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PRINCIPLES OF WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

A. TALAPATRA 2

WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONThe letter is the most common form of written communication

Letter is used for

Information

Contacting potential customers

Making & answering complaints

Maintaining relations

Good messages should be clear & concise

As a person one should be sincere, confident, self respecting and friendly

A. TALAPATRA 3

PLANNING THE MESSAGEGood planning of any task is the basis of success

It gives you time to calm any strong emotions

It helps to make sure all information and ideas are included and are correct

It helps to compose the letter in a logical order and style best suited to the reader’s needs

Planning should be divided into two parts

Planning the content

Planning the style & language

A. TALAPATRA 4

STRUCTURE OF A BUSINESS MESSAGE

Almost all business letters have this framework

Opening

Giving required information

Action / response from the recipient

Closing

One should take care that:

A reply should be in the same order as the original

Events should be conveyed in chronological order

Ascending or descending order of importance should be used

A. TALAPATRA 5

OPENINGThe opening should be strong and impressive

Don’t repeat the subject

Don’t use outdated statements

Be positive in your replies

Use sentences like:

We are glad to say that we can deliver your goods a week earlier as you have requested

We are sorry to learn that the goods did not match your expectations, but we sent exactly as per the sample provided

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ENDINGCongratulations and appreciation are good for opening as well as closing, but don’t use both in the same letter

The closing must tell the reader what his next action should be

Win a favorable response

Have goodwill message if it is a final letter

Examples: Our representative will visit you on 15th at 10am

Please sign & return the enclosed form

We are sure you will place the order before the 12th

to avail of the special discount

Thank you for …. Best wishes for….

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THE 4 Cs OF GOOD COMMUNICATION

Correctness

Clarity

Conciseness

courtesy

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CORRECTNESSSpelling, grammar and language should be appropriate and correct

Appearance & layout – should not be untidy, or with typing errors, uneven margins & spacing

All dates, time, numbers etc. should be exact. There is no place here for incorrect information

The tone, formality & style should be appropriate for the occasion

Correctness also includes completeness in all respects

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CLARITYThere should be no ambiguity

Clarity depends on five factors

Simple common every-day words

Incombustible fireproof

Substantiate prove

Short & simple sentences

Proper punctuation

Definite & concrete details with figures & names

High performance 95% efficiency

Unfavorable weather rain

Logical sequence of ideas

A. TALAPATRA 10

CONCISENESSExpress the maximum in the minimum words

Achieve conciseness by Leaving out unnecessary modifiers

very unique, new innovation

Reducing important ideas to phrases or single words In the form of - as

Include necessary details clearly without using unnecessary words that lead to confusion Please dispatch goods at an early date so that we can

satisfy our overseas customers – please dispatch goods to reach us by Sept 7 since we have to ship them to Mexico by the 17th

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COURTESYA well mannered & courteous person shows consideration and thought for others

Use ‘please’ and ‘thank you’

Express sympathy when needed, good wishes when someone begins something new & congratulations on achievement

Make the other person feel comfortable

We appreciate your promptness in sending the goods

Be attentive & prompt in responding

Let the tone, choice of words & style of message reflect your consideration

A. TALAPATRA 12

YOU ATTITUDEPresent suggestions so that the reader sees how it is advantageous to him

Understand the reader’s needs & desires and show the reader how his needs are being satisfied

Let him see the advantage in responding to your letter – appeal to the common desires such as security, status, leisure, comfort, sympathy, courtesy & consideration

STYLE OF BUSINESS LETTERS

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STYLE OF BUSINESS LETTERSLetters convey messages, build good will, and create positive and pleasant feelings in the reader

One should

Avoid business jargon

Dealing with technical terms

Meanings and associations of words

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TACTFUL USE OF LANGUAGEAsking for action

Let us have your order before the 15th

Don’t forget to mail us the attached card

We must request you to settle the bill within three days

Will you arrange for a copy of the correspondence to be sent to us

Would you arrange for a complete inspection?

May I have a short interview at a time convenient to you?

