ENG201- PLANNING BUSINESS MESSAGES

The composition process can be viewed as ten separate stages that fall into three simple categories (Planning, Composing and Revising).

1.  PLANNING

1.  Define purpose

2.  Analyze audience

3.  Establish main idea

4.  Select channel and medium

2.  Composing

1.  Organize the message

2.  Formulate the message

3.  Revising

1.  Edit the message

2.  Rewrite the message 

3.  Produce the message

4.  Proofread the message

Guidelines for Planning Business Message

·      Sharpening Your Skill

1.  Sharpening Your Skill  

2.  Use positive self-talk

3.  Know your purpose

4.  Visualize your audience

5.  Create a productive environment.

6.  Make an outline

7.  Just start

8.  Write the middle first

9.  Push obstacles aside

·      Technology

Microsoft Word increases productivity and effectiveness by streamlining the process.

·      Collaboration

        writing is a team effort, with more than one working on a document.  

·      Scheduling

       Allotting time properly is very important

Defining your Purpose

how to precede, how to respond, which information to focus on, and which channel or medium to use.

·      Why do you need to have clear purpose?

Knowing the purpose of your message will help you make important decision about it.

·      Decide

messages should be put on hold until you have a more practical purpose. 

·      Respond to the audience

composing a message with the audience's purpose

·      Focus on the content 

Don’t overload the audience with extra message.

·      Establish a channel and Medium

writing a message for the whole department would most likely make you email it for ease of distribution.

Common Purpose of Business Message

Business messages have the following general purposes:

·      Inform

·      Persuad

·      Collaborate

Specific Purpose

Beyond having a general purpose, your message might have a specific purpose. To determine the specific purpose, think of how the audience's ideas or behavior should be affected by the message.  

Examples

General Purpose

To inform

Specific Purpose 

To present last month's sales figures to the Vice President of marketing

General Purpose

To persuade

Specific Purpose 

To convince the marketing director of the need to hire more Software Engineers

General Purpose 

To collaborate

Specific Purpose 

To help the personnel department develop a training program for new members of a Software Team  

How should you test your purpose?

Test your Purpose

·      Is the purpose realistic?

·      If your purpose involves a major change

·      Is it the right time?

·      An idea is more likely to win approval when the profits are up.

·      Is the right person delivering the message?

·      Some people have a better shot at getting the purpose achieved.

·      Is the purpose acceptable to the organization?

·      As a representative of your company, you are obligated to work for its goals.

Audience Analysis

Ask yourself some key questions about your audience:

·      Who are they?

·      What is their reaction to your message?

·      How much do they already know about the subject?

·      What is their relationship to you?

·      Determine the Audience Size and Composition.

·      Focus on the common interest of the Audience

·      Identify primary Audience

Try to identify the people who are most important to your purpose.

·      Estimate the Audience's probable reaction.

·      A gradual approach and plenty of evidence is required to win over a skeptical audience.

·      Gauge the audience's level of understanding.

·      If you and your audience share the same general background, you can assume that they will understand the subject without any difficulty.  

o Define your relationship with the Audience– are you communicating with people inside or outside your organization?

·      How much credibility do you have?

Satisfy your Audience's information needs

·      What does the audience want to know? 

·      What does the audience need to know?

·      Have I provided all the desired and necessary information?

·      Is the information accurate?

·      Have I emphasized the information of greatest interest?

·      What does the audience want to know?

Test the completeness of your message by making sure it answers all the important questions: 

•      Who? 

•      What? 

•      When?  

•      Where?  

•      Why?   

•      How?

•      Is the information accurate?

 •      Make your Message easier to comprehend

Devices that make your message easier to comprehend include summaries, overviews, headings, lists, enclosures, appendixes, handouts, charts, and graphs.

•      Establishing the Main Idea

  The main idea is the 'hook' that sums up why a particular audience should do or think as you suggest.

Use Brainstorming Techniques

·      Storyteller's tour

·      Random List

·      FCR worksheet

·      Journalistic Approach

·      Question and Answer Chain

•      Limit the Scope

The main idea should be geared to the length of the message.  

Select Appropriate Channel and Medium

Selecting the Appropriate Channel and Medium is very important.

The mediums could be:

·      Oral 

·      Written

·      Electronic

 • Oral medium

Oral medium is best when you want immediate feedback. 

• Written medium

Written medium is best when you don’t need immediate feedback. Your message is detailed and complex. 

• Electronic Message

Electronic Message is best when you don’t need immediate feedback, but you do need speed.