This presentation covers various topics to improve business communication skills including professionalism, intercultural communication, writing tips, electronic messages, conveying positive and negative messages, business presentations, and business reports and proposals. It provides guidance on effective communication, ethics, being concise and direct, and avoiding common presentation pitfalls. The document includes tips for various forms of business communication and emphasizes the importance of choosing the appropriate channel to ensure the intended message is conveyed properly.

1. Business Writing and Communication
Best Practices
Sarah Smith
Org 536 – Business Writing and Communication
Colorado State University – Global Campus
Dr. Robert Olszewski
June 1, 2014

2. This presentation will help improve your business
communication skills, by indicating various successful
traits and how to avoid presentation pitfalls.
Presentation Goal
(Source: Google Images)

3. Overview
 Business Communication
 Professionalism
 Intercultural Communication
 Writing Tips
 Electronic Messages and Digital Media
 Positive and Negative Messages
 Business Presentations
 Business Reports, Proposals, and Plans

4. Various Forms of Communication
 Everyday Communication
 Verbally
 Non-Verbal
 Written
 Visual
 Business Communication
 Face to Face
 Email
 Social Media
 Meetings
(Richards, n.d.)
All of these forms help one express or exchange information
about ideas, thoughts, or feelings.
(Merriam-Webster, 2014)
(Guffey & Loewy, 2011)

5. Effective Communication
 Be Direct
 Tell your employees what
you want
 Do not leave the task open
for interpretation
 Get to the Point
 Do not take forever
explaining the task
 Give your employees the
main points and let them
take control
(Forbes, 2011)
 Be Concise
 Make sure to convey the
most important points to
your employees
 Let them figure out the rest

6.  Three Principles
 Legal
 Ethical
 Good Taste
 Article that breaks down the ethic principles.
 http://www.iabc.com/about/code.htm
Communication Ethics
(IABC, 2014)
(Source: Google Images)
(Source: Google Images)

7. Professional Communication
 Credibility
 Image
 Identity
 Reputation
 Self-Confidence
(NCSU, n.d.)
(Source: Google Images)

8. Intercultural Communication
 Acknowledge
 Customs
 Cultural Traits
 Behavior
(Barger, 2008)
 Do Not
 Be ethnocentrism
 Your culture is not superior
to all others
 Make assumptions
(Barger, 2008)
(Source: IABC, 2014)

9. Minimize Misunderstandings
• Be aware that words have others meanings in
various languages.
Parker Pen could not advertise its Jotter ballpoint pen,
because it sounded like jockstrap in some languages.
• Here is a link to the article with other unfortunate
translations
– http://www.diplomacy.edu/language/intercultural-
communication
(Diplo, n.d.)

10. Writing Tips
 Prewriting (25%)
 Analyze
 Anticipate
 Adapt
 Writing (25%)
 Researching
 Organizing
 Composing
 Revising (45% revising, 5%
proofing)
 Revising
 Proofreading
 Evaluating
(Guffey & Loewy, 2011)
(Source: Google Images)

11. Prewriting
 Analyze
 What message is the
presentation trying to
convey?
 Anticipate
 Who is the audience? What
do they probably already
know?
 Adapt
 How can you expand their
knowledge level?
(Guffey & Loewy, 2011)
(Source: Google Images)

12. Writing
 Research
 Start looking at articles that
relate to your presentation.
 Organizing
 Start outlining the
presentation with main
ideas.
 Composing
 Start your first draft.
(Guffey & Loewy, 2011) (Source: Google Images)

13. Revising
 Revise
 Make sure it conveys the
message to your audience
correctly.
 Proofreading
 Review the document for
spelling and grammar errors.
 Evaluating
 Does the presentation
achieve your goal?
(Guffey & Loewy, 2011)
(Source: Google Images)

14. Electronic Messages
 Electronic Mail or Email
 Short messages
 Ability to reach lots of people
at the same time
 Instant Messaging
 Quicker when compared to
email
 Text Messaging
 The ability to send short
messages by mobile phone
(Guffey & Loewy, 2011)
(Source: Google Images)

15. Digital Media
 Podcasts
 Digital Media files that can be
downloaded from the Internet
 Blogs
 Web-based journals
 Wikis
 Available to many users. Allows
anyone to update or change
information
 Social Networking
 Allows users to connect to
others world-wide, i.e.
Facebook, Twitter, etc
(Guffey & Loewy, 2011)
(Source: Google Images)
(Source: Google Images)

16.  Direct Organizational Plan
 Used for Positive or Neutral Messages
 Put the major news out first
 Indirect Organizational Plan
 Used for Negative or Persuasive Messages
 Sets a buffer between the beginning of the
message and the bad-news
Conveying Messages
(Newman & Ober, 2012)

