7 Cs

1. Completeness

2. Conciseness

3. Consideration

4. Concreteness

5. Clarity

6. Courtesy

7. Correctness

Principles of Business Communication

A business message is complete when it contains all facts the reader or listener

needs for the reaction you desire.

Conti…

COMPLETNESS

Completeness is necessary for several reasons:

• First, complete messages are more likely to

bring the desired results without the expense

of additional messages.

• Second, they can do a better job of building

goodwill.

• Third, they can help avoid costly lawsuits that

may result if important information is missing .

Conti…

• Last but not the least, papers that seem inconsequential can be surprisingly important if the information they contain is complete and effective.

• In high-level conferences, in courtrooms, and in governmental hearings, the battle often centers on an ordinary-looking message that becomes important because of the complete information it contains.

COMPLETENESS

Conti…

• As you strive for completeness, keep the

following guidelines in mind:

Answer all questions asked.

Give something extra, when desirable

Check for the five W’s (What, Why, When,

Where, Who) and any other essentials.

COMPLETENESS

ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS

• Situation -1:

A distributor of software, when replying to a dealer’s letter, answered only four of seven questions. Because the original questions were unnumbered and somewhat buried in five long paragraphs, the respondent apparently overlooked or disregarded three of them. The reply, being incomplete and unfriendly, caused the distributor to lose the business and goodwill of a potential customers.

Conti…

• Sometimes before you can answer an inquiry,

you need certain specific information from the

inquirer. Then it is a good idea to list the

needed details on a reply from that the inquirer

can fill out and return to you. In this way both

your answer and that of your respondent will be

complete.

• Situation 2:

On May 8, 2008 the owner of mutual fund stock wrote to an investment Company that he wanted to sell his shares. He asked, “just how does your company want me to authorize this sale?” He received following reply on May 19:

“If you wish to terminate account # 9248 and liquidate the shares held by this company, we need a letter of instructions signed by both you and your wife just as the account is registered. Please be sure to give us the name of your fund, your account number, and the name of the person to whom proceeds are to be mailed”

Conti…

In situation 2, message about the transaction

resulted in delay, annoyed and disappointed

the customer. Had the company supplied a

reply form, the desired sale could have been

completed promptly.

GIVE SOMETHING EXTRA, WHEN DESIRABLE

• The words “when desirable”, in the above heading, are essential. Sometimes you must do more than just answering the customer’s specific questions. They may not know what they need, or their questions may be inadequate. For example, suppose you are the Secretary of Karachi Golf Club and receive the following inquiry from an out-of-town member:

Conti…

• I think I would like to attend my first meeting of the

Golf Club, even though I’m not acquainted in your city.

Will you please tell me the place/venue where the next

meeting will be held?

• If you answered only this one question, your letter

would be incomplete. Realizing that your reader is a

newcomer to your city and to the club meetings, you

should include in your reply a welcome note plus such

needed details as directions/road-map for reaching the

building; parking facilities; day, date, and time of

meeting; and perhaps also the program for the next

meeting. Your message will then have the “something

extra” that a reader really needs and appreciation.

CHECK FOR THE FIVE W’s AND ANY OTHER ESSENTIALS

• Another way to help make your message

complete is to answer, whenever desirable,

the “five W” questions __ who, what, when,

why, where __ and any other essentials, such

as how. The five-question method is

especially useful when you write requests,

announcements, or other informative

messages.

Conti…

• For instance, to order merchandise, make clear

what you want, when you need it, to whom and

where it is to be sent, and how payment will be

made. To reserve a hotel banquet room,

specify the accommodations needed (what),

location (where), sponsoring organization

(who), date and time (when), event (why), and

other necessary details (how).

Conciseness is saying what you have to in the fewer possible words without sacrificing the other C qualities.

Conti…

CONCISENESS• A concise message saves time and expense for both

sender and receiver. Conciseness is saying what you

have to say in the fewest possible words.

Conciseness contributes to emphasis. By eliminating

unnecessary words, you help make important ideas

stand out. To achieve conciseness, try to observe the

following suggestions:

Eliminate wordy expressions.

Include only relevant statements.

Avoid unnecessary repetition.Conti…

WORDY CONCISE

During the time that While

In accordance with As you your request requested

In view of the fact that because

Please don’t hesitate to write please write

Under date of dated

Under the circumstances because

In due course soon

In the event that if

In most cases usually

INCLUDE ONLY RELEVANT STATEMENTS

• The effective, concise message should omit

not only unnecessarily wordy expressions

but also irrelevant material. To be sure you

include only relevant facts, observe the

following suggestions:

– Stick to the purpose of the message.

