WRITING! WRITING! WRITING!

Transcription

1 WRITING! WRITING! WRITING! Gayle Adlam

2 WHY ARE YOU HERE? Sent: Tuesday, November 24, :55 PM To: Subject: RE: Business writing and communication skills course Hey Do we received certificate's Frank

3 DON`T COMMUNICATE TO BE UNDERSTOOD; RATHER, COMMUNICATE SO AS NOT TO BE MISUNDERSTOOD.

4 EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION Audience Context SUBJECT Purpose

5 WHY IS BUSINESS WRITING IMPORTANT? Writing sets your company image to others The first impression is the last one The way you communicate with your existing and prospective clients, employers, associates etc. will determine your success Legal responsibility

6 PLAIN LANGUAGE National Credit Act Consumer Protection Act The Long-Term and Short-Term Insurance Acts policy holders The Companies Act, 71 of 2008 Right to information in plain and understandable language

7 HOW TO WRITE IN PLAIN LANGUAGE Be customer centric Use simple and precise words Use positive language avoid; unfair, unless; no; not; etc. Use: bulleted lists, tables, graphs, charts, diagrams Give examples Brush up on your punctuation Write short sentences and paragraphs Use the active voice James kicked the ball

8 CHOOSE YOUR WORDS Precise and Simple advantageous helpful consolidate combine cognisant aware commence begin, start endeavour try terminate end Slang let s go grab some chow. Sexist Write without pronouns Chairman/chairperson businessmen/ businesspeople

9 CHOOSE YOUR WORDS Technical Defining technical terms in a glossary Jargon high resolution jpeg, empower, community Abbreviations PGDS, KOM, LOL, WGHS Repetition Absolutely essential Advance planning Emotion Reckless, terrorist, brilliant Racist The white manager said.

10 WRITING WITH RESPECT One good way of getting a positive response is show respect. Being polite is not just about saying please and thank you. It is also the tone of your writing. Show you care, thank people for their contribution or work. Acknowledge s and letters. Try to sound neutral rather than confrontational. Don t use the word you as it can sound like an attack. Soften bad news by leading up to it. Don t demand, rather start sentences with I want or I would like.

11 USE POSITIVE LANGUAGE Avoid verbs with negative associations like avoid; cease; unfair, unless; no; not; never, mistake, problem, refuse, stop, unable to, unfortunately, Don t slam the door! Shut the door quietly. The problem we have at hand is The situation we have at hand is I am unable to provide the report before Wednesday afternoon. I would provide the report at the earliest by Wednesday afternoon.

12 EMOTION There is no need to give away emotions/feelings in business writing. The key here is to be personable but professional. Avoid phrases like: It is really unfortunate I deeply regret to break this news There is a huge effort involved It is too late It is extremely urgent

13 USE: BULLETED LISTS, TABLES, GRAPHS, CHARTS, DIAGRAMS The B-BEEE Service includes: Recruitment Skills development Employment equity BEE scorecard Supply chain management

14 WHY SHOULD YOU PUNCTUATE? Clarify Make text readable Be reader orientated Let s eat grandpa. Let s eat, grandpa. Correct punctuation can save a person s life.

15 HOW SHOULD YOU PUNCTUATE?

16 WHO IS HIREWAY & Byway? Craig Oliver, managing director of Hireway, prides himself on the reliable services provided. These enable their customers to improve their productivity. His team has a collective experience of over seven years in the plant hire / sale sector. Based in ethekwini, the Level 4 B-BBEE certified company is supported by an extensive distribution footprint of twelve outlets located throughout KwaZulu-Natal. Craig Cook said, We are not a corporate company situated kilometres away we are in our customers backyard. We have a quick turnaround. It s brilliant! This brings us closer to our customers for the delivery of quality products; our sales staff provide excellent (and efficient) after sales service, Cook added. Go and visit

17 WRITE SHORT SENTENCES AND PARAGRAPHS Before If there are any aspects on which you require more explanation or any further details our sales department shall be happy to provide such extra details as may be required by telephone. After If you have any questions, please phone our sales department for more details.

18 GRAMMAR Study the basic blocks of grammar Read as much as you can Concentrate on the most difficult aspects of grammar Learn irregular verbs Learn tenses Find resources Practice when you can 18

19 USE THE ACTIVE/PASSIVE VOICE An active-voice sentence starts with WHO IS DOING the action, then the action follows. Active: The department (WHO) increased sales(action). Passive: Sales (ACTION) were increased by the department (WHO) Active: Employees (WHO) need to wear safety glasses(action). Passive: Safety goggles need to be worn(action) by employees (WHO).

20 PLANNING WHO? WHAT? WHERE? WHEN? WHY? HOW? Who does it impact? What does it mean? What should I know? What s in it for me? Where/what locations will it affect? Where can I get more information? When is this happening? Why is it the right decision? Why now? Why is it important? How will it be implemented? How does it impact on the reader?

21 PERSUASIVE WRITING Appropriate to audience - Same tone and style as they would use What s important to this person? Motivate your reader. What are the major benefits of doing what you are asking them to do? Show them the consequences Ask questions Reframe possible objections/ anticipate the response from the recipient(s). Show no gray area Have them make a commitment/ overcome inertia

22 TIPS FOR EFFECTIVE S 1. Think before you write. You are accountable for what you write. 2. Use the subject line No negative words in a subject line EVER. Delay in project schedule, Changes in ABC project schedule. 3. Font and layout 4. Keep your message short and clear. One topic per 5. If your message is long, give a summary at the start. 6. Do not send angry messages. 7. Beware when forwarding messages including jokes etc.

23 TIPS FOR EFFECTIVE S 8. Don't type your message in capitals. 9. Respect common grammar and spelling conventions. 10. Send messages only to people who need to read them. Use CC: and BCC: sparingly. 11.Check address bar before sending fill in last 12. Proofread your message. 13. Make sure you have a grown-up address 14. Emoticons use sparingly 15. Contact details

24 EDITING AND REVISION Step 1: Content Step 2:Grammar and consistent spelling Step 3: Word choice and commonly confused words Step 4: Format and layout

25 PROOF READING Make it unfamiliar: Change the font or background colour Print it out and edit by hand Read it out loud and also silently Read it backwards to focus on the spelling of words Read it upside down Use a spell checker and grammar checker but don't depend on them Have others read it Read it slowly

26 PROOF READING Use a blank sheet of paper to cover the material not yet proofed Point with your finger to read one word at a time Don't proof for every type of mistake at once do one proof read for spelling, another for missing punctuation, consistency of word usage, font sizes, etc Keep a list of your most common errors Check names Check headings/ numbering etc Use a style guide/ grammar resource

27 PRACTICE! PRACTICE! PRACTICE!