The PPT gives a detailed overview of the foundations of business writing skills and the essential elements involved in planning, writing and drafting business messages. This might be helpful for teachers, educators, students, corporate sector professionals as well.

1. Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy
Essentials of
Business
Communication 9e
© 2013 Cengage Learning ● All Rights Reserved
Chapter 2
Planning Business Messages

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The Best Business Writing Is…
 Purposeful
 Persuasive
 Economical
 Audience oriented
Following a process can make you a
better writer or speaker.
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 2

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The Writing Process
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 3

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Planning
(analyzing the audience, how
much does the audience
know….)

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Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 5
Phase 1
of the
Writing
Process

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Phase 1: Analyzing
Analyze your audience and your
purpose for writing.
 To whom are you writing?
 Why are you writing?
 What do you hope
to achieve?
 What channel is best for
delivering your message?
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 6

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How to Select the Best Channel
 How important is the message?
 How much feedback and interactivity are
required?
 How fast do you need feedback?
 Is a permanent record essential?
 What is the cost of the channel?
 How much formality do you desire?
 How confidential or sensitive is the
message?
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 9

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Suggest the best communication channels for the following messages. Assume
that all channels
are available. Be prepared to explain your choices.
1. You want to know what team members are available immediately for a quick
teleconference meeting. They are all workaholics and stuck to their computers.
2. As a manager during a company reorganization, you must tell nine workers that
their employment is being terminated.
3. You need to know whether Thomas in Reprographics can produce a rush job for
you in two days.
4. A prospective client in Italy wants price quotes for a number of your products—
pronto!
5. As assistant to the vice president, you are to investigate the possibility of
developing internship programs with several
nearby colleges and universities.
6. You must respond to a notice from the Internal Revenue Service insisting that
you did not pay the correct amount for last
quarter’s employer’s taxes.

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Phase 1: Anticipating
JON FEINGERSH / ICONICA / GETTY IMAGES
Anticipate how your audience will react
to your message.
 What is your reader or listener like?
 Will your audience be pleased, neutral, or
displeased with
your message?
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 11

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Profiling the Audience
Primary Audience
 Who is the primary reader?
 What are my personal and
professional relationships
with that person?
 What does the person know
about the subject?
 What kind of response
should I expect?
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 12
Secondary Audience
 Who else might see
or hear this message?
 Are they different from
the primary audience?
 How must I reshape
the message for the
secondary audience?

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Phase 1: Adapting
Create a message that will suit your
task and audience.
 Spotlight audience benefits.
 Cultivate the “you” view.
 Sound conversational but
professional.
 Express yourself positively.
 Choose courteous language.
 Adopt bias-free language.
 Use plain language and
familiar words.
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 13

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Spotlighting Audience Benefits
Focus your statements on the audience,
not the sender.
Poor:
We are adopting a new
claim processing
procedure that we
believe has many
outstanding benefits.
Improved:
You will enjoy the new
claim processing
procedure that will reduce
paperwork and time.
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 14

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Cultivating the “You” View
Emphasize second-person pronouns
(you/your) instead of first-person pronouns
(I/we, us, our)
Before we can issue your
refund, we must wait two
weeks to complete our
processing.
Poor:
You will receive your
refund in two weeks.
Improved:
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 15

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Sounding Conversational but
Professional
Poor:
The undersigned takes
pleasure in . . .
It may be of some concern
to you to learn that your
expense claim has been
processed and approved.
I’m happy to . . .
Improved:
Your expense claim
has been processed
and approved.
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 16

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Expressing Yourself Positively
Poor:
Employees may not use
the break room on the
second floor during
remodeling.
We cannot process your
return until you send us
the defective product.
Employees must use the
break room on the third
floor during remodeling.
Improved:
We will process your
return as soon as we
receive the defective
product.
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 17

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Choosing Courteous Language
Avoid sounding demanding, preachy, or rude.
Poor:
You must submit your
report by July 30.
I am sick and tired of
being the only one who
replaces the paper in
the copier!
Improved:
Will you please submit
your report by July 31.
Let’s all agree to replace
the paper in the copier
whenever needed.
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 18

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Adopting Bias-Free Language
Poor:
Have you called a
salesman?
Every executive
has his own office.
Have you called a
salesperson?
Improved:
 All executives have their own
offices.
 Every executive has an office.
 All executives have offices.
 Every executive has his or
her own office.
This alternative is
wordy and calls
attention to itself
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition Chapter 2, Slide 19

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Using Plain Language and
Familiar Words
Will you utilize workbooks
during the obligatory
training period?
We anticipate that a
majority of the alternative
will be sufficiently
fundamental to meet our
requirements.
Will you use workbooks
during the required
training period?
We expect that most of
the choices will be
sufficiently basic to
meet our needs.
Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 9th Edition
Chapter 2, Slide 20
Poor: Improved:

21. Mary Ellen Guffey & Dana Loewy
Essentials of
Business
Communication 9e
© 2013 Cengage Learning ● All Rights Reserved
END