– Avoid irrelevant words and rambling (confused) sentences.

Conti…

– Omit information obvious to the receiver, do not

repeat at length what that person has already told

you.

– Avoid long introductions, unnecessary explanations,

excessive adjectives and prepositions.

– Get to the important point tactfully and concisely.

AVOID UNNECESSARY REPETITION

• Sometimes repetition is necessary for emphasis.

But when the same thing is said two or three times

without reason, the message becomes wordy and

boring. Here are three ways to eliminate

unnecessary repetition.

– Use a shorter name, after you have mentioned the

long one/complete name. Instead of “Electronics

Product Manufacturing Company,” just use

“Electronics Company”.Conti…

• Use pronouns or initials rather than repeat

long names: Instead of citing “North Central

Auto Insurance Company, Inc.” again and

again, use “it” or “NCAI”

• Cut out all needless repetition of phrases

and sentences.

Consideration means preparing every message with the receiver (s) in mind – putting yourself in place of

receiver.

Conti…

CONSIDERATION• Try to visualize your readers (or listeners) with their

desires, problems, circumstances, emotions and

probable reactions to you request. This is also called

“you-attitude” (empathy).

• Consideration underlies the other six C’s of good

business communication. You adapt your language and

message contents to your reader’s/receiver’s needs:

Show reader benefit or interest in reader.

Emphasize positive, pleasant facts.

Apply integrity and ethics.

Focus on “you” instead of “I” and “we.”Conti…

FOCUS ON “YOU” INSTEAD OF “I” AND “WE”

We & I Attitude

I want to send my

congratulations for.

We will soon ship the

goods in your May 4

order.

We pay 8% interest on…

You – attitude

Congratulations to you

on your success in MBA..

You should receive by

May 8 the apex screens

you ordered on May 4.

You earn 8% interest on...

Conti…

SHOW READER BENEFIT OR INTEREST

• Whenever possible and true, show how your

readers will benefit from whatever the

message asks or announces. In that case

they will be more likely to react favorably and

do what you suggest.

Conti…

EMPHASISE THE POSITIVE, PLEASANT FACTS

• A third way to show consideration for your

reader (or listener) is to accent the positive.

This means:

– Stressing what can be done instead of what

cannot be done.

– Focusing on words your recipient can

consider favorably.

Conti…

APPLY INTEGRITY AND ETHICS

• To be truly considerate, you need also to apply

integrity – high moral standards, personal

honor, truthfulness, sincerity – to your written

and oral messages.

• Without integrity, business communications

would prove worthless, and our confidence in

people would be shattered.

Communicating concretely means being specific,

definite, and vivid rather than vague and general.

CONCRETENESS

• To ensure concreteness of the message,

following guidelines should help you

compose concrete, convincing messages:

– Use specific facts and figures.

– Put action in your verbs.

– Choose vivid, image-building words.

• Whenever you can, use specific statement or a

figure for a general word to make your message

more concrete and convincing.

Clear/Specific Messages

• This computer types 400 word campaign letters in one hour.

• Our product has won first prize in four national contests within the past three years.

• These Goodson power brakes stop a 2-ton car traveling 60

miles an hour, within 240 feet.

Vague/Unclear Messages

• This computer reproduces campaign letters fast.

• Our product has earn several prizes.

• These brakes stop a car within a short distance.

USE SPECIFIC FACTS AND FIGURES

PUT ACTION IN YOUR VERBS

• Strong verbs can activate other words and help make your sentences definite. To compose strong sentences, you should:

– Use active rather than passive verbs, and

– Put action in your verbs instead of nouns.

ACTIVE VOICE V/S PASSIVE VOICE

Passive (Subject receives

the Action)

Tests were made by us or

match was won by us.

A full report will be sent to you by the supervisor.

Decision on holding convocation was taken by the Director SAI.

Active (Subject performs

the action)

We made test or We won

the match.

The supervisor will send you a full report [or You will receive a complete report from your supervisor.

The Director SAI decided to hold a convocation.

ACTION IN VERBS, NOT IN NOUNS

Action hiding in a quiet

noun

The function of this office is

the collection of payments

and the compilation of

statements.

Mr. Jones will give

consideration to the report.

