BCOMM- Chapter 9 - Routine Business Messages

Polls have shown that ______ of employees say that supervisors thank them daily.

10%

It should take about ______ to complete a routine business message.

5 to 15 minutes

The ______ planning process can be completed quickly for most routine messages.

AIM

To be an effective routine message, a claim should do which of the following?

Make a call to action. Explain why the claim is being made. Specify what the claim is.

Why is it not advisable to compose a business message that includes step-by-step instructions written in narrative form within a paragraph?

The narrative format for instructions is more difficult to follow.

Which of the following statements about routine messages called claims are correct?

The purpose is to have the other company comply with your claim. Long-term relationships should be respected.

Which of the following are true of routine business messages? (Choose every correct answer.)

They convey straightforward information. Readers usually respond positively to them. Readers are unlikely to resist them.

True or false: Routine messages are extremely important for establishing your credibility on the job.

True

What question should you ask yourself before sending a routine request?

Will the recipient understand what I want done?

If too little information is provided in your routine message, which of the following are likely to happen?

Your credibility will be diminished. The receiver will be less apt to do what you are requesting.

A company writes to one of its suppliers, requesting an adjustment to the invoice for a recent shipment because some of the merchandise was missing. This type of business message is known as ______.

a claim

Managers and supervisors need to ______, even if they are afraid of going beyond their authority.

communicate clear expectations

Messages that include directions usually

offer guidelines for specific tasks.

Routine messages that include directions are much like those that

set expectations.

In a business message expressing gratitude, which of the following is the least likely to seem exaggerated or excessive?

"Great job."

True or false: In general, you should avoid making apologies for routine mistakes and offenses because they are likely to damage your personal credibility.

False

True or false: More employees than ever are reporting that their supervisors thank them every day or very often.

False

When explaining your expectations to employees that you manage, what are the three main elements to include?

each person's responsibilities deadlines for the project how the work will be coordinated among all the people who are involved

After harming someone at work, whether intentionally or not, business professionals with high ______ will quickly try to make amends.

emotional intelligence

A request does not require which of the following components?

expressing sympathy

When speaking on behalf of your team in a routine message, you might seek ______ from other team members to make sure they agree with what the message says.

feedback

Which of the following take place during the reviewing stage of a routine message?

getting feedback for a group message proofreading the message rereading the message

Which of the following are good techniques for an effective response to inquiries?

giving each question its own section using bold to highlight each question including links to web pages with additional information

You can help maintain the ______ of the recipient of a routine request by showing respect for the recipient's time.

goodwill

Which is part of the coordination component of setting expectations for the people you manage?

guidelines for communication

What kind of tone is most effective when providing directions in a message?

helpful

When drafting a routine message, you should strive for a ______ tone.

helpful reader-oriented professional

A person reading a well-crafted announcement should grasp all of its important information

in 10 to 15 seconds.

An ineffective announcement might include such flaws as

jumbling too much information together. incomplete information.

Handling a routine message typically requires ______ other types of business correspondence.

less time than

Routine business messages generally focus on

maintaining camaraderie at work. things to be done at work.

Your response to inquiries will be more effective if you ______ so that readers can easily identify your answers.

mark each question with a bullet or number

An effective direction-giving message will include the ______ of "I want to help you out as much as possible."

meta message

Which of the following techniques should not be used when responding to an inquiry?

mixing responses in a single paragraph

In a routine business message, how long should the primary message be?

no more than 10 words

In an email announcement business message, the ______ must be specific and must pique the interest of the reader so that the message will not be overlooked.

subject line

The ______ of a routine request should be clear and specific.

subject lines.

Which of the following qualities are typically found in an effective routine request?

sufficient detail direct language

In routine business correspondence, the primary message should appear in

the first sentence or two.

When making a claim to a company, the explanation that you lay out should be

reasonable. professional. logical.

A routine message should be written with which two of the following questions in mind?

How much detail does my audience expect? How would my audience want to receive this information?

Which of the following would be considered a business announcement?

a notice that the office Christmas party will be held in the conference room a statement that the company is changing its dress code a mass email informing customers that the company is moving to a new location

Which of the following are potential business-related costs of making an apology?

a permanent record in a performance review an implication of legal responsibility

Which of the following are effective elements in a routine message for making a claim?

a polite request a compliment a focus on the merits of the claim

The most crucial component of the FAIR test is checking for

accuracy.

