when desirable. In complicated and lengthy explanations e. g. reports, improve the clarity of your message by giving examples, illustrations, itemizations and pictures.
• Courtesy: Courteous messages help to establish and strengthen business friendships( goodwill). Courtesy stems from a sincere attitude. Avoid expressions that irritate, hurt or belittle because they are offensive e. g. your negligence, your stubborn attitude, your incompetence. Be sincerely thoughtful of other people’ s feelings. Be appreciative. Try to honestly help customers( offer redress / correction; offer further information). If you must apologize to a customer, do so courteously / good naturedly. Send prompt replies to letters. Do not go beyond one business week( i. e. 6 days). Even letters of regret should be replied to.
Steps to Effective Correspondence Companies send and receive correspondence from customers, suppliers, dealers, and attorneys, to mention just a few. With all these letters going back and forth, it is important to cut down on the time and cost of writing them. The process can be made easier by following five simple steps.
• Step 1: Determine the purpose: The first step is to identify the reason you are writing the letter. Usually this is to send good news or to send bad news or to persuade the reader to do something. Identifying the purpose allows you to choose the proper approach for your letter.
• Step 2: Understand the receiver: The more you know about the people to whom you are writing, the better you will be able to communicate with them. Some of the characteristics that are helpful to know are age, education level, culture and geographic location. Having such information can help you see things from your reader’ s point of view. This, in turn, will help you gear your correspondence to their needs.
• Step 3: Choose the main ideas: Once you know why you are writing and to whom, you are ready to decide what the main points in the letter will be. Start by brainstorming all of the ideas you think should be included. Then rank them in order of importance. It is usually better to limit the number of points presented to no more than three or four. This keeps the letter as brief as possible. Present your ideas from most to least important. By the way, if the recipient does not read the entire letter( always a possibility with busy people), you will still get your message across. Research has found that the first and last paragraphs are the ones most easily
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