Written Communication
Introduction: Commercial Correspondence is
buying and selling with the help of letter writing.
It includes all letters exchanged before the
actual sale takes place, all letters that follow the
sale and all those letters that help maintain good
relations between buyers and sellers, employers
and employees and in general all letters ,
reports and documents that increase commerce
and trade.
Need and importance: 1. personal touch
2. Least expensive
3. Permanent written record
4. It has clarity of expression’
5.It can overcome the distance that separates
the sender from the receiver
Essentials of good written communication
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Good written communication must command attention
and get results.
The communication must be legible, if it is hand
written and the same applies to type written
messages.
The communication must be carefully planned. The
ideas should be presented in a logical manner.
The writer should use words and sentence structures
that can be easily understood by the reader.
A sentence should have one subject and each
paragraph
should deal with a single topic or
aspect of a topic.
A proper technique of emphasis should be used.
Use the 4 c’s of communication
Use the “you attitude”
Follow correct language, proper grammar and correct
punctuation.
It is not possible to have good written communication
without prewriting.
Functions of a Business letter
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Legal function
Persuasive
Reference
Goodwill.
THE “ You Attitude in a Business letter”
By “ you attitude” we mean to look at things as the rader does
and present their arguments accordingly. The principle
underlying the “ You attitude” is that it is the reader that
counts.
At the simplest level it means using the ord “ you” as much as
possible. People like to be addressed personally and this
approach is very helpful in a sales letter. For eg.
Compare the following sentences:
“ We take pleasure in announcing the introduction of our new
“ Simplex Hair Dryer” ,
And
“ Have you brought your wife her Diwali
present? You will be interested to know
that you can now buy..
The first sentence is ineffective because it
views things from the point of view of the
writer. The second sentence is effective
because it not looks at things from from
the reader’s side. From the above example
it is obvious that the you attitude is not
only a matter of phraseology but also of
attitude.
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The you attitude can be used effectively in all
letters especially in collection and application
letters.
If an applicant can mentally put himself in the
employers shoes he will be in a better position to
emphasize the qualities that will get him the job.
Every effort must be made to adapt to the tone
and language to the level of the reader.
Every business letter that goes out involves a
problem as we all know there are two sides to
every problem. By the you attitude the writer
drafts his letter keeping in mind the side of the
reader and by burying to anticipate his wants
The you attitude does not only mean writing from
the point of the reader but also putting the
reader first.
Instead of writing our organization will give you5
% on your savings account it is better to write “
you will earn 5% from your savings account.
C’s of effective writing
The qualities which are essential for good business writing
are collectively known as the c’s of communication because
most of them begin with the letter c.
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Clarity: the message must be clear in the first reading.
Clearly written messages avoid misunderstanding and save
time. Consider the following examples of ambiguous
writing:
Please state from that date the patient was ordered to stay in
bed and totally incapacitated by your instructions. This has
been caused by the wrong placing of words. Clarity
depends upon five factors:
Use of simple . Common everyday words which everyone can
understand. Never send the reader to the dictionary
Use concrete words having a definite meaning.
Some examples
Incombustible fireproof
Optimum
best
Substantiate
prove
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Use of short and simple sentences. Use of short and
simple sentences. Long sentences confuse the
reader and often confuse the writer also.
Important information should be give in a
separate manner. Use of active verb instead of
passive verb is more precise.
Use proper punctuation giving definite and concrete
details with names and figure.eg. High
performance 95% efficiency
Ensure a logical sequence of ideas
Be consistent in t he use of numbers. Dates, units
of measurement.technical terms, abbreviations.
Correctness: in spelling and grammar
 In appearance and form of layout
 In the information it conveys
 In tone, formality and style
 Conciseness: it means expressing much in a few
words.as possible without sacrificing clarity or
courtesy.
 Leave out unnecessary modifiers such a s “ actual
experience”. In addition to, besides, as well as,
also.
 WE would appreciate receiving the goods as early
as possible since arrangements have to be made
for export so they will reach our foreign customer
within the required time
This can be made concise by:
Please dispatch the goods so as to reach us by 7
September since we have to ship them to Mexico
by the 17th.
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Courtesy: it is consideration for other people’s
feelings. It is seen in an individual’s behaviour
with others. A well mannered and courteous
person shows consideration and thought for
others.
Use the courtesy ords, please, thankyou, sorry
Express proper feeling according to the situation
Make the other person feel comfortable “ we
appreciate your promptness in sending the
goods”
Be attentive and prompt in responding
Let the tone the choice of words and style of the
message reflect your consideration for the
feelings and needs of the reader.
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Credibility: if they believe hat you say they will
buy what you sell. It comes from minding all the
c’s ie giving correct information, writing clearly,
being considerate to other’s feelings and needs
and being courteous.
Language in a business letter:
Avoiding business jargon: by jargon we mean the
specialized or technical language of any trade,
profession,organization, class or a group that shares a
common occupation. There is nothing wrong with
using technical words, indeed it is sometimes
impossible to find substitutes of the. What is wrong is
that these words are used so often and sometimes
wrongly, and so mechanically, that the words
themselves lose meaning.
Eg. “ I beg to state that I have received your
esteemed favour.. The recipent will get flattered, but
when thousand letters beg to state they will seem
hollow.
Jargon with simple English equivalents:
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In the event of
if
Vide
please referto.
Cliches , slangs and euphemisms: cliché is a french
word commonly used in english to show that some words or
phrases have become stereotyped.
Eg, as a rule, bear in mind, if the worst comes to worst.
Slang is a language of highly colloquial type.eg. Guys,
gals, cops, shake a leg .
Euphemism is an inoffensive expression used inplace of
words that they offend or sound unpleasant, thus people
say” left for heavenly abode instead of “ died”
The legal obsession: the great drawback is that the youth
tends to draft a letter as if he as drafting up the latter’s last
will.
Eg. “ YOU ARE HEREBY INFORMED THAT IF THE AMOUNT
OF RS. 4500 IS NOT PAID WITHIN THE DUE DATE THE
MATTER WILL BE REFERRED TO THE INVESTOR.
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CORRECT SPELLING.
CORRECT WORD ORDER IN A
SENTENCE: the basic structure of an
english sentence is
Subject
verb
predicate
I /HE
GO
TO COLLEGE.