17. Communication Channels
 Make sure to pick the
correct
communication
channel.
 This is imperative
that the message
reaches the individual
correctly.
(Newman & Ober, 2012)
(Source: Google Images)

18. Positive Messages
 Communication Channels
 Email
 Memo
 Face-to-Face Conversation
(Newman & Ober, 2012)
(Source: Google Images)
(Source: Google Images)
(Source: Google Images)

19. Negative Messages
 Communication
Channel
 Face-to-Face
Conversation
(Newman & Ober, 2012)
(Source: Google Images)

20. Business Presentations
 Frame Your Story
(Anderson & Duarte, 2013)
 Develop Stage Presence
 Putting it Together
 Plan the Multimedia
 Plan Your Delivery
(Source: Google Images)
(Source: Google Images)
(Source: Google Images)
(Source: Google Images)(Source: Google Images)

21. Presentation Pitfalls
 Talking too Long
 Speaking Slowly and
Dramatically
 Cramming too many words
onto a Slide
 Do not rehearse
 Never making eye contact
 Too much jargon
(Anderson & Duarte, 2013)
(Source: Google Images)

22. Business Reports
 Formal
 Reports that may leave the
organization
 Used less frequently than
informal reports
 Informal
 Used frequently to pass
information
 May be the start of a
formal report
(Guffey & Loewy, 2011)
(Source: Google Images)

23. Formal Reports
 Formal business reports are
to be instituted for the
completion of documents
and to be distributed outside
the company or to higher
levels within the
organization (Howard, n.d.)
 Normally tied to goals and
metrics of the company
(Johnston, n.d.)
(Source: Google Images)
(Source: Google Images)

24.  Informal reports may be emails, verbal
instructions, etc. (Howard, n.d.)
 Normally informal reports are not there to
complete company objectives, but rather to
complete daily tasks (Johnston, n.d.)
Informal Reports

25. Business Proposals
Six Elements
Authorization
Request
Conclusion
Body
Budget
Recommendations
Introduction
(Guffey & Loewy, 2011)

26. Business Plans
 Consists of 5 Components
 Vision Statement/Executive
Summary
 Company Description
 Operations/Management
Structure
 Financial Plan
 Appendixes
(Guffey & Loewy, 2011)
(Source: Google Images)

27.  After reviewing all of the information throughout the
presentation. You should have a better understanding on
how to excel at creating powerful business presentations.
Conclusion
(Source: Google Images)

28.  Business Communication
 Professionalism
 Intercultural Communication
 Writing Tips
 Electronic Messages and Digital
Media
 Positive and Negative Messages
 Business Presentations
 Business Reports, Proposals, and
Plans
Summary

29. Questions
(Source: Google Images)

30. Thank You

31. Anderson, C. & Duarte, N. (2013). How to give a killer presentation. Harvard Business Review, 91(6), 121-125. Retrieved from
https://eds-b-ebscohost-com.csuglobal.idm.oclc.org/ehost/detail?vid=2&sid=7547935a-a34c-4608- b570-
4644749e291e%40sessionmgr110&hid=116&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=buh&AN=87716149
Barger, K. (2008). Ethnocentrism. Retrieved from http://iupui.edu/~anthkb/ethnocen.htm
Diplo. (n.d.). Intercultural communication. Retrieved from http://www.diplomacy.edu/language/intercultural-communication
Forbes. (2011). How to communicate effectively at the workplace. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/
2011/11/21/how-to-communicate-effectively-at-work/
Guffey, M., & Loewy, D. (2011). Business Communication: Process and Product (7th Ed.). Independence, KY: Cengage Learning.
Howard, R.M. (n.d.). Business Reports. Retrieved from http://wrt-howard.syr.edu/Handouts/reports.htm
IABC. (2014). IABC code of ethics for business communicators. Retrieved from http://www.iabc.com/about/code.htm
References

32. Johnston, K. D. (n.d.). The difference between formal and informal corporate culture. Retrieved from http://
yourbusiness.azcentral.com/difference-between-formal-informal-corporate-culture-11855.html
Merriam-Webster. (2014). Communication. Retrieved from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/communication
NCSU. (n.d.). Audience strategy for all professional business communication. Retrieved from http://mgt.ncsu.edu/pdfs/
career_resources/Audience%20Strategy.pdf
Newman, A. & Ober, S. (2012). Business communication: in print, in person, online (8th ed.). Cincinnati, OH: South-Western
College Publishers
Richards, L. (n.d.). Various communication methods in business. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/various-
communication-methods-business-2932.html
References Continued