You are requested to see me tomorrow morning

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TACTFUL USE OF LANGUAGE

Handling negatives

Avoid words like no, do not, mistake, error, failure, problem, negligence, damage, debt, cannot, unable

Emphasize what IS rather than what IS NOT

Start with positive action rather than explanation or apology

Give more space to positive ideas and less to negative ones

Examples on next slide

A. TALAPATRA 17

We cannot dispatch your goods since you have not informed us where they are to be delivered

Our office closes at 5.30pm

I cannot send the letter till Tuesday

We cannot ship in lots of less than 25

We shall be careful to avoid delay in the future

We shall dispatch your goods as soon as you inform us where they are to be delivered

Our office is open till 5.30pm

I can send you the letter on Thursday

To keep down packaging costs and help customers save on shipping costs, we ship in lots of 25 or more

We ensure prompt delivery in future

A. TALAPATRA 18

TACTFUL USE OF LANGUAGETalking about errors One should not sound accusing, fault finding, superior,

victorious or contemptuous

It is useful to sound cooperative, courteous, patient, clear and friendly

Active voice is used to give importance to the doer of the action, so when a mistake has been committed, use passive voice

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EXAMPLESYou did not pack the goods

properly

You have not signed the order form

Our new clerk confused the two orders

Your packaging department handled the crockery poorly causing the damage

The goods were not packed properly

The order form has not been signed

The two orders were confused

The crockery was handled poorly

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TACTFUL USE OF LANGUAGEActive voice is more direct and vigorous and is used to draw attention to the doer (yourself or your company) when it is a pleasant action We give discounts if the order exceeds Rs.5,000

We shall look into this matter immediately

Passive voice is used for unpopular decisions This information is not revealed to anyone

Discount is not given on these items

Passive voice is used to protect the source It is believed that Mr. XYZ has a large commitment

to his bank

Passive voice is used for scientific experiments

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TECHNIQUES OF EMPHASISPlacing – at the beginning or end of a sentence We do not stock cotton shirts as the demand has

fallen

As we found the demand for cotton shirts has gone down, we do not stock them now

No. of sentences and longer sentences for an idea that has to be stressed

Type of sentence used Active or passive

Degree of comparison

Mechanical devices – italics, highlighting etc are effective, but should be used sparingly

FORMAT OF A BUSINESS LETTER

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APPEARANCE OF A BUSINESS LETTERA letter makes a visual impression even before the words are read, so one should take care to have a good visual appeal. Appearance depends on Stationery

Typing

Paragraphing

Folding

Address

Other things like printed letterheads, continuation sheets and envelopes are also used

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PRINTED STATIONERYEvery office has standard stationery (size of sheets & envelopes) for correspondence

Letterheads:

There are two standard sizes 8.5 X 11” and 5.5 X 8” but letterheads can be in varying sizes

Simple elegant & streamlined designs are the current style

The letterhead should include

Name and business

Emblem

Postal, telegraphic & email addresses

Telephone, telex and fax numbers

A. TALAPATRA 25

CONTINUATION SHEETSA continuation sheet is the second sheet of the letter, if it does not fit on one sheet

It is the same size & color as the letterhead, and has the company’s name & logo printed at the top

The continuation sheet must have the name of the receiver, the page number, the date of the letter, either in a single line at the top or left justified

The top margin should be one inch and other margins aligned with the letterhead

A. TALAPATRA 26

CONTINUATION SHEETSIt is not necessary to indicate on the first page that a continuation sheet is being used.

There should be at least 4 lines of text on the continuation sheet, before the close of the letter

Care should be taken to write the new paragraph on the continuation sheet and not half on one page & half on the other

A. TALAPATRA 27

ENVELOPESThere are many different sizes of envelopes used as per requirements

The company’s name & address is printed at the bottom, on the left

Some companies print it on the flap of the envelope

The quality of paper & the color of the envelope should match

Window envelopes have a transparent panel for the address to show through. These are used for circulars etc. & not for confidential purposes

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PARTS OF A LETTERDate

Reference number

Inside address It is no longer considered appropriate to write the

word ‘to’ before the inside address

There are two formats of writing the address: Block

Indented

The attention line Is placed after the inside address

Used when letter is addressed to the organization, but the name of receiver is known thru previous communication contd….

