Agenda

Concreteness and clarityOrganization and reader perceptionOrganization for neutral, informative

documentsCorrectness: myths and realitiesInformative memo assignment

Concreteness

Be clear - use specific facts and figures

Put action in your verbs

Choose vivid, image-building words (that are professional)

Being clear

Precise, concrete, familiar wordsExamples:

Short, simple sentences and paragraphsSpecifics:

Putting action in your verbs

Active vs, passiveDefinition:

Examples:

Uses:

Nouns vs. verbsExamples:

Uses:

Choosing vivid words

This is in reference to your correspondence of September 12, in which you accepted the firm’s offer of employment in the position of ….

Welcome to XYZ, Inc.! Thank you for your recent letter confirming your acceptance...

Cover letter exercise #1

In small groups, read the exercise and rank the cover letter samples in each category

How could each letter be improved?

Organization and perception

Where is attention strongest when you read a document?

The attention curve

Using the curve:Advance organizers

What are they?

Why use them?

Using the curve: PAL

What it is Porch: connection between message content,

sender, and receiver Action: clear and precise statement of purpose Layout: brief overview of content

When (and why) to use it

Organization: informative

Direct approach First: main idea,

main point Middle: explanation

(all relevant details) End: positive,

friendly tone; clear statement of action desired (if any); next steps

Announcement First: best news;

reader benefit Middle: details;

instructions; re-emphasis of reader benefit

End: offer of additional help; contact info; next steps

Cover letter exercise #2

Exchange cover letters with a partner Underline the main

point. Is it in the first paragraph?

How is the letter organized? (What comes first, second, third, etc.?)

How does it use advance organizers?

How clear and concrete is the language?

What is correct usage?

Standard English grammar (subject-verb agreement, pronoun reference, verb tense)

Accurate spelling Appropriate word choice

(level of formality, accurate meanings, specific words)

Generally accepted punctuation

Grammar

Punctuation

Spelling

Myths and realities ofEnglish usage

There is one correct form of Standard English

People who do not use Standard English are lazy, ignorant, or of low social class

People who don’t use language properly can’t be expected to perform their jobs properly

People will judge you on your use of English

Types of errors and their impact

In order of importance to readers: Disruptive errors: make determining your

meaning difficult Credibility errors: reflect negatively on your

professional image Etiquette errors: generally not noticed, but can reflect negatively on your image

Accent errors: characteristic of non-native English

Informative memo

What type of communication is this?

What will readers need to know? In the case? Not in the case?

How will you show reader benefit?

Assignment

Read Ch. 8Read the packet on “Correctness”Review Appendix B for punctuation quiz

Thurs.Write a draft of the informative memo

(draft due 9/21, final due 9/26)