Seven C'S For Effective Communication India

By- Meenakshi Aggarwal August 18, 2011

1. Completeness2. Conciseness3. Consideration4. Concreteness5. Clarity6. Courtesy7. Correctness

Completeness of facts is absolutely necessary Incomplete information creates

misunderstanding Incomplete information is worse than no

information For e.g.- when ordering shirts by mail, one has

to specify all the relevant facts- Size Color Catalogue number Quantity Mode of payment Mode of dispatch Required date of delivery

One way to make your message complete is to answer the five W’s.

WHO? WHAT? WHEN? WHERE? WHY? The five question method is useful when you

write requests, announcements, or other informative messages.

For instance, to order (request) merchandise, make clear WHAT you want, WHEN u need it, WHERE it is to be sent.

Convey the message using fewest words

Conciseness is the prerequisite to effective business communication due to paucity of time

A concise message saves time and expenses for both the parties

Include only relevant facts Avoid repetition Avoid wordy expressions Organize your message well

E.g. Wordy:- at this time. Instead of “at this time” you can

just use only a concise word:- NOW ,

Always try to use “ To the point Approach” in a business scenario

Always try to provide only relevant information to the receiver of the message.

Lets say one of the customers of a company requested for the list of the clients of the company- In reply , the company should provide only the list of

clients No need to provide detailed business information about

client at all In order to include only relevant information-

Stick to the purpose of message Delete irrelevant words Avoid long introduction, unnecessary explanation etc. Get to the important

Consider the receiver’s interest/intention

Adopt the you attitude Emphasize positive, pleasant facts Maintain a level of decency

You attitude“You have a choice of four schemes

in which you can invest your savings.”

Readers may react positively when benefits are shown to them.

Message should be specific instead of general. Misunderstanding of words creates problems for both parties

Using facts and figures instead of irrelevant information, makes the message more concrete and believable

GeneralHe is a very intelligent student and

held the first rank in the class.ConcreteAli’s GPA in MBA (Finance) was 9.9

and he held the first rank in his class.

Clarity of thought- The communication starts with the generation of idea in the transmitter’s mind. She must be clear about three things- What is the objective of communication? What is to be communicated? Which is the most suitable medium for the

purpose?

Clarity of expression- If the encoding is faulty, the message may be misinterpreted. A careful choice of words is a must. Points to be noted- Use simple words Use concrete expressions Prefer active constructions Avoid jargon Avoid ambiguity

Courtesy involves being aware, not only of the perspective of others, but also their feelings. Courtesy stems from a sincere ‘you’ attitude.

it is not merely politeness with mechanical insertions of “please” and “Thank you” .

Courtesy demands a considerate and friendly behavior towards others

Be thoughtful and appreciative Use expressions that show respect for the others Choose nondiscriminatory expressions Omit irritating expressions like- you forgot, you

failed, your irresponsible approach Apologize sincerely for an omission Thank generously for a favor

Correct facts and figures At a proper time In the correct style Correct use of language