BUSINESS COMMUNICATION ASSESSMENT FILE

ON

“IMPORTANCE OF VOICE IN
COMMUNICATION”

Submitted to: Submitted by:

Ms. EESHANI SARSWAT RITIKA TRIPATHI

Faculty-BC A0101909262
MBA(G)-2011
INTRODUCTION:

People in organizations typically spend over 75% of their time in an interpersonal

situation; thus it is no surprise to find that at the root of a large number of organizational
problems is poor communications.
Effective communication is an essential component of organizational success whether it
is at the interpersonal, intergroup, intragroup, organizational, or external levels.
The ability to communicate is the primary factor that distinguishes human beings from
animals. And it is the ability to communicate well that distinguishes one individual from
another. The fact, is that apart from the basic necessities, one needs to be equipped with
habits for good communication skills, as this is what will make them a happy and
successful social being.
In order to develop these habits, one needs to first acknowledge the fact that they need to
improve communication skills from time to time. They need to take stock of the way they
interact and the direction in which their work and personal relations are going. The only
constant in life is change, and the more one accepts one's strengths and works towards
dealing with their shortcomings, especially in the area of communication skills, the better
will be their interactions and the more their social popularity.

.WHAT IS COMMUNICATION?
The word communication is derived from the Latin noun‘communis’ and the Latin verb
‘communicate’ that means ‘tomake common’. Communication is a process of
transferring information from one entity to another. Communication processes are sign-
mediated interactions between at least two agents which share a repertoire of signs and
semiotic rules. Communication is commonly defined as "the imparting orinterchange of
thoughts, opinions, or information by speech,writing, or signs". Although there is such a
thing as one-waycommunication, communication can be perceived better as atwo-way
process in which there is an exchange andprogression of thoughts, feelings or ideas
(energy) towards amutually accepted goal or direction (information).
Communication is a process whereby information is enclosedin a package and is
channeled and imparted by a sender to areceiver via some medium. The receiver then
decodes themessage and gives the sender a feedback. All forms ofcommunication require
a sender, a message, and a receiver.Communication requires that all parties have an area
ofcommunicative commonality. There are auditory means, suchas speech, song, and tone
of voice, and there are nonverbalmeans, such as body language, sign language,
paralanguage, touch, eye contact, and writing.
IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNICATION:

Communication is important for both for an individual and also for the society. A
person’s need for communication is as strong and as basic as the need to eat, sleep and
love.Communication is the requirement of social existence and are source in order to
engage in the sharing of experiences, through ‘symbol mediated interaction’. Isolation is
in fact the worest punishment for human being. The basic human need for
communication can perhaps be traced to the process of mankind’s evolution from lower
species. Animals, for instance, have to be in sensory communication with their physical
and biological surroundings to find food, protect themselves and reproduce their species.
A loss of sensation-the inability to hear a predator for instance can mean loss of life.
Essentially, the primary function of communication is to inform, educate, entertain and
persuade people. Following are the basic functions of communications:

EDUCATION AND INSTRUCTION – This function of education starts early in life, at

home and in school and continues throughout life. Communication provides knowledge,
expertise, and skills for smooth functioning by people in thesociety. It creates awareness
and gives opportunity topeople to actively participate in public life.

INFORMATION -Quality of our life will be poor without information. The more
informed we are the more powerfulwe become. Communication provides I nformation
about oursurroundings. Information regarding wars, danger, crisis,famine etc. are
important for the safety and well being of our life.

ENTERTAINMENT -To break the routine life and divert our attention from the stressful
life we lead today,entertainment is an essential part of everybody’s life.Communication
provide endless entertainment to peoplethrough films, television, radio, drama, music,
literature,comedy, games etc
DISCUSSION – Debates and discussions clarify different viewpoints on issues of interest
to the people. Throughcommunication, we find out reasons for varying viewpointsand
impart persons through certain signs and symbols.

PERSUASION -It helps in reaching for a discussion on public policy so that it is helpful
to govern the people. Though it ispossible, that one can resort to persuasion for a bad
motive.Thus, the receiver must be careful about the source of persuasion.

CULTURAL PROMOTION - Communication provides an opportunity for the promotion

and preservation of cultureand traditions. It makes the people fulfill their creative urges.

INTEGRATION -It is through communication that a large number of people across

countries come to know abouteach other’s traditions and appreciate each other’s ways
oflife. It develops integration and tolerance towards each other

KEY COMMUNICATION SKILLS:

 Let others express themselves

 Observe non verbal clues

 Establish eye contact

 Active listening

VERBAL COMMUNICATION:

• What to say ?