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Continued… The salutation must match the inside address and

not the attention line

Subject line

Gives a brief indication of the subject & adds to the clarity of the letter

In full block form of letter, it is placed at the left margin, otherwise it is placed at the center

It is placed below the salutation if the letter has an attention line, else it is placed above

It may or may not have an introductory word ‘subject’ or ‘Re’, but is usually underlined or in capitals

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Salutation Begins at the margin, two line spaces below the

inside address

It may have a comma or a colon, but in full block form, no punctuation is used

The salutation matches the first line of the inside address (Mr. or Ms. or Sir or Madam, singular or plural)

Complimentary close Two lines below the close of the letter, on the right

followed by a comma, but to the left & no punctuation in full block form

‘Yours faithfully’ or ‘Yours truly’ is used, but ‘Yours sincerely’ is used if the addressee’s name has been used in the salutation

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Signature

The name of the signatory is typed 3 or 4 lines below the complimentary close, to leave space for the actual signature

Some companies use the designation of the signatory below his name followed by the name of the company, but since company name is already in the letter head, mostly it is not used

If the signatory is a man, Mr. is not used before his name, but if it is a woman, (Mrs.) or (Ms.) is put in brackets after the name

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Reference section

This includes enclosures, names of parties receiving copies, type of delivery service to be used and initials of the person who dictated and typed the letter

a) Enclosures –

The word ‘enc(s)’ or Encl(s)

Quotations, price lists, catalogues, brochures

If there are many enclosures they are numbered and placed behind the letter in the same order

Sometimes the enclosure is named – ex: Mark-sheet

contd….

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b) Copies

When more than one person are meant to receive the letter, it is indicated by writing ‘copy (ies)’ or cc (copy circulated), followed by the designation of the person to receive the copy

If we don’t want the receiver to know to whom we have sent a copy, we may just write ‘bcc’ (blind copy circulated)

c) Delivery service

It is indicated whether it is ‘Air Mail’, ‘Express delivery’ ‘hand delivery’ ‘courier’ etc.

d) Initials

The dictator’s & the typist’s initials are placed at the bottom (for future reference) Ex: CRT/gt

A. TALAPATRA 34

Postscript

Is not more than 3 lines and is added after the signature and signed again

Used for conveying some small, important matter which is not in the main letter

It could be some extra, unrelated point

Should not be used for something that was forgotten earlier

Can be used to convey something friendly or personal

Ex:

There is an early bird prize for the first 10 orders

How is your son doing at the hostel?

A. TALAPATRA 35

STYLES OF LAYOUTIndented form This style is now outdated

The address is indented and every paragraph begins three to five spaces away from the left margin

Full block form Commonly used now-a-days

Address & close has no punctuation

There is no indentation at all and every line begins from the left margin (even the complimentary close)

Quick reference to date and signatory is not possible once the letter is filed

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Modified block form This eliminates the shortcomings of the full block

form by keeping the date and signature to the right

There may or may not be any punctuation at the complimentary close

All paragraphs begin at the left margin, with double line spacing between them

It looks balanced and neat, and is most commonly used now-a-days

Semi-indented-form OR Semi-block form The inside address is in block form, but the

beginning of every paragraph is indented

Salutation & complementary close are followed by a comma

This style is also outdated

A. TALAPATRA 37

Hanging Indention form

The inside address is in block form, while the date & complimentary close is on the right

The beginning of the paragraph is at the left margin, but the subsequent lines are indented 3 to 5 spaces

This style is adopted for sales letters as it makes the first line stand out, and its striking appearance is useful

If this style is used, the opening lines of the paragraph should be forceful and important

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NOMA form – (recommended by the National Office Management Association of America) It has most of the features of the full block form

but also has the following

It has no salutation and no complimentary close

Subject line is in capitals & is three lines below the inside address

Numbered items of any list begin at the left margin, but un-numbered lists are indented by 5 spaces & have no full stops at the end of items

The writer’s name & title are typed in capitals below the signature

This is a practical style but some feel it is impersonal