The contract has a

requirement for………

Action in the verb

This office collects

payments and compiles

statements.

Mr. Jones will consider the

report.

The contract requires that

…………….

CHOOSE VIVID, IMAGE-BUILDING WORDS

Vague (unclear)

There are a great many solder joints in the space-craft, and each must have just the right amount of solder.

This is pure clover

honey, made by

honeybees.

Vivid (bright/clear)

The spacecraft has 2 million solder

joints. If an extra drop of solder had

been left on these joints, the excess

weight would have been equivalent to

the payload of the vehicle.

Honeybees have gathered nectar from about 4 million clusters of clover and traveled about 150,000 miles---or equal to six times around the world--- to deliver this package of Bradshaw honey to you.

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE

Lateral (imaginative)

and dull)

Ali’s work in group was

exemplary.

Some women were

stopped in their

promotion.

Figurative

Ali is the spark plug of the

organization.

Many women faced the “glass

ceiling” in their company.

USE CONCRETE INSTEAD OF ABSTRACT NOUNS

Abstract:

• Consideration was given to the fact that…

• Termination of the insurance contract will be in June.

• Analysis of the situation suggests that Mr. Ali is right.

Concrete:

The committee considered ……..

The insurance contract ends in June.

I think Mr. Smith is right.

ADJECTIVES AND ADVERBS

• You can sometimes build a more realistic and interesting word picture by adding well-chosen adjectives and adverbs. In the example below, adjectives are underlined; adverbs are in capitals.

The camera has a system that gives you good pictures.

The Pony camera has a UNIQUELY precise metering system that assures you PROPERLY exposed, true-color pictures.

Sensory Appeal

• Your five senses, where applicable should play their role to make the message more appealing – give emotional touch.

• Advertisements do have lot of emotional appeal.

• Phrases like “buy me, love free” and “get connected & stay along for ever”

• Use of non-verbal cues to make message more appealing and effective.

Clarity means getting the meaning from your head to

the head of your reader, in its original sense & spirit.

CLARITY• It means getting your message across so that

receiver will understand what you are trying to

convey. You want the recipient to interpret

your words with the same meaning that you

have in your mind.

• Accomplishing above goal is difficult, because

individual experiences are never identical and

words may have different meanings to different

persons, in different scenarios.

Conti..

• Choose short, familiar, conversational

words; also use familiar conventions.

• Construct effective sentences and

paragraphs.

• Achieve appropriate readability (and

listening ability).

• Include examples, illustrations, and other

visual aids, when desirable.

HOW TO ACHIEVE CLARITY

Conti..

CHOOSE SHORT, FAMILIAR, CONVERSATIONAL WORDS

SAY NOT

After Subsequent

Error Inadvertency

For example e.g.

Home, house Domicile

Pay Remuneration

Show, uncover Disclose

Conti..

CHOOSE SHORT, FAMILIAR, CONVERSATIONAL WORDS

Possibly Unfamiliar

or Unclear:

Assessed valuation charge to your principal.

Easement for ingress and egress

Expressions Familiar

to the Layperson:

Property value for tax

purposes increase the

balance of your loan.

Agreement allows

passage in and out.

Conti..

CONSTRUCT EFFECTIVE SENTENCES AND PARAGRAPHS

Arranging your words in well - constructed

sentences and paragraphs is an essential task.

Important characteristics to consider are length,

unity, coherence, and emphasis:

– Length - as short as desirable

– Unity - to express main ideas

– Coherence - for clear meanings

– Emphasis - for forceful, clear expression

Conti..

USE SHORT SENTENCES

• The suggested average sentence length

should be about 17 to 20 words. When a

sentence exceeds 40 words, try to rewrite it

into more than one sentence. A sentence can

be divided into more parts by using semicolon

(;).

“I am very busy because I have an important project to

deliver by the end of this week; I shall not be able to

accompany you for the picnic on coming Sunday,

January 18.” Conti..

UNITY, TO EXPRESS MAIN IDEAS

• In a sentence - whether simple, compound, or

complex---unity means that you have one

main idea, and no other ideas in the sentence

must be closely related to it.

“I like Mohsin, and the Pak Tower is in

Islamabad” obviously is not a unified sentence.”

Conti..

