business comm- chapter 4: Revising Business Messages - Alternative Formats

technique to improving writing's clarity:

- applying kiss formula (keep it short and simple ) - dumping trite business phrases - scrapping cliches - choosing clear, precise words - restraining exuberance - recusing buried verbs -shunning slang and buzzwords

Purge empty words.

- look for clauses that start with that, which, who... it appears that = appears

Enhancing Comprehension With Lists and Numbered Items

- numbered lists -bullet lists -capitalization punctuation parllelism

How to Proofread Complex Documents

1.Print a copy, preferably double spaced. 2.Set it aside and take a breather. 3.Allow adequate time for careful proofing. 4.Expect errors and congratulate yourself when you find them. 5.Read the message at least twice-once for meaning and once for grammar and mechanics. 6.Reduce your reading speed and focus on individual words.

Enhancing Readability Through Document Design white space = empty space on page

Expand the use of white space by... •Adding headings •Including bulleted or numbered lists •Using short sentences •Writing short paragraphs •Setting effective margins -typefaces -fonts

How to Proofread Routine Documents

•Read from a printed copy, to be safer. •Look for typos, misspellings, and easily confused words. •Study the document for inconsistencies and ambiguous expressions. •Look for factual errors.

Boosting Readability Through Document Design

Add headings to enhance comprehension. Types of headings to consider: •Main headings •Subheadings •Category headings

Revising for Conciseness incorrect: I am writing this email bc Professor suggested that your organization was hiring Correct: Professor suggested that your organization was hiring

Eliminate flabby expressions. - as due to the fact that & in view of the fact that... Limit long lead-ins. - im sending this email becuase... Drop unnecessary there is/are and it is/was fillers. - there is & there are Reject redundancies. - big in size Purge empty words. - as it appears -> appears

Making Listed Items Parallel Not Parallel Social media goals: •We are striving to create brand awareness. •Another goal is to enhance public relations.

Employ parallel (balanced) construction when listing similar ideas. Parallel Social media goals: •Create brand awareness. •Enhance public relations.

Drafting Concise Posts for Social Media Networks

Focus on main, useful ideas. Personalize whenever possible. Be prepared to revise many times for conciseness, clarity, and correctness. Choose descriptive but short words.

Choosing Appropriate Typefaces Sans Serif Consider sans serif for headings, signs, and material that does not require continuous reading. such as Arial, Calibri, gothic, Tahoma, Helvetica, Univers sans serif seem less appealing for longer documents

Serif - Consider serif for the body font. Notice that serif typefaces have small features at the end of strokes. -suggest tradition, formality, maturity -such as Times New Roman, century, palatino, geogia

Enhancing Comprehension With Lists and Numbered Items Use numbered lists (1, 2, 3) for items that show a sequence. Numbered List Follow these steps in starting a business: 1.Write a business plan. 2.Locate venture capital.

Use bulleted lists for related but unordered items. Bulleted List Consider the following: •Environmental regulations •Employee benefit plans

Understanding Margins and Text Alignment

best: using left-justified text and ragged-right margins without justification business letters and memos have side margins of 1 to 1.5 inches •Ragged-right margins provide more white space and improve readability.

typeface

defines shape of text characters

sentence - 20 or fewer words

paragraph - 8 or less printed lines

technique to improving writing's clarity: keep it short and simple - use active voice - avoid indirect pompous language dumping trite business phrases - find original ways to convey ideas -avoid uses classic business phrases scrapping cliches - cliches lack originality and clarity -avoid repeating cliches choosing clear, precise words -

restraining exuberance - don't use excessively recusing buried verbs -zombie nouns -verbs converted into wordy noun expressions -increases sentence length, slows the reader, muddy the thought shunning slang and buzzwords - avoid buzzwords— meant to impress not express + vague rhetoric + slang

Evaluate Your Writing

•Is it polished and clear? •How successful will this message be? •Does it say what you want it to? •Does it attract the reader's attention? •Will it achieve its purpose? •How will you know if it succeeds?

Applying Phase 3 of the Writing Process process of improving message's clarity, readability, conciseness

•Revising/editing: improving content and sentence structure •Proofreading: correcting grammar, spelling, punctuation, format, mechanics -evaluating: the process of analyzing whether your message achieves its purpose - Revising takes the most time in the writing process.

What to watch for in proofreading:

•Spelling •Grammar •Punctuation •Names and numbers •Format