MESSAGE DESIGN

CHAPTER-6

The Process of Preparing Effective Business Messages

The Process of Preparing Effective Business MessageWhy preparing for effective business message?

Whether we are preparing a written or an oral business message, to be effective we need to plan, organize, draft, revise, edit, and proofread.

Essential also is thoughtful adherence to communication principles- the seven C qualities and awareness of legal and ethical aspects as well.

Even with the most advanced office technology, the need for careful preparation of either written or oral messages demands efforts

The Process of Preparing Effective Business MessageFive Planning Steps

1. Identify Your Purpose2. Analyze Your Audience3. Choose Your Ideas4. Collect Your Data5. Organize Your Message

The Process of Preparing Effective Business MessageStep 1: Identify Your Purpose

It is important to determine first the specific reason of writing. The reason of writing a message could be:

Mainly informational, such as announcement etc.

Persuasive, such as promotion of product or sending applications for personal reasons, etc.

Negotiating

Creating goodwill

The Process of Preparing Effective Business MessageStep 2: Analyze Your Audience

It is important to adapt to the message according to the receivers views, mental filters, needs, and culture. While preparing a message the care must be taken for the following aspects:

Member of a group, such as business or professional person; laborer, colleague, or subordinate; woman or man.

New or long time customer; young, middle-aged, or elderly.

Receivers educational level, attitudes and probable values (often culture-specific)

Finally consider and decide whether the receiver or listeners are informed or uninformed on the subject and whether they will react to the message positively or negatively, with interest or disinterest.

The Process of Preparing Effective Business MessageStep 3: Chose Your Idea

With the purpose and receiver in mind, the next step is to

choose the idea for message.

The idea of writing a message depends on the background, situation, cultural context and location of the receiver (national or international)

The Process of Preparing Effective Business MessageStep 4: Collect Your Data

After deciding about the idea to be included in the message, it is important to determine if the same requires specific facts, figures quotations, or other types of evidence to support the main idea of the message. It is important to know and take care of:

Company’s policies, procedures, and product detail if needed to support the main idea.

Enclose, if needed, a brochure, table, picture, or product sample.

The Process of Preparing Effective Business MessageStep 5: Organize Your Message

Before you write the first draft of the letter, outline your message (mentally or on paper). The order in which the idea is presented is as important as the ideas themselves.

Disorganized, rambling messages often seem careless, confusing, and unimportant.

Different approaches of organizing the business messages are necessary for different cultures. While the direct style is often preferred by US and European business people, the indirect plan is often more effective while writing to business people from South America, Middle East, and Asian Countries.

The Process of Preparing Effective Business MessageWhat is Organizational Plan

Organizational Plan is the choice of sender to prepare a message in a particular manner. There are two approaches of planning a message as follows:

Direct (Deductive) Approach: Use the direct approach when the

audience is receptive of your message.

Indirect (Inductive) Approach: When you expect resistance to your message, choose the indirect approach, such as bad-news message or a persuasive request.

For writing letters and memos, one of four basic organizational plans can be selected according to the situation:

1. The direct request (Deductive Approach)2. Good news (Deductive Approach)3. Bad-news (Inductive Approach)4. Persuasive request plan (Inductive Approach)

The Process of Preparing Effective Business Message Direct (Deductive) Organizational

Plan Direct Request Plan: This type of plan is used when the main

purpose of message is to make a request that requires less persuasion.

1. Main Idea a) Request, main statement, assertion, recommendation, question b) Reason, if desirable 2. Explanation a) All necessary and desirable detail and data b) Numbered questions, if helpful c) Easy reading devices

3. Courteous Close

a) Clear Statement of action desiredb) Easy Action, dated when desirable

c) Appreciation and goodwill

The Process of Preparing Effective Business Message Direct (Deductive) Organizational Plan Good News Plan: This type of plan is used when the main purpose

of message is to grant requests, announce favorable or neutral information, and exchange routine information within or between companies.

