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4.1
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
CHAPTER 4 The Three-Step Writing Process
4.2
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Chapter 4 Objectives
Describe the three-step writing process. Clarify why explaining your purpose
carefully is important. Justify the importance of audience analysis. Outline the ways to collect relevant
information informally. Define media richness and list factors to
consider when choosing proper channel and medium.
Discuss how to establish good audience relationships.
4.3
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Business Writing
For interesting messages, avoid dramatic creative-writing techniques, and make your messages:PurposefulAudience-centeredConcise
4.4
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
1. Plan 2. Write 3. Complete
The three steps of the writing process:
The Three-Step Writing Process
4.5
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
The Writing Process
Step 1. Planning Analyze your purpose, audience, and
message to ensure they are all aligned.
Investigate supporting material by using formal or informal methods of gathering information.
Adapt your message to suit your needs and meet your audience’s expectations.
4.6
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
The Writing Process
Step 2. WritingOrganize your ideas by defining your
main idea, limiting your scope, grouping major points, and choosing the direct or indirect approach.
Compose your first draft by adapting your style (through your level of formality and your conversational tone), by choosing your words carefully, and by creating effective sentences and paragraphs.
4.7
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
The Writing Process
Step 3. CompletingRevise your message by evaluating
content, reviewing readability, and editing and rewriting for conciseness and clarity.
Produce your message using effective design elements and suitable delivery methods.
Proofread your message for typos and errors in layout, alignment, spelling, and mechanics.
4.8
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
The Writing Process
When writing business messages, try scheduling your time as follows:Planning: At least one-half of
your timeWriting: Less than one-quarter of
your timeCompleting: More than one-quarter
of your time
4.9
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Analyzing Your Purpose and Audience
The general purpose determines the amount of audience participation you need and the amount of control you have over your message:To inform, you need little interaction, so
you control the message.To persuade, you need a moderate
amount of participation, and you retain a moderate amount of message control.
To collaborate, you need maximum participation, and you retain minimal message control.
4.10
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Analyzing Your Purpose and Audience
To decide whether to proceed with your message, ask yourself four questions:Is your purpose realistic?Is this the right time for your
message?Is the right person delivering your
message?Is your purpose acceptable to your
organization?
4.11
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Develop an Audience Profile
Identify your primary audienceIdentify your primary audience
Determine audience sizeDetermine audience size
Determine audience compositionDetermine audience composition
Gauge your audience’slevel of understanding
Gauge your audience’slevel of understanding
Estimate your audience’sprobable reaction
Estimate your audience’sprobable reaction
4.12
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Investigating Necessary Information
Many kinds of business messages require less-formal information-gathering techniques, such as Considering others’ viewpointsBrowsing through company filesChatting with supervisors or
colleaguesAsking your audience for input
4.13
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Investigating Necessary Information
The key to effective communication is Determining your audience’s information needs Responding to all your audience’s information
needs and questions To find out what your audience members want to
know Listen to their requests Clarify by restating their requests in more
specific terms Try to think of any information needs that
members of your audience may not even be aware they have
4.14
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
What Does YourAudience Need?
Have you provided all the required information? (Ask who, what, when, where, why, and how.)
Is the information accurate? Is the information ethical? Is the information pertinent?
4.15
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Adapting Your Message
To adapt your message so that it serves both your audience and your purpose you need to:Select a channel and a medium that
fit your purpose and that satisfy your audience’s expectations
Make plans for establishing a good relationship with your audience
4.16
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Oral Communication Channels
Oral communication includes face-to-face conversations, phone calls, speeches, videotapes, presentations, and meetings.
Your choice of medium would depend on audience, location, message importance, and the need for nonverbal feedback.
4.17
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Written Communication Channels
Written communication includes letters, emails, memos, flyers, and reports.
A form letter, memo, or boilerplate message is often used for routine communication.
Reports and proposals are factual documents distributed to insiders and outsiders.
4.18
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Media Richness
Media richness is the value of a medium in a given communication situation.
Richness is determined by a medium’s ability toConvey a message by means of
more than one informational cue (visual, verbal, vocal)
Facilitate feedbackEstablish personal focus
4.19
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Media Richness
From richer to leaner, media fall along a continuum:
The richest media include face-to-face conversations, meetings, presentations, and videoconferences.
Less-rich media include phone calls, e-mail, voice mail, and teleconferencing.
Lean media include addressed documents such as notes, memos, and letters.
The leanest media include unaddressed documents such as fliers, bulletins, and standard form reports.
4.20
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Media Richness
Use the richest media for nonroutine, complex messages.
Use leaner media to communicate simple, routine messages.
The chief advantage of oral communication is the opportunity for immediate feedback.
The chief advantage of written communication is the ability to plan and control your message.
4.21
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Oral Communication
Use oral communication whenYou want your audience to ask
questions and make commentsYou’re trying to reach a group
decisionYou’re trying to relate an emotional
messageYou want to read your audience’s
body language or hear the tone of their response
4.22
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Written Communication
Use written communication whenYour information is complexYou need a permanent record of the
messageYour audience is large and
geographically dispersedYou don’t need or don’t want
immediate interaction with your audience
4.23
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Electronic Forms of Communication
Use electronic forms of communication when:You need speedYou’re physically separated from
your audienceTime zones differYou must reach a dispersed
audience personallyYou’re unconcerned about
confidentiality
4.24
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Electronic Forms of Communication
Voice mail—good for short, unambiguous messages
Teleconferencing—good for informational meetings that involve no negotiations
Videotape—good for sending a motivational message to a large number of people
Computer conferencing—good for geographically dispersed collaboration on electronic documents in real time
Faxing—good for overcoming time-zone barriers when a hard copy is required
E-mail—good for speedy, low-cost convenience and increased access to other employees
Web site—good for readers who want to absorb information nonsequentially
4.25
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Electronic Forms of Communication
The chief disadvantages of electronic communication includeToo much candor (saying things you
shouldn’t) Information overload (overuse
overloading networks and recipients)Lack of privacy (sending by accident or
others forwarding your messages) Interrupted productivity (through e-mail
interruptions and misuse of the Internet)
4.26
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Audience: Establishing a Good Relationship
Think about who you are and who your audience is. (Be yourself.)
Use the “you” attitude in all your messages.
Always emphasize the positive. Establish your credibility. Be polite. Use bias-free language. Project the company’s image.
4.27
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Biases in Language
Give specific examples of how you can eliminate these biases:
Let’sDiscuss Let’s
Discuss Let’s
Discuss Let’s
Discuss Let’s
Discuss Let’s
Discuss Let’s
Discuss Let’s
Discuss
Age
Gender
Disability
Racial andethnic
4.28
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
Test Your Knowledge
What are the three steps in the writing process?
What two types of purposes do all business messages have?
What do you need to know in order to develop an audience profile?
How can you test the thoroughness of the information you include in a message?
Let’sDiscuss Let’s
Discuss
4.29
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
What is media richness and how is it determined?
What is the “you” attitude and how does it differ from an “I” attitude?
Why is it important to establish your credibility when communicating with an audience of strangers?
Let’sDiscuss Let’s
DiscussTest Your Knowledge continued
4.30
To accompany Excellence in Business Communication, 5e , Thill and Bovée © 2002 Prentice-Hall
How does using bias-free language help communicators to establish a good relationship with their audiences?
What are the main advantages of oral communication? Of written media?
What is boilerplate, and how is it used?
Let’sDiscuss Let’s
DiscussTest Your Knowledge continued