COHERENCE, FOR CLEAR MEANINGS

• In a coherent sentence the words are correctly

arranged so that the ideas clearly express the intended

meaning. Place the correct modifier as close as

possible to the words it is supposed to modify. In the

following examples notice why each “unclear”

sentence conveys a wrong meaning, and how it is

corrected in the “clear” sentence:

– Being an intelligent person, I am sure you can complete your

research project in time. (Unclear)

– As you are an intelligent person, I am sure you can complete

your research project in time. (Clear) Conti..

EMPHASIS, FOR FORCEFUL, CLEAR EXPRESSION

• The quality that gives force to important parts of

sentences and paragraphs is to be emphasized.

Writers must decide what needs emphasis, and then

choose correct sentence structure:

– The jet fighter finally approached the speed of sound

and it became very difficult to control. (less emphasis)

– As it finally approached the speed of sound, the jet

fighter became very difficult to control.

(better emphasis)Conti..

ACHIEVE APPRPPRIATE READABILITY & LISTENABILITY

• Besides aiming for qualities of unity, coherence, and

emphasis, you should adapt your business

messages so that their word-and-sentence level will

be appropriate for your recipients general education

level.

• In addition to focusing on clarity of words,

sentences, and paragraphs, you can also sometimes

use various visual aids effectively.Conti..

Courtesy is the respect, sincerity and empathy that your recipient / audience desires and

deserves.

Conti..

COURTESY

• Courteous messages help to strengthen present business friendship, as well as make new friends.

• Courtesy stems from sincere you-attitude. It is not merely politeness with mechanical insertions of “please” and “thank-you”.

• To be courteous, considerate communicators should follow the four guidelines discussed under Consideration.

Conti..

Be sincerely tactful, thoughtful, and appreciative.

Omit expressions that irritate, hurt, or belittle.

Grant and apologize good-naturedly.

COURTESY

Conti..

BE SINCERELY TACTFUL, THOUGTFUL, AND APPRECIATIVE

• Tact Instead of Bluntness:

Though few people are intentionally abrupt

or blunt, these traits are a common cause of

discourtesy. Sometimes they stem from a

mistaken idea of conciseness.

Conti..

Tactless, Blunt

Your letter is not clear at all; I can’t understand it.

Obviously, if you’d read your policy carefully, you’d be able to answer these questions yourself.

Apparently you have already forgotten what I wrote you two weeks ago.

Tactful

If I understand your letter correctly……

Sometimes policy wording is a little hard to understand. I’m glad to clear up these questions for you.

As mentioned in my May 10, letter to you.

OMIT EXPRESSIONS THAT IRRITATE, HURT, OR BELITTLE

• The thoughtful business communicator

should avoid expressions that might offend

the reader. Such expressions are discussed

here in three groups: irritating, questionably

humorous, and belittling statements.

IRRITATING EXPRESSIONS

• I do not agree with you

• If you care

• I am sure you must realize

• Inexcusable

• Irresponsible

• Why have you ignored

• The fact that

• You claim that

• You did not tell us

• You failed to

• You forgot to

• Your stubborn silence

QUESTIONABLE HUMOR

• Humor is often quite effective in business

writing. However, before you try to be funny,

be sure that your humor is good-natured and

appropriate for the situation.

• Humor should be culturally and religiously

acceptable.

GRANT AND APOLOGIZE GOOD-NATUREDLY

• Whenever you grant a customer’s request, begin

your letter with the best news first and inject a

courteous, ungrudging tone. Notice the difference in

tone of the following two paragraphs:

Grudging

• Your request causes a great

deal of extra paperwork to

change monthly payments.

However, we hereby approve

the new schedule of payment,

as you requested.

Good Natured

• As you requested, we will give

more concession and facilitate

you in making the payment in

easy installments.

CORRECTNESS

• The correctness principle comprises more

than proper grammar, punctuation, and

spelling. A message may be perfect

grammatically and mechanically but still

insults or loses a customer and fails to

achieve its purpose. The term correctness,

as applied to a business message means, the

writer should:

– Use the right level of language

– Check accuracy of figures, facts, and words

– Maintain acceptable writing mechanics

– Choose nondiscriminatory expressions

– Apply all other pertinent C qualities.

CORRECTNESS

A Letter With Many Errors

A Letter Without Errors

Q # 1: Describe all the 7 Cs of BC; give at least one example for each principle. (5)

Q # 2: Write a letter to Director SAI requestingfor fee concession; apply 7C principles, whereapplicable. (5)

Note: Please submit in next class; No delay.

Assignment # 2

Thank You