to huge cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises) including the blue whale, the largest known animal reaching up to 33 meters (109 feet) in length. Marine microorganisms, including bacteria and viruses, constitute more than 90% of the total marine biomass.”

To quote an example of how clearly the ideas are portrayed in the above paragraph, here’s an instance: If the word documented was missing from the first line, the information would have sounded like a claim of exactness. Using the word “documented” ensured that the reader knows that the number quoted are the ones that are documented and not the actual representation.

3. Inoffensive Language

Not once should we sound like we are not on the readers’ team, even when we have different ideas, it should never sound like we are against the user?

 

What good is a written document that doesn’t get read? By using a blunt, highly rigid and opinionated language that could offend the reader, we may shut his mind to the document making the whole document futile.

Even when we have a complain there’s a difference between being firm and being offensive.

 

 For example, if the well in advance scheduled delivery of my consignment hasn’t reached on its desirable date and it’s past 2 days already. I am waiting but there’s not even communication from the vendor’s end. Now we know they are in the wrong and also irresponsible enough o not communicate yet, but this is my trusted vendor and I don’t want to go through the trouble of finding another one now. Here’s what I should write to him:

 

“Hello xyz,

 

We are compelled to write to you about our consignment no. 123. This consignment was expected to be delivered by 12-12-2018 and hasn’t arrived so far. Would you please let us know what’s the bottleneck there? We have had a smooth experience of business with you thus far and would appreciate your honesty here. Please feel free to let us know if we could help you in some way.

Thanks and Regards

Your name”

 

What you did there was you asked polite questions for them to lead to statements that you would want to say anyway. Message well received and it keeps the tone soft yet firm.

 

4. The tone of your writing

Another important and final factor of your written communication is the style or tone of writing. This is what the colour of your communication is. This is what separates jokes from sarcasm, the assertion from negation.

It’s true that tone is more felt in verbal communication, but there are aspects to even written communication that sets the tone. For example, by using dignified and mannered writing, we do what is called “formal writing”.

Other times we want to be less formal, more personalized and closer to the reader in the “informal writing” style.

 

Depending upon your audience, and the kind of message you are conveying, the tone is set and it helps the reader to set expectations from your writing and understand you better.

With that, we will sum up our piece on written communication. You can read the instructions, but to really absorb them all, what you need is to read many examples. They say, if you read good, you write well and if you listen good, you speak well. Have fun with English!

 

Advantages of Written Communication:

The advantages of Written Communication are stated below:

1. It is suitable for long distance communication and repetitive standing orders.

2. It creates permanent record of evidence. It can be used for future reference.

3. It gives the receiver sufficient time to think, act and react.

4. It can be used as legal document.

5. It can be sent to many persons at a time.

6. It is suitable for sending statistical data, chart, diagram, pictures, etc.

7. Order, allocation of work, job distribution, etc. in written form reduce ambiguity and help in fixation of responsibility.

8. Uniformity in work procedure can be maintained through written communication.

9. It is easy to send unpleasant or bad news through written communication.

10. A good written communication can create goodwill and promote business.

 

Limitations or Disadvantages of Written Communication:

Followings are the limitations or disadvantages of Written Communication:

1. It is time-consuming. Composing a message in writing takes much time. Writing letters, typing orders, notices, etc. and sending to appropriate destination require time. Feedback process also is not instant.

2. It is expensive not so much due to postal charges but in terms of so many people spending so much of their time.

 

 E Communicating through emails

Electronic mail, email (or e-mail) is defined as the transmission of messages over communications networks. Typically the messages are notes entered from the keyboard or electronic files stored on disk. Most mainframes, minicomputers, and computer networks have an email system.

Email is the most widely used tool for business communication at the workplace. We read and compose at least 50-60 emails a day on an average. Poorly written, unclear, misleading or ineffective emails not only cause a loss of time and productivity, but can also harm one’s reputation by leaving a poor impression on the reader.

It, therefore, becomes imperative that we make the best possible use of emails to communicate effectively at the workplace. To do so, you must keep in mind some basic email etiquette to draft the perfect official email.

 

Relevance

Email as a means of communication can be effective only when it is relevant. Email may be convenient but does not necessarily mean that it is the best means of communication in every situation at the workplace. Before you start writing, ask yourself if it really is necessary and you need to email at all; will a phone call or a face-to-face discussion not suffice.

 

Subject line

Always add a subject line to your emails. Emails without a subject line are overlooked as spam, more often than not. The subject line, as the name suggests, must be specific to the content of your email. Treat an email subject line as you would a newspaper headline – use it to grab the reader’s attention whilst summarizing the main idea of the email in a concise sentence.

 

Example: “Monthly planning report – January 2015” instead of an ambiguous “Report” in the subject line specifies which report the email refers to.

 

Content

It is always a good idea to think about what you want to write before you actually do so. It helps in adding clarity to your message. Organise your thoughts in a logical sequence before jotting them down. Refrain from sending inappropriate messages.

 

Keep your messages clear and brief. Your sentences should be short and to the point. Long and badly structured sentences confuse the reader. The length of your email is also important in determining how effective your message is going to be. Research has shown that people do not have the time or the inclination to go through long, tedious emails. It is ideal to keep your emails as short as possible without eliminating necessary information.

 

Avoid miscommunication by keeping content clear, organised and contextual. Begin your email with a formal salutation, state the purpose of writing and provide a context to why you are writing. Use paragraphs – form a paragraph with related points and change paragraphs to present separate ideas.

Close the email by stating the outcome you expect from your message and sign off with a polite greeting and your name.

 

Tone

The emails you send are a reflection of your professionalism. Emails at the workplace must have a formal tone to them. There is always a higher chance of miscommunication over emails because your words are not accompanied by gestures, body language and facial expressions, and your reader may easily misconstrue your words. Be polite, choose your words wisely, use proper punctuation and avoid capitalizing all your words.

 

For instance, there are more chances of your receiving the said report with a “Please send me the report” over “Send me the report!” or “SEND ME THE REPORT”. A polite message always elicits a more favourable response over a harshly worded one. Exclamation marks are not seen as formal and should be avoided in official emails. Whole words (not acronyms) and sentences when written in capital letters are considered extremely rude and unprofessional.

 

Language

An email can be effective only when the language used is grammatically sound and is spelt correctly. If the reader cannot understand what you have written, there is hardly any chance of them taking any action on it, thereby rendering your message ineffective. An email rife with spelling mistakes also makes you look incompetent. Review your messages before sending them. Make it a habit to proofread your emails twice over and use spell check. Your emails must always give an impression of being well thought out.

 

Response time

Good email etiquette maintains that you do your best to respond to business communications as soon as possible. When you do not respond promptly, you come across as unorganized and unconcerned. Even if you are not able to attend to an email right away, writing a line back in acknowledgement that you have received it and will attend to it shortly, shows professionalism.

Write not an email that you would not want to be a recipient of – keep this golden rule in mind while sending emails at the workplace.