Chapter 8 Business Comm

What motivator should you not add to your sales message?

An open deadline; Because readers often need an extra push, consider adding additional motivators to the closing of your message. Possible motivators include a gift, an incentive, a limited offer, a deadline, or a satisfaction guarantee.

Professional marketers and salespeople follow the AIDA strategy in their sales letters because it is effective. What does the acronym AIDA stand for?

Attention, interest, desire, and action; When persuading consumers, professional marketers and salespeople follow the AIDA strategy, which stands for attention, interest, desire, and action. This strategy works well in persuasive messages. See page 236.

Which of the following statements about persuasion and persuasive messages in today's digital age is least accurate?

Because of technology, the number of persuasive messages has decreased.; Persuasion in the twenty-first century is different from persuasion in previous times for these reasons: the number and reach of persuasive messages have exploded, persuasive messages are spread faster, all organizations today use persuasion, persuasive techniques are subtler and more misleading, and persuasion is more complex and impersonal. See pages 226-227.

What should you not include in a persuasive claim or complaint message?

Blow-by-blow chronology of details; Claim and complaint messages are more effective when you include data that justify your claim and when you express your disappointment and feelings without accusing the receiver of deceit.

When writing a sales message in which price is an issue, what can you do to reduce resistance?

Delay mentioning a price until after you create a desire for the product.; Anticipate objections and questions when it comes to the price of a product. Creating desire before mentioning price and comparing your price favorably with that of a competitor can reduce resistance when price is an obstacle.

Identify an element of a successful persuasive tweet.

Draw attention to interesting events or media links.; Even if you can't use the full, four-part strategy, the principles behind AIDA still apply to micromessages. Use catchy and intriguing attention getters, and always try to include a call-to-action. Do not spam your audience with constant retweets, multi-part tweets, or other content that annoys more than it attracts.

Effective e-mail sales messages should focus on at least three or four central selling points.

False; Effective e-mail sales messages are short, conversational, and focused. Because on-screen text is taxing to read, be brief by focusing on only one or two central selling points. See page 242.

Persuasive skills are not as important in today's business world.

False; Persuasive skills are becoming ever more important at work as teams and managers abandon the traditional command structure and focus instead on influencing others. Additionally, today's digital age has affected the number and speed of persuasive messages we receive, the content of persuasive messages, and the number of organizations and individuals now trying to influence others. See page 226.

Which of the following is not a element of an effective persuasive message to a superior?

Ignore risks; Proving a case requires evidence. Be ready to back up your arguments with specific facts and figures. Demonstrate that you have thought through your suggestions by describing the risks and benefits with a sensitive tone.

When creating online sales messages, what advice should you follow?

Include a statement that tells readers how to be removed from your mailing database. Effective online sales messages should include a statement that tells readers how to be removed from your mailing database. See page 242.

What is the best advice when composing a persuasive complaint message?

Open with a statement of sincere praise, an objective statement of the problem, or a point of agreement; Open with a statement of sincere praise, an objective statement of the problem, or a point of agreement. You could also begin with a quick review of what you have done to resolve the problem. See pages 229-231.

It's 5:30 a.m. The sun is sending its first rays of light over the treetops. You are sipping your morning coffee with an eye on your bird feeder outside the window. Which hook does this attention-getter use?

Personalized action setting Use a personalized action setting to hook the reader's attention and help him or her imagine the benefits of your product or service.

Effective claim and complaint messages:

Present a logical case with clear facts; A successful persuasive claim or complaint logically presents its case without using rancor or accusing the receiver of deceit.

The body of a persuasive request should reduce resistance.

True; The body of a persuasive request should be used to build interest and to reduce resistance. You can reduce resistance by anticipating objections, offering counterarguments, establishing credibility, demonstrating competence, and showing the value of your proposal. See page 228.

Your primary goal in writing a sales message is get someone to devote a few moments of attention to it.

True; Your primary goal in writing a sales message is get someone to devote a few moments of attention to it. To get and maintain the attention of your audience, you should follow the AIDA strategy: gain attention, build interest, elicit desire and reduce resistance, and motivate action. See page 236.

A successful persuasive message to subordinates should use ________.

a conversational tone; Use a conversational tone to convey a caring attitude. Avoid sounding preachy or parental. Employees don't appreciate being treated like children.

Online forums like blogs and Twitter can be powerful marketing tools used to generate ________ .

a positive online presence; Company blogs and Twitter accounts are powerful marketing tools that can help project a professional, positive online presence.

The opening of a persuasive request should __________.

capture the reader's attention and interest; The opening of a persuasive request should capture the reader's attention and interest. See page 228.

Effective persuaders use all of the following techniques to influence others except __________.

emphasizing benefits to them rather than to their audience; Effective persuasive techniques include establishing credibility, making a reasonable and specific request, tying facts to audience benefits, recognizing the power of loss, expecting and overcoming resistance, and sharing solutions and compromising. See page 228.

Persuasive requests are generally more effective when they are organized __________.

indirectly; The writing plan for a persuasive request requires deliberate development using the indirect strategy. To overcome possible resistance and to lay a logical foundation, the indirect strategy presents the reasons and explanations before the main idea. See page 228.

The closing of a persuasive request should __________.

make a specific request and motivate action; The closing of a persuasive request should make a specific request and motivate action. See page 228.

In persuasive requests, the reasons and explanations usually _______ the request.

precede; Persuasive requests are generally more effective when they are indirect. An indirect persuasive request lays a logical foundation for the request by preceding the request

The interest section of your sales message should use _________ to develop selling points you identified in your prewriting phase.

rational or emotional appeals; Build interest by describing the central selling points of a service or product as they are relevant to the reader's needs and by making rational or emotional appeals. Rational appeals are associated with logic and reason; emotional appeals play to status and ego. Clever messages use a dual appeal to pique readers' interests.