• How to say?
 • Whom to say?

• When to say?

• What you should not say?

Verbal communication includes sounds, words, language and speaking. Language is said
to have originated from sounds and gestures. There are many languages spoken in the
world. The bases of language formation are: gender, class, profession, geographical area,
age group and other social elements. Speaking is an effective way of communicating and
is again classified into two types viz. interpersonal communication and
public speaking.
Good verbal communication is an inseparable part of business communication. In a
business, you come across people fromvarious ages, cultures and races. Fluent verbal
communicationis essential to deal with people in business meetings. Also, inbusiness
communication self-confidence plays a vital rolewhich when clubbed with fluent
communication skills can lead to success.
Public speaking is another verbal communication in which youhave to address a group of
people. Preparing for an effectivespeech before you start is important. In public speaking,
thespeech must be prepared according to the type of audienceyou are going to face. The
content of your your speech shouldbe authentic and you must have enough information
on thetopic you have chosen for public speaking. All the main pointsin your speech must
be highlighted and these points should bedelivered in the correct order. There are many
public speakingtechniques and these techniques must be practiced for aneffective speech.
IMPORTANT POINTS IN COMMUNICATION:

 Feel good about yourself

 Learn to avoid using ‘I’ and ‘ME’

 Instead use ‘YOU’ and ‘WE’

 Pause, pace, pitch, and voice modulation

The SOFTEN technique

S = smiling
O = open body posture
F = friendly energy
T = touching while talking
E = eye contact
N = nodding in affirmation

IMPORTANCE OF VOICE IN COMMUNICATION:

Even before we are born, we are listening for voices. Research has shown that a child in
the womb shows a discernible preference for a mother's voice. Hearing that voice, and
mother's heartbeat, is one of the few sensory perceptions accessible in the womb.
Voices are highly unique and individual. Marilyn Monroe had a breathy, come-hither
voice. Alfred Hitchcock had a stilted, caught-in-the-throat sound that complemented his
theatrical thrillers. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke with command and charisma in a smooth
deep voice that captivated listeners.
Several parts of the body come into play to produce a voice, including the diaphragm,
vocal cords, tongue, palate, gums and the oral and sinus cavities. How we breathe,
project, resonate and restrict or relax our speech muscles affects the sounds we produce.

Before you begin to communicate, you need to be sure that you are mentally ready to
listen as well as to speak. Listening is a large part of communication that people tend to
forget. When speaking about a difficult or painful topic, speak about specific events.
Don't generalize and use statements such as 'you always…'. State your point by saying
'when you did…..it made me feel…….' Or 'when you said …… it made me feel……'. Be
respectful. Do not exhibit 'closed' behavior such as folding your arms or having a
scolding facial expression. Try to verbalize your feelings in a way that doesn't put the
other person on defense or make them feel as though you are attacking them. This will
cause them to shut down. Remember that although this person's behavior caused you to
feel this way, your main point is how you feel and not their behavior. When listening to
the other person, validate their feelings or opinions by using phrases like 'I understand
how you feel…'.
Tone of voice is often more important in communication than we realize. The way we
send the message is often just as important as the content of the message itself, even to
those of us with opposable thumbs and the ability to understand more than a few words of
language.
In order to "train" one's customers about one's brand, a company needs to have a
consistent message to all customers in every interaction with every part of the business.
Dealing with a company that is always changing its look, sound, and values can be
confusing. If part of a business’s marketing materials are very serious, and part of it is
surfer talk or chatty girl-talk, it can create accessibility problems for current and potential
patrons and partners. How can you trust the company, or trust that it knows who it is and
what it is doing, if it doesn’t have a consistent message? The tone of voice should
communicate your brand’s values and qualities. A company needs to decide not only the
message it wants to get across, but the best way to deliver that message.
Tone should be appropriate to the brand, and needs to be consistent in all
communications to be effective. If you are a banker, you probably don’t want to sign
your formal documents with pink ink and a heart dotting the “I”s. On the other hand, if
you sell stationery to pre-teen girls, having pink lettering with sparkles on your website
may be exactly what you want. This is where tone of voice and brand guidelines come in.
If the rules for how to communicate with the outside world are set out, then despite
having multiple authors write about the brand, the brand will retain its integrity. Another
benefit of unified communications is that the company is much more agile in PR
situations. It can be much easier and quicker to use language to differentiate the brand or
ensure certain points are made.
The most important part is that the tone of your website, newsletters, blogs, networking
websites and press releases all have the same look, feel, and message. This includes the
tone used on your social media marketing.
Voice tone is a very interesting way to communicate non-verbal messages to other people
because you can verbally make one statement, and that statement can turn around and
have several different meanings. This is achieved by the words a person chooses to
emphasize with his or her tone of voice, as the person speaks. The words a person may
choose to say, and the sentences a person chooses to formulate, really can instantaneously
change the meaning behind the individual's message. Thus, we can really play all sorts of
words games, and have many different plays on words that make each comment have
multiple meanings.