Which two of the following types of routine business messages tend to be relatively infrequent?

apologies expressions of sympathy

When a professional contact encounters a personal loss, it is ______ to extend sincere sympathies.

appropriate

Which of the following reduce the effectiveness of routine messages?

being difficult to read failing to include a central message at the beginning

Sending thank-you notes can accomplish which of the following?

boost repeat business maintain strong working relationships

The main text of a routine message should consist of

brief paragraphs with pertinent details.

Factors that lead to personal offenses include

careless comments. personality clashes. different communication styles.

A poorly delivered business apology may

cause more problems. make the first mistake seem even worse.

Thank-you notes for ______ should be less formal but should not feel exaggerated.

colleagues

An effective announcement generally contains which of the following items?

complete details attention-getter

An announcement should include which of the following components?

concise wording organized information

Establishing clear expectations, especially when you are the supervisor or manager, directly

cultivates interpersonal trust. improves your credibility.

When providing directions, lack of ______ is most likely to frustrate your readers.

detail

In business correspondence that includes procedures and directions, ______ the steps to differentiate them from each other.

number

When responding to inquiries, which of the following are the three best ways to set off separate questions?

numbered lists special formatting bullets

Which of the following might you use to highlight key ideas when drafting a routine message?

numbering external links bullets

An announcement is what type of communication?

one to many

An appreciation message should be which of the following?

personal simple genuine

Your appreciation message will be less effective if it

places too much focus on yourself. contains excessive phrases of gratitude.

To maintain goodwill when making a routine request, you should compose your message with a tone that has which two characteristics?

positive other-oriented

Which of the following are elements of an effective announcement?

positive wording careful organization complete information

An effective apology contains which of the following components?

promising not to commit the offense again saying you regret your actions admitting that you offended someone

Which of the following is not a component of a claim?

providing responses

Effective apologies will achieve important results, such as

repairing working relationships. rebuilding your reputation.

Thank-you notes for customers and clients ______, whereas thank-you notes for colleagues ______.

require more formality and respect; should be more casual but not excessive in showing appreciation

In response to a routine business request, the reader is likely to express little or no ______ to what the message is saying.

resistance

Proofreading and requests for feedback should take place during the ______ stage of routine message development.

reviewing

Routine business messages should be constructed like other good writing, through use of

reviewing. drafting. planning.

By a large margin, most business messages are

routine messages

When delivering an appreciation message, an exaggerated display of gratitude may

seem insincere. appear unprofessional.

The most important element of any expression of sympathy is that it be

sincere.

All routine business messages should contain which of the following components? (Choose every correct answer.)

the primary message in the subject line the primary message within the first two sentences details

When you justify a routine request, you should provide

the rationale for the request in your message.

What is the biggest challenge in a routine business message?

to get your readers to pay attention

When employees explain their reasons in the text of routine requests, the company is better able to maintain ______ by keeping written records that show why decisions were made.

transparency

An effective routine message will allow the recipient to

understand the main idea within seconds. understand the responsibilities involved. quickly process the information.

Apologies become ineffective when they are

vague. insincere. cliché.

It is appropriate to extend sympathies to a professional contact

when a loved one becomes seriously ill. when a loved one passes away.

When drafting a business message that includes instructions, when should you have other people read your directions to make sure they are clear enough?

when the directions describe a complicated procedure when the directions describe a technical procedure

Which of the following are characteristics of effective thank-you notes?

written by hand sincere sent promptly

Order the components of a business claim in sequence, with the first component at the top and the last component at the bottom.

1. Make the claim 2. Provide rationale 3. Give a call to action 4. Make a statement of goodwill

When making a claim, your message will be more effective if it balances ______ with ______.

directness; politeness

In a request memo, the main goals are to convey information in a way that is

easy to read. complete.

Numerous routine messages are handled daily. Therefore they need to be produced with

efficiency

Workplace colleagues will evaluate which of the following based on your approach to routine business messages?

your commitment your responsiveness your reliability