Business Writing and Document Production

domain

an organization's unique name on the Internet

RFP (requests for proposals)

ask companies to bid on a service

table

columns and rows that represent a certain set of data; can be created in a spreadsheet program, word processing software, or slide show presentations

analytical report

evaluates the data and may answer questions, feature a recommendation, or discuss feasibility

Serif

fonts have small projections on each letter and are generally assumed to be easier to read Ex: Times New Roman, Garamond, Bookman Old Style

Sans Serif

fonts without serifs, popular online Ex: Arial and Helvetica

Adobe InDesign

for more complicated designs, currently the industry standard, usually takes special training to use *not best for websites

em dash

formed by typing two hyphens together to separate or highlight a thought

line charts

good for showing data trends over time

pie charts

good for showing percentages

bar/column charts

good for visual comparisons between data intervals

branding

includes everything from the way a company's receptionist answers the phone to the look of the company's website, packaging, and promotional materials

jargon

industry terminology

hyphen

joins words or to separate syllables in a single word

Transactional Documents

legally binding records or any documents relating to transactions between businesses and their customers and clients ex: service statements, invoices

semicolons

link closely related independent clauses or sentences that are not joined with a conjunction

style guide

manuals that provide information on the basic rules of writing, including: proper grammar, punctuation, correct spellings, abbreviations, and capitalizations of words

active voice

means the subject does the verb's action and follows the pattern of subject, verb, and object

DPI (dots per inch)

measure of pixel, or dot, density; in particular, it is the number of individual dots that can be place din a line within a one-inch span (PPI - pixels per inch)

Shift + F6

move counterclockwise among panes in normal view

PAR (pixel aspect ration)

often called the DAR (dot aspect ratio), defines the ratio of width to height in an image

Memos

often used to communicate information internally when the message is confidential, sensitive, or needs a signature; helpful when staff members do not have access to office email

en dash

one dash to show a range in numbers

Indirect Style

paraphrasing your source using third person narration

colons

placed after independent clauses to emphasize what is coming next; a signal for the reader to pay attention, used between two independent clauses

Direct Style

quote your source exactly and use quotation marks

informational report

report to bring someone up to date on a situation

Redundancy

saying the same thing in two different ways

income statements

show revenue & expenses of an organization over a certain period of time such as monthly, quarterly, annually, etc.

statements of owner's equity

show the owner's capital at the beginning & end of a period of time

cash flow statements

show the sources of income as well as describe cash expenses over a certain period of time

Ctrl + F1

shows or hides ribbon

Copyediting

similar to proofreading but includes checking for style compliance using the company's approved style guide

balance sheets

snapshots of an organization's financial position comparing assets, liabilities, and owner's equity

templates

starting points for documents and other productions such as flyers or forms

progress report

states the purpose and nature of a project, provides background so the reader can understand the history of the project, discusses progress and concerns, and ends with an expected completion date

CTRL + Shift + Tab

switch between thumbnail pane and outline view

punctuation

the process of making the meaning of a sentence clear through the use of spaces, capitalization, and symbols

SEO (search engine optimization)

the process of maximizing the number of visitors to a particular website by ensuring the site appears high on the list of results returned by a search engine

Editing

the process of reviewing your work to see whether the content is clear

word wrapping

the process of using a word processing program to break a section of text into lines so it fits the available width of the display area and does not hyphenate words

brand

the reputation a company builds that tells a customer what to expect in terms of product, service and experience

pixel

the smallest physical object in an image

formatting

the way you organize and present the copy and can include the shape, size, binding, typeface, and paper choice

meeting minutes

they are an official record for future reference; they can be formal or informal, depending on the type of meeting

commas

used to join two independent clauses with a coordinating conjunction or to divide lists

document

used to record information that needs to be referred to later

passive voice

used when the subject receives the action

metaphor

when you declare something is the same as something else

secondary research

you read books or periodicals or search the internet for relevant material

To insert Headers & Footers:

- Click insert tab -Click Header or Footer in H&F group -Choose style you want to add

Website Building Tools

-Squarespace -Wordpress -WIX -Google Sites

Disadvantages of working in a team

-every effort is a group effort, and some individuals might not feel they are a part of the success -team members sometimes do not get along -some team members can have trouble comprising or listening to other ideas -slower members of the team can inhibit the rest of the team

A successful brand achieves:

-provide immediate recognition for your company and products -enhance your company's credibility -prompt an emotion response and motivate the customer to purchase

Advantages of working in a team

-team members share mutual goals -team members bring different skills, experiences and talents -members hold each other accountable -members build off others' ideas, which sparks creativity and innovation -others can fill in when a team member is gone

Inserting a shape into Microsoft Powerpoint

1. Press and release Alt 2. Press N, S and H to select shapes 3. Use arrow keys to move through categories of shapes and select the shape you want 4. Press CTRL + Enter

4 types of financial reports

1. income statements 2. balance sheets 3. cash flow statements 4. statements

CTRL + e

Center a Paragraph

Ctrl + A

Highlights entire document

Microsoft Visio

Industry standard program for creating professional and detailed charts, diagrams, and other graphical representations

Microsoft Excel

Robust spreadsheet software with built in tools for building a variety of charts to illustrate information

Prezi

cloud-based alternative to Microsoft Powerpoint

primary research

collect information through surveys, records, and observations

database

a collection of information organized to be easily accessed, searched, and updated

independent clause

a complete thought that has a subject and a verb and can stand alone as a sentence; a simple sentence

simile

a figure of speech that is a direct comparison and connects the subjects being compared using words such as "as", "like", or "than"

written proposal

a formal plan that includes detailed, direct suggestions for how the products or services will be performed through the final outcome of a project

Business Letter

a formal way of communicating clearly with clients or company employees

Grammar

a set of rules governing the composition of clauses, phrases and words

parallelism

a way to help readers understand how two or more parts of a sentence are related. Uses components in a sentence that are grammatically the same or similar in their construction, sound, meaning, or meter.

Reports

accounts of proceedings, transactions, or events

chart

collection of info on a sheet or display in the form of graph, table or diagram

informal reports

between 1 and 3 pages and can be formatted similarly to a letter or memo, written with a direct approach, and have no prefatory sections; more closely resembles a substantial letter or memo

formal proposals

can range from several to a couple hundred pages, may include supporting documents such as a copy of the request for proposals, an executive summary, a title page, a table of contents, or an appendix

Proofreading

checking for punctuation, grammar and spelling mistakes

Dangling modifiers

describe the incorrect word in the sentence or something that is not even mentioned in the sentence

compliance report

describes the awareness of how an organization is complying with guidelines, regulations, or legislation within their industry or government

financial reports

documents and statements about an organization's financial results, condition, and cash flows

informal documents

documents for casual communications, although they still can be used to discuss business

formal documents

documents used for communicating factual information that must be a part of the official record