Good Business Writing Skills - Essay Example

Good Business Writing Skills What is Business Writing? The term “Business Writing” is rather broad and can beused to effectively cover any form of written communication that may happen within the defined context of paid employment. This may include various forms of written communication such as memos, reports, marketing material, letters and public relations material (Albrecht, 558). Most organizations have their own set style of writing but the main principles governing good business writing are still applicable irrespective of whether the writer happens to be in the private or public sectors or even working in either a large governmental department or a small-scale business (Albrecht, 558). Importance of Developing Good Business Writing Skills Learning and horning effectual business writing skills can potentially have an immensely positive impact on my career advancement. Effective communication channels are a vital component in the successful running of any business organization. The use of professionally written writing material that is sent through these communication channels has been seen to improve an organization’s productivity as well as increase the ability of all the organization’s key functional areas to work together. This is especially so with the impact of globalization that has resulted in increasing global workplaces where collaboration is the usual norm (Small business Para 1). The development of professional courtesy is one of the benefits of enhancing my business writing skills. In this age of constant text messaging, formal writing is being severely affected and most leading companies have been seen to assume that poor writing skills is actually a sign of laziness. If a business document comes across to the recipient as being too abrupt, it can commonly be misconstrued as a sign of the recipient being not important enough for the sender to take the time out to carefully check the document’s spelling and grammar as well as write complete sentences. Conversely, if an email message is carefully written, it becomes more impressive than a letter because of its added advantage of rapid transmission. The email’s recipient assumes that the sender considers him to be important enough for him to ensure that the message arrived quickly(Small business Para 4). Good business writing skills help in actively persuading customers to buy a company’s products or services. This is an essential skill that is especially vital in the field of sales and marketing and may help a company in increasing its sales turnover figures (Small business Para 2). Business associates and supervisors who have successfully mastered the art of business writing tend to inspire a general feeling of confidence in their abilities to effectively manage the organization from their colleagues and employees. Sharp writing skills tend to convey to the reader the general impression that a sharp mind was responsible for composing the words. Sloppy writing has the inverse effect of conveying to the reader the impression that the original author is not intelligent and might even result in some questions being raised about their job-related competence(Small business Para 6). Business communication must ensure that it fully expresses the sender’s intention so as for it to be effective. An example being the fact that an instructional manual on how to operate a certain given machine cannot afford to have any gaps in the explanation it gives in its sequence of operations on how to operating the machine. The provision of incomplete information can have the resulting effect of failure to properly run the machine or potentially cause personal injury to the operator. A well prepared financial report must also display the same tendencies so as to effectively answer all the reader’s questions(Small business Para 5). Written communication to an organization’s employees is one of the potential ways that an organization can use to show its workers that it values their contribution as well as appreciate their efforts geared towards the overall success of the business. Writing a good document whose tone is positive and energetic will cause the employees to respond in a positive fashion (Appleman 83). Some Business Writing Skills that I would Wish to Develop Focus and Purpose: Because most business documents are often read in a hurry as the reader peruses them, this is often a challenge to the writer. The writer needs to convey the required information to the reader without loosing the reader’s attention. The writer’s focus must be clear from the initial onset of the document (Appleman 35). Target Audience: It is crucial for one to know the audience for which the document is targeted so as to be able to slant the message towards that particular audience based on their concerns and interests (Appleman 13). Organization: A business document’s organization can be vital in the determination of whether its recipient takes the time to read or toss it aside. Once the intended purpose of the letter has been clearly communicated in its opening, the letter’s body should be crafted to further develop and elaborate on the overview in details. The document’s conclusion should restate the document’s intend in addition to providing more information such as contact information or any particular deadlines (Appleman 61). Style: Passive statements are often vague, less easy and cumbersome to read as compared to active sentences. Many business people appreciate straight information as opposed to vague evasive information. Active voice is the best option as well as least confusing. Editing: It is important for business documents to be analyzed by a second person with a sufficiently solid grasp on punctuation and grammar usage to read over what has been written and correct any errors that the writer might have inadvertently left out (Appleman 123). My Plan for the Development of these Skills Practice I would ensure that I constantly practice my business writing skills as frequently as possible. I would ensure that I try to use good business writing skills even when performing mundane tasks such as sending casual office memos and e-mails. Online Course I would ensure that I take up an online course in effective business writing. There are a number of schools that offer various classes and workshops on business writing that could potentially help me in further developing these skills (Appleman 172). Being Mindful of the Reader I will be mindful of the reader whenever I happen to write a business proposal or letter. I will carefully take into consideration the reader’s interests and preferences. This will be achieved by my trying to obtain information on the recipient before I write the document. Constant Research I would ensure that I try to always brush up on the latest trends that happen to emerge in the field of business writing. This will be done while I keep abreast with all the true and tested aspects of good business writing such s flawless spelling and grammar. Works Cited: Albrecht, Karl. The ultimate resource. Beijing : Citic Publishing House, 2003. Print. Appleman, E., Jack, et al. 10 steps to successful business writing. Alexandria, VA : ASTD Press. 2008. Small Business 2013. Importance of Good Business writing Skills. Accessed on Jan 28th 2013 from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/importance-good-business-writing-skills-2844.html Read More