Voice tone non-verbally communicates how a person feels emotionally (happy, sad,
angry, afraid, excited, frustrated, embarrassed, surprised, worried, jealous, disappointed,
hurt, sorry, ashamed, proud, enraged, interested, disgusted, joy and awe). Voice tone can
also non-verbally communicate what a person thinks about something, and/or what the
individual may or may not plan to do about his or her thoughts and feelings.

How do you use this non-verbal tool to your advantage? By monitoring your own tone of
voice, and stating your words as matter of fact as possible, you will be teaching your
toddler how to be calm, cool, and collected, when things don't go their way. Thus,
making your toddlers defiant, aggressive, out-of-control, and violent behavior dissipate
within minutes.

VOICE MODULATION:

Voice modulation refers to the adjustment of the pitch or tone of voice to become enough
to be clearly heard and understood by the audience. Accent neutralization also is an
important aspect of voice modulation. It facilitates effective communication.
In the case of verbal communication skills voice plays an important role. After all, one
maybe knowledgeable in their domain area, but conveying their knowledge may seem
like a mammoth task. This is the reason why, as a part of communication skills training
there is ample emphasis laid on voice culture.
One aspect of culturing the voice is understanding intonation. This is the rise and fall in
pitch, which occurs as we speak. There are various patterns of intonation. For instance,
there is sing song, monotone, jump up and step down (JUSD), etc. When one intonates
one puts music, melody and rhythm into the way they speak. Basically, intonation
follows certain guidelines that help one decide which are important and key ideas on
which one needs to rise and fall in pitch. When one follows these guidelines, one can
clearly communicate to the listener the important idea/s in the message.

The following are the various factor that can help one to modulate well and gain correct
intonation, inflection and syllable stress.

• Be enthusiastic.
• Avoid speaking in a monotone
• Exaggerate voice inflection
• Pause to create effect
• Pace between fast and slow
• Modulate between high and low pitch
• Bring power with the play of volume - loud and soft
• Enunciate the words to bring about clarity
• Match tone with attitude
Public speaking is one of the most difficult, challenging and intimidating things to do.
Standing in front of a group of people and speaking to them about your ideas, beliefs or
plans can be one of the most exciting and scary things you have ever done in your life.
Knowing some basics about public speaking can help you do a better job at getting your
message across. Voice modulation and control is one of the key tools you can use to
make your speech a success.

LOWER YOUR VOICE

Lower the pitch of your voice slightly when speaking in public. Shrill voices can be
annoying, cause microphone feedback and make your words unintelligible. Don't lower
your voice dramatically, just concentrate on keeping it even and lower--even in moments
of passionate speaking. Concentrate on removing any garbage words such as "uh" or
"um." These are speech killers.

SLOW DOWN
One of the biggest mistakes in public speaking is speaking too quickly. A normal
conversation is too fast a pace for a public speech. Slow down, speak clearly and
concisely, and allow moments of pause in important phrases to allow the listener to digest
what was just said. Use moments of pause and also use your voice level to indicate
importance. When you are showing passion, get quieter before delivering the sentence of
importance. Then, when the key sentence is spoken, raise your voice level and say the
sentence emphatically and clearly. Do not shout, but make a big difference in your voice
level.

WATCH YOUR "S" SOUNDS

"S" and "P" can be microphone killers. The sibilant sound of the "s" can wipe out what
was just said and what is being said next. The same goes for the explosive "p" sound.
Some speech coaches tell you to use a soft "th" sound for the "s" and to move the mic
away from the mouth when using the "p" sound. Whatever works best for you is fine, just
keep these in mind when speaking.

CONCLUSION:
It would be apt to state that though voice has been given lesser importance than non
verbal communication, but still it holds an irreplaceable position in completing the
communication process. A lot depends on the tone and way of speaking of an individual.
And hence it is necessary to get the appropriate tone for effective communication. Way
of speaking of an individual reflects not only his intellect but also his values.