Written Communication

Written Communication in corporate setting

The written communication is very much importance in day to day life at corporate worlds. Most of the communication in corporate worlds are in the form of written communication. Hence, we have to thinks some of the principles before writing in documents/ emails/ reports in the corporate settings. The basic principles of written communication are given below.

Basic principle of writing:

1. Simplicity: The written document should be very simple to understand and readable the the readers.
2. Readability: The written document should be very easy to read with clear fonts, photos, and vibrant colors.
3. Sincerity: The written document should be sincere in its message. It should tells the truth and don't hide any lies within it or facts.
4. Tonality: The written document should have the right tone. It should be emotional and respectful.
5. Brevity: The written document should be very concise, exact and must capture all the information.
6. Clarity: The meaning of the documents should be clear to the readers.

Other than above points, there are many styles of writing which are listed below:

1. First / Third Person Writing.

2. Formal/Informal Writing.

3. Narrative/ Anecdotes.

1. First/  Third Person Writing: This type of writing is used when we have to express our opinion, believe and advice. Or, We have to guide, give opinion, express concern, and advice to the others.

• First Person: Use of personal pronouns is very relevant in this type of communication. I/me/mine.
• Third Person: Use of non-personal pronouns. He/Him/His, She/Her/Hers/, They/Them/Their.

2. Formal/Informal Writings: It is used based environment to speak and considering types of audience in the mind. 

• Informal: Very conversational with less jargons. It is used to address the internal stakeholders of the company. 
• Formal: In this type of written communication, very controlled language and structure is used to address the external stakeholders. Furthermore, follow company protocol while documenting reports and drafting mail in this type of communication.

3. Narrative/ Anecdotes: Narratives are used when we want to help people to relate with the message better and can be used in formal writings too. Along with this, it can also helps make data more interesting while keeping in mind that writing must be brief and concise.

Other than above discussed points, There are other factors which we need to consider while documenting any reports/email or any other written document for corporate settings which are discussed below:

1. Grammar and spelling:

• Apply basic hygiene factors in applying grammars.
• Mistakes can be very costly if misspelled words received at other end.
• To avoid such error we could use the tools such as Grammarly, Microsoft Editor etc.

2. Formatting

• Make sure that text is aligned.
• Use fonts according to the mode of communication.
• Pay attention to font/image files.
• Follow specific structure.
• Apply the tools to have consistent fonts and formatting throughout the documents.

Now let us discuss for preparing the draft starting with the framework of  communication:

1. Audience

2. Objective

3. Message

It is also known as AOM framework. 

Audience

First we have to understand the audience and their background. Always avoid using jargons and make words selection very easy to understand.

Objective

The objective of the message should be S.M.A.R.T.

• S: Message should be specific.
• M: Message should be Measurable
• A: Message should be Achievable.
• R: Message should be Realistic.
• T: Message should be Timely.
  

Message

It is also called heart of the communication. Every message must be drafted uniquely for a specific audience.

Apply above framework to while witting report and other documents at corporate settings.

Parts of message 

There are mainly three parts of the business. These are opening, Body, and Conclusion.

All of the documents follow these process opening, body, and closure.

Along with this, there are the ways we can polish the framework to aid.

1. Minto's Pyramid
2. Mind Maps
3. Spider Diagram
4. Fishbone.

1. Minto's Pyramid: Minto's pyramid is used to dig deeper into the topics in extracting out the information. 

• Go deeper into the idea, close once starts not thinking anything close.
• Put the information in opening body, conclusion format once Minto's pyramid is ready.

2. Mind Maps : 

In mind maps you have to clarifying the objectives supporting ideas by the branches of the mind maps.

What are the ways to support your writing effective ?

• when you done with the writings, take feedback from the legitimate people before sending to other parties.
• Get insight from the target audience.
• Track Readers response.

Corporate worlds heavily relies on three types of communication

1. Email

2. Reports

3. Proposals

Email

These things you should know in corporate settings in terms of written communication

1. How to send an email ?

2. How to create a report ?

3. How to create a proposal ?

Important factors of corporate communication 

• Number of people it will reach.
• The response that you are trying to get.
• Use framework to collate idea before you start to write.

Elements of an email

An effective email contains following elements:

1. Subject Line

• It is most important part of an email.
• Most of the emails are opened on the basis of the subject line.
• Must be clear and to the point.

2. Curtsey

• Start with curtsies like 'dear', 'hi' etc.
• must describe the purpose of the writing.

3. Signature

•  Avoid using long signature.
• Can include your contract details.
• Help build your brand presence.

Here are the tips and tricks you can follow to writing letter.

• Use template from MS words, Adobe.
• Avoid flashy and too many colors.
• There should be balance between professionalism and creativity in your writing.

Report

Report is a documents which shares the information in an organized format for specific audience and purpose.

Report has following elements:

1. Index
2. Summary
3. Body
4. Bibliography
5. Appendices 

Summary is the most critical part of a report.

Questions the summary must answer:

• What is the report about?
• What is its objective?
• Who is the audience?
• What is the problem the report is solving?
• What are the recommendations of the report?

Parts of the summary

• context of the report
• The main subject or problem
• Problem resolution
• Recommendations.

Adding references and proper indexing makes for good report reading.

Proposals 

What does a proposal convey ?

• Your identity.
• What you are proposing.
• What should you be agreed with.
• What you can provide upon acceptance.

Types of Proposals

• Request
• Idea

Essential parts of proposal

• Executive Summary: State your purpose, and story points.
• Terms and Conditions: Include particulars of the content. biding clauses, legal parameters etc.

Persuasiveness and Assertiveness in writing

1. What is persuasion ? 

Answer: Persuasion is the theory of changing people by creating trust, giving logic and creating emotional connect.

People can be changed in the following ways:

• Creating trust.
• Being logical
• creating emotional connect.

Persuasion is the best used in proposal as the objective is convincible for someone.

The questions of persuasion 

• Who are you ?
• What do you want from me ?
• Why would I agree with you ?
• What's in it for me ?

The act of persuasion

1. Who are you ? : Talk about the common acquaintance to build trust. We can answer with the name of your company and designation.
2. What do you want from me ? : Talk about your objective.
3. What's in it for me ? : Give them a proposal with an additional benefits.

What is Assertiveness?

Assertiveness is being firm about what you have to say.

What is being assertive means ?

• come straight to the point.
• stick to the written word.
• stick to the terms and conditions.
• Don't negotiate over mail.
• Write an email after negotiations are done.