In planning a business messages, It’s important that what you write is clear, concise and conveys the right message. Ultimately, you need to make sure what you say gets to the point.
A) Put your main point first – always put your important message in the first paragraph. If you waffle and mention the important part at the end, people will already have lost interest.
B) Use plain English – use the simplest language you can. Simple = clear and easy to understand.
C) Avoid jargon and buzzwords – don’t assume people understand your jargon. All industries develop jargon and abbreviations over time. But your customers won’t have a clue. Explain things clearly and simply. And try to avoid business cliches like ‘thinking outside the box’ or ‘blue-sky thinking’. They make you sound old-fashioned and overly corporate.
D) Avoid too many long sentences – keep sentences short and to the point. Three short sentences are much better than one long, hard-to-read sentence. And vary the length of sentences. Like this. It can really create a much better impact for what you’re saying.
E) Simplify long emails – when writing a long email, try to keep emails to less than 500 words. If you absolutely have to write a long email, outline the main points as bullets at the start of the email.
When you are preparing an e-mail message, memo, letter, or oral presentation, the process will be easier if you follow a systematic plan. The 3-x-3 writing process breaks the entire task into three phases: prewriting, writing, and revising.
01. Prewriting
The first phase of the writing process prepares you to write. It involves analyzing the audience and your purpose for writing. The audience for your letter will be other franchise owners, some highly educated and others not. Your purpose in writing is to convince them that a change in policy would improve customer service. You are convinced that a singleline system, such as that used in banks, would reduce chaos and make customers happier because they would not have to worry about where they are in line.
Prewriting also involves anticipating how your audience will react to your message. You are sure that some of the other owners will agree with you, but others might fear that customers seeing a long single line might go elsewhere. In adapting your message to the audience, you try to think of the right words and the right tone that will win approval.
02. Writing
The second phase involves researching, organizing, and then composing the message. In researching information for this letter, you would probably investigate other kinds of businesses that use single lines for customers. You might check out your competitors. You might do some calling to see whether other franchise owners are concerned about chaotic lines. Before writing to the entire group, you might brainstorm with a few owners to see what ideas they have for solving the problem. Once you have collected enough information, you would focus on organizing your letter.
The final step in the second phase of the writing process is actually composing the letter. Naturally, you will do it at your computer so that you can revise easily.
03. Revising
The third phase of the process involves revising, proofreading, and evaluating your letter. After writing the first draft, you will spend a lot of time revising the message for clarity, conciseness, tone, and readability. Could parts of it be rearranged to make your point more effectively? This is the time when you look for ways to improve the organization and tone of your message. Next, you will spend time proofreading carefully to ensure correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, and format. The final phase involves evaluating your message to decide whether it accomplishes your goal.
Source: Marry Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Business Communication Process & Product, 7th Edition
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