1. Best News or Main Idea 2. Explanation a) All necessary and desirable detail and data b) Resale material c) Educational material

d) Sales promotional material

3. Positive, Friendly Close, Including, if appropriate:

a) Appreciationb) Clear Statement of action

c) Offer of further help, reader benefits

The Process of Preparing Effective Business Message Indirect (Inductive) Organizational Plan

Bad-News Plan: This type of plan is one of the most difficult to prepare because your reader

may react negatively.

1. Buffer (Pleasant or Neutral Statements, reader-oriented) 2. Explanation a) Necessary data, tactfully stated b) Pertinent favorable, then unfavorable acts c) Readers benefit reasons

3. Decisions (Implied or Expressed) along with the offer of additional help or suggestions

4. Positive, Friendly Close

a) Appreciationb) Invitation to future actions desired

c) Easy action, dated when desirable d) Willingness to help further e) Reader benefit and goodwill

The Process of Preparing Effective Business Message Indirect (Inductive) Organizational Plan• Persuasive Request Plan: This type of plan are also difficult in a sense that you may one of

the most • difficult to prepare because your reader may react negatively.

1. Attention a) Reader benefit b) Reader-interest theme 2. Interest a) Descriptive details and data b) Psychological appeal c) Reader benefit

3. Desire a) Statement of request b) Supporting data to help create reader’s desire to grant request

4. Action a) Clear statement of action

b) Easy action, dated when desirable c) Special inducement e) Reader benefit and goodwill

The Process of Preparing Effective Business Message

The Beginning and Ending of Business Message

The most important part of Business Message is its opening and closing paragraphs.

Why ? Because “First Impression is the last impression” “We remember best what we read last”The trick is: Whenever possible, place the main favorable ideas at the

beginning and ending of a message. This advice is also applies to the paragraph.

The Process of Preparing Effective Business MessageOpening Paragraph

• The opening of message determines whether the reader continues reading, puts the message aside, or discard it. The rules of good opening paragraphs are:

1. Choose an opening appropriate for the message purpose and for the reader.

a) Main Idea or good-news first for direct-request, neutral, and good news messages

b) Buffer first for bad news messages.c) Attention-getting statements

The Process of Preparing Effective Business MessageOpening Paragraph (Contd.)

2. Make the opening considerate, courteous, concise, clear.

a) Get reader into opening.b) Keep first paragraph relatively shortc) Focus on positived) Use courteous, conversational languagee) Avoid repetition

3. Check for completeness regarding:

a) Sentence structureb) Date of letter you are answering

The Process of Preparing Effective Business MessageClosing Paragraph

• The closing is more likely to motivate the reader to act as requested if it is appropriately strong, clear, and polite.

• Here you have the opportunity to bring the final focus on the desired action and leave a sense of goodwill with the reader.

The Process of Preparing Effective Business MessageClosing Paragraph (Contd.)

1. Make your action request clear and complete with the five W’s and the H (how) if you want your reader to do something.

a) What and who: Clearly state when action you desire and who should do it.

b) How and where: Make action easyc) When: Date the action if desirabled) Why: Show reader benefit, if possible.

2. End with a positive, courteous thought.

a) Include any apologies and negative before the last paragraphb) Be friendlyc) Show appreciationd) Occasionally add a personal note

3. Keep the last paragraph concise and correct

a) Avoid trite expressionsb) Omit discussion of trivial detailsc) Use relatively short and complete sentences

The Process of Preparing Effective Business MessageComposing the Message (End of Planning Stage)

• Drafting Your Message: When you have completed the five planning steps and considered the opening and closing, you are ready for your first draft.

• The important thing in preparing a draft message is to get the most important information in your message on the paper.

• •

The Process of Preparing Effective Business Message Revising the message

• After finishing the first draft of the message, it is important to evaluate its content, organization, and style. The following are the suggestions for revising:

Does your message accomplish its purpose? Have you chosen the most effective organizational

plan? Are your points supports the adequate material? Is your language complete, concise, considerate,

concrete, clear, courteous, and correct? Have you used variety in sentence structure?

The Process of Preparing Effective Business Message

Editing & Proofreading Your Message

• Editing and proofreading are important to ensure that your documents have no mistakes in grammar, spelling, punctuation, or word choice.

• Persons writing in a second language will find it helpful to read their written material aloud.