Persuasive Messages

In persuasive writing, it is extremely important to stick to the three-step writing process, and pay very close attention to the details of the situation, what you're writing about, and who you're writing for.


1.  Planning: Be compelling! Even if what you're pushing isn't the greatest, most innovative thing, you can make it be with the words you chose, and the means by which you project your message.

• Analyze your situation, be aware of your circumstances, and identify your purpose clearly. If you don't have a clear idea of your purpose, you will not effectively communicate your message.
• Consider both the pros and cons of your solution
• Be very clear who your audience is (age, gender, race, religion, personality, lifestyle, etc)
• Gather your information thoroughly.
• Select the right medium, whether online, in text, or speech.

2.  Writing: Often persuasive pieces are unexpected, and sometimes unwelcome. Make        sure you utilize the "you" attitude, and make it all about your audience! 

• Use simple language
• Back yourself up with solid facts
• Cite your sources
• Establish common ground
• Be objective
• Project your good intentions

3.  Completing: Don't skip out on important details, that could make or break your argument.  Make sure all of your bases are covered.

Negative Messages: Bringing them down Gently with Constructive Criticism

Negative messages are never fun to give, however there is always a way to craft a negative message that isn't forceful, and won't make the reader feel bad about themselves or what they've done. There are five goals of writing negative messages that are good to follow as a template:

1. Give the bad news first, that way the rest of your message is spent coming up with solutions. What is important to consider is how your audience will react to this bad news: will it come as a surprise? Should you get right to the point, or write a detailed, thoughtful message? What is the importance level of your message? What is the importance of your relationship with the audience? All of these questions are extremely important to consider when giving the bad news.
2. Make sure your audience accepts the news, even though it's not good news.
3. Keep the reader on your side by maintaining their goodwill.
4. Keep the organization in mind throughout. No matter what, you must maintain the image of your organization above all.
5. Try to reduce further conversation on the matter, and close your message on a positive note. Avoid uncertainty, be optimistic about the future, be sincere, and be confident.

The most important thing to remember when crafting a negative message is to avoid using negative phrases. There is no guarantee that you'll get your message across by using negatively phrased words. 

There are two approaches in giving bad news: direct and indirect. Use the direct approach when your negative news will not bring an extreme reaction. Use the indirect approach when you expect your audience will react badly.

Above all, be sure that your message is constructive. While stating the bad news, make sure that you are clear to the person that there is a way to fix the problem or rectify the situation. Point being, it's not the end of the world!

Routine and Positive Messages

Writing routine and positive messages also follow the three-step writing process discussed earlier (planning, writing, completing). No matter how small your message, no matter what the subject, it is always very important not to skip the planning step to define your purpose and be sure you're communicating it effectively.


When writing your message, again, do not forget who you're writing for. Make sure to always maintain proper etiquette, and bolster your credibility to strengthen your relationship with your audience. There are three things that are important to include in routine and positive messages:

• An opening sentence or two that presents your main idea or states your request
• The body of your message should include important details regarding your main idea
• Conclude cordially, requesting a response or immediate action

Again, make sure to give yourself time to review, proofread, and make necessary corrections to your letter. This step is always important, no matter how vital the message.

Podcasts

Podcasting is quickly emerging as the top mode of audio-visual communication in the business world. As long as your company has the equipment, it will be very easy for you to create meaningful business messages via podcast, and you can even use the three-step writing process in creating a podcast.


In the planning stage, it is useful to brainstorm the message you're trying to get across, and to think about the most effective way to say what you need to say. You must also decide whether your podcast will be updated regularly and constantly changing, or an active channel with regular additions on a specific topic.


Creating a podcast is similar to writing a speech in that you need to decide on a specific purpose, and transitions that help you move smoothly from point to point. Rather than being easily readable, your message needs to be easily understandable for listeners. To prepare, you can write a script, but the preferred method is to read from an outline with notes. The one thing that differs between writing messages and creating audio messages is that audio messages are much more difficult to edit, so be sure you are well-prepared before you start.

The Business Email: Not Your Everyday Note

Here I give a sample entry e-mail to a new Business Communications student, including a welcome, and tips about the course. I also give tips and do's and don'ts about writing business-style e-mails.

The first thing we have to remember about any sort of business writing, is that there is always an expectation of formality. Writing for business is not your run-of-the-mill writing experience because there will always be someone reviewing your work, and expecting more from you at the other end.

We are now in the 21st Century, and e-mail is the primary mode of communication for business and personal life alike. Because it is such a multi-faceted tool, it is very important to know who you're writing to, and how they expect to be communicated with. The nature of a business e-mail is extremely different to that of a personal message.

There is a formal three-step process for writing an effective business e-mail:

1. Planning: This may sound silly because how often have you had to plan an e-mail message? Normally e-mail is the quick and easy way to send a few words as a reminder, or well-wishes to someone. However, when writing to your boss or colleagues, it is very important to stick to proper business etiquette. In this stage, make sure your message is pertinent, and think very hard about the audience you're targeting. Make sure not to CC anyone who doesn't need to be included. This is the single largest disadvantage to e-mail use today: it is often overused.
2. Writing: Don't forget who you're writing to. The e-mail you're about to send isn't just another chat with a friend or family member, remember grammatical rules and the proper use for punctuation throughout because the person on the other end expects and intelligently written piece. Make sure that you write an effective subject line that's not too long and gets right to the point, and keep your emotions under control throughout.
3. Completing: Before you send your email, take a moment to review and revise it. Make sure there are no spelling or grammatical errors, and that it's easily readable. Also, make sure your addresses are correct, so that the message is sent to the right person.

Email-writing Tips:

• Be clear when requesting information, don't be passive, and don't make your reader look back to clarify what the request is.
• When writing a response to an e-mail, either include the original, or paraphrase the original request.
• Avoid long and complex messages.
• Adjust the formality of the message based on who you're writing for.
• Make yourself a signature, and use it consistently (a signature should include your first and last name, your title, and your phone number)
• NEVER TYPE IN ALL CAPS! It makes the reader feel yelled-at.
• Avoid color and unusual font
• Keep in mind that the Internet is an endless memory source: your message can be forwarded anywhere and saved forever.
• Avoid acronyms such as LOL, TTYL, etc. Use full words, proper spelling, and correct grammar.

Sample e-mail:

Dear Student,

On behalf of Schiller International University, I would like to welcome you to our class in Business Communication. From student to student, I would just like to say that I'm very impressed by this course, and I think we will have an excellent semester together. The information presented is very useful, and will help us build successful careers.

On the one hand, it may seem like a lot of reading and writing exercises, and you will probably use a lot of your free time on this course, but as I said, the information is beneficial to all.

I hope you settle in nicely, and I wanted to let you know that if you have any questions, feel free to contact me at any time.

Best regards,

Adrienne Jacobs

Introduction

Welcome to Business Communication at Schiller International University!

This blog is intended to outline proper business writing strategies in order to communicate effectively on the job with managers and subordinates. Here is a list of what will be discussed throughout:

• How to write a business email: do's and don'ts, language guide
• How to create a podcast
• Routine replies and positive messages
• Negative messages and constructive criticism
• Persuasive messages: how to sway your reader without being forceful

I hope you find this blog useful in your future writing endeavors!