Business Letters: Accentuating the Positives

• Words that affect your reader positively are likely to produce the response you desire in letter-writing situations

• A positive emphasis will persuade the reader and create goodwill. In contrast, negative words may generate resistance and other unfavorable reactions.

• Be careful to avoid words with negative connotations. These words either deny—for example, no, do not, refuse, and stop

• or convey unhappy or unpleasant associations—for example, unfortunately, unable to, cannot, mistake, problem, error, damage, loss, and failure.

To present negative information, soften its effects by superimposing a positive picture on a negative one.

• Stress what something is rather than what it is not.

• Emphasize what the firm or product can and will do rather than what it cannot.

• Open with action rather than apology or explanation.

• Avoid words which convey unpleasant facts.

Negative:

In response to your question about how many coats of Chem-Treat are needed to cover new surfaces: I regret to report that usually two are required. For such surfaces you should figure about 200 square feet per gallon for a good heavy coating that will give you five years or more of beautiful protection.

• Positive:

In response to your question about how many coats of Chem-Treat are needed to cover new surfaces: One gallon is usually enough for one-coat coverage of 500 square feet of previously painted surface. For the best results on new surfaces, you will want to apply two coats.

• Negative:

We cannot ship in lots of less than 12.

• Positive:

To keep down packaging costs and to help customers save on shipping costs, we ship in lots of 12 or more.

Embedded Position

• Place good news in positions of high emphasis: at the beginnings and endings of paragraphs, letters, and even sentences.

• Place bad news in secondary positions: in the center of paragraphs, letters, and, if possible, sentences

Effective Use Of Space

• Give more space to good news and less to bad news.

Evaluate the examples below to determine whether or not they present negative information favorably.

• To make the Roanoke more stable than other lamps of this size, our designers put six claw feet instead of the usual four on the base and thus eliminated the need for weighting. Claw feet, as you know, are characteristic of 18th-century design

• With our rigid quality standards, corrections of Adidas merchandise run less than .02 percent of our total line. Because of an oversight in our stitching department, a damaged needle was inadvertently used and caused the threads to come loose in these particular bags. Since we now have a check on all our machine needles before work each day, you can be assured that the stitching on our Adidas carrying bags will last the lifetime of the bags. Thank you for calling our attention to the loose stitching

1. We are sorry that we cannot furnish the club chairs by August 16.

2. I have no experience other than clerking in my father's grocery store.

3. ABC Dog Biscuits will help keep your dog from getting sick I have no experience other than clerking in my father's grocery store.

4. ABC Dog Biscuits will help keep your dog from getting sick.

Tone in Business Writing

• "Tone in writing refers to the writer's attitude toward the reader and the subject of the message.

The overall tone of a written message affects the reader just as one's tone of voice affects the listener in everyday exchanges

Business writers should consider the tone of their message, whether they are writing a memo, letter, report, or any type of business document. Tone is present in all communication activities.

Ultimately, the tone of a message is a reflection of the writer and it does affect how the reader will perceive the message.

How can I make sure my messages have the appropriate tone?

• The following questions will help you to determine the appropriate tone for your message.

• Why am I writing this document?

• Who am I writing to and what do I want them to understand?

• What kind of tone should I use?

Why am I writing this document? • When you consider the message and how you wish to

express it, the tone of your message will become apparent.

For example:

• Suzy is writing a job acceptance letter to an employer but is unsure of the tone she should take in the message. She has decided to accept the position. When she asks herself, "What is my intent upon writing?" she answers, "I want to accept the position, thank the company for the offer, and establish goodwill with my new co-workers." As she writes the letter she quickly assumes a tone that is appreciative for the offer and enthusiastic about beginning a new job.

Who am I writing to and what do I want them to understand?

• Your message will be much more effective if you tailor the document to reach your specific audience

• The tone that you use to write the document directly affects how the reader will interpret what is said.

The tone that you use to write the document directly affects how the reader will interpret what is said.

• Bob is writing a cover letter for a position as a Sales Representative for a newspaper. He is unsure that he will be able to succeed at such a position, and uses phrases such as: "I hope that you will contact me..." "I know that my qualifications are not very impressive, but...“

• The reader is likely to interpret these phrases to mean that Bob isn't really qualified for the position or that he doesn't really want the position.

• Clearly, Bob is not assuming an appropriate tone

• He must consider that:

• He is applying for a position as a Sales Representative.

• He wants the employer to ask him to come in for an interview.

• The employer will look for highly motivated and confident individuals must consider that

• If Bob were to consider these things he may rewrite his cover letter to include such phrases as:

• "You can reach me at 555-2233; I look forward to hearing from you."

• "My qualifications make me an excellent applicant for this position..."

• The tone of the message has changed drastically to sound more confident and self-assured.

What kind of tone should I use?

• Fortunately, you can use the same kind of tone for most business messages.

The business writer should strive for an overall tone that is confident, courteous, and sincere; that uses emphasis and subordination appropriately; that contains nondiscriminatory language; that stresses the "you" attitude; and that is written at an appropriate level of difficulty"

Some general guidelines

• Be confident.

• Be courteous and sincere.

• Use appropriate emphasis and subordination.

• Use non-discriminatory language.

• Stress the benefits for the reader.

• Write at an appropriate level of difficulty