The Ultimate Guide to

Business Communication
Everything you need to know to
be confident in writing at work.
Table of Contents
3 Writing for Your Audience

6 Writing with Confidence

7 Writing with Clarity

8 Writing Concisely

9 Making Writing Actionable

10 Stronger Word Choices

12 Writing Better Emails

13 Writing Better Memos

15 Writing Better Proposals

Introduction
The ability to communicate effectively in writing is
vital to achieving career success.

“Excellent communication skills” is listed as a

In this guide, you'll learn about:
requirement on nearly every job description, from
entry-level sales roles to senior software engineers— fundamentals of effective writing
and almost everything in between. Regardless of what writing for your audience
field you work in, having strong writing skills will only sounding confident in your writing
help make your job that much easier. writing with clarity
making your writing actionable
If you are under the impression that being an crafting effective emails, memos,
effective writer has to be hard, think again. There are and proposals
a few simple tips to help you deliver information and more!
clearly, concisely, and impactfully. Whether you’re
sending your first company-wide memo, putting
together a slide deck, or sending off a business
proposal, these fundamentals of written
communication can help your message stand out in a
world that never stands still.

Writing for Your Audience

It’s crucial that you understand who your intended audience is, regardless of what you’re writing.
Identifying your target audience will equip you with the information needed to communicate in a
way that will resonate with your reader.

Understanding your audience will inform:

What medium you are using to communicate.
What kind of language you use.
The voice and tone behind your message.

When someone is referring to a target audience, it’s typically in the larger-scale context of
creating a marketing campaign or sales strategy, but the concept is equally as important for day-
to-day interpersonal communications. The tone, word choice, and even the format you use to
deliver your update are all key components of making sure that your message is well received,
understood, and valuable.

To understand why this is true, let’s consider this scenario: you’re writing an update to share with
your manager and immediate teammates. Contextually, you know it makes most sense to share
this update as an email. You also know that the people reading your update will clearly
understand industry parlance and acronyms.

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Because you have established relationships with your team, you also feel comfortable erring on
the side of being slightly casual.

On the other hand, you have been asked to put together a project proposal for a client. The
format is determined for you, but knowing that a prospective customer will be reading the
proposal helps you know to use plain language instead of jargon. The voice you use when writing
the proposal sounds polished and relevant to the brand voice for the company you work for.

In the same way that marketing and sales teams use target audiences to inform their strategies,
you can apply the practice to your day-to-day communications. You’ve surely been in situations
where you receive a strangely-worded email or memo and thought to yourself: “who do they think
they’re talking to?” The key to avoiding those off-base communications is being cognizant of your
intended audience and crafting your message in a way that naturally aligns with their needs and
expectations.

It’s crucial that you understand who your intended audience is, regardless of what you’re writing.
Identifying your target audience will equip you with the information needed to communicate in a
way that will resonate with your reader.

What medium you are using to communicate.

FREE RESOURCE
What kind of language you use.
How to Identify Your Audience
The voice and tone behind your message.

When someone is referring to a target audience, it’s typically in the larger-scale context of
creating a marketing campaign or sales strategy, but the concept is equally as important for day-
to-day interpersonal communications. The tone, word choice, and even the format you use to
deliver your update are all key components of making sure that your message is well received,
understood, and valuable.

To understand why this is true, let’s consider this scenario: you’re writing an update to share with
your manager and immediate teammates. Contextually, you know it makes most sense to share
this update as an email. You also know that the people reading your update will clearly
understand industry parlance and acronyms.

4
Word Choice
Jargon
In some instances, industry lingo is the most effective way to communicate ideas—but it all
depends on who will be reading it. If you are a financial expert communicating with other finance
professionals, wise use of corporate vocabulary is totally reasonable. But if you’re writing a pitch
deck to present financial information to an audience of novice investors, your lingo might cause
confusion.

Figurative Expressions
Metaphors and clichés are frequently used to pad writing, but rarely add value. To focus on clear
and concise writing, consider the value-add before including symbolism in your message. There
are instances where including figurative language can be helpful for your reader—like when you
are trying to explain complex ideas. But if you are simply adding it for flair, there is a good
chance that your writing will be stronger without it.
Example: The four objectives listed at the beginning of this proposal are
low-hanging fruit that we could easily and quickly accomplish.

Revision: The four objectives listed at the beginning of this proposal are
opportunities that our team could accomplish quickly and with ease.

Hedge Words
These are words or phrases that are softeners—they take assertiveness away from your writing
and often replace it with a sense of uncertainty. “Probably, most likely, generally, typically,
usually” are frequent underminers and should be stripped out whenever possible.

Voice & Tone

Voice and tone are frequently referred to together because they both refer to your mode of self
expression—however, they are separate concepts. Where things like spelling, grammar, and
punctuation set parameters for what you are saying, voice and tone define how you say it.

Voice
This is the core personality of your writing—it’s a
constant that doesn’t change. Your voice is the
representation of you or your business. When
you’re writing at work, you may write in your
own voice or your company’s voice, depending
on the context. Where a Slack message to a
coworker would be written in your voice, the
summary of a sales proposal would be more
appropriately written in your company’s voice.
Think of your voice as the playbook for how you
write. Your voice may be defined by the words
you do or don’t use, the cadence your sentences
form, or the way you structure your thoughts.
Your voice is a constant that doesn’t change.
Tone
This is the mood expressed in your writing—it
can change based on context. When
someone references “tone,” it’s describing
the way you come across based on things
like word choice, inflection, and energy. Your
tone will shift to match context.
Where your voice will remain the same, your
tone will fluctuate. Tone consists of small,
subtle indicators. They could be as simple as
including an emoji or using an exclamation
point in place of a period.

5
Writing with Confidence
No one wants to work with someone who is self-important, but that doesn’t mean you should try
to avoid sounding confident in your writing.. In fact, doing that often results in the pendulum
swinging far in the other direction and your authority is lost. Just like it’s hard to win people over
with arrogance, it can be challenging to grab someone’s attention when you lack confidence.

Here are five ways to show more confidence through your writing:

1 DO keep it simple
Brevity demonstrates confidence. Use short sentences and simple language to
clearly communicate your ideas. Your focus should be on providing clarity and
explaining even complex ideas conversationally.

2 DON'T mak e it personal

Phrases like “I think”, “I believe”, and “I would say” are padding your
sentences with uncertainty and are taking away from the clear communication
of your ideas.

3 DO avoid hypotheticals (when possible)

Removing unnecessary “if” clauses will go a long way in improving the quality
of your writing. Wherever possible, ditch the hypotheticals in favor of definitive
statements.

4 DON'T undermine yourself

Before adding “sorry” to the start of that sentence, really consider if it’s
something that warrants an apology. A simple swap like changing “sorry for
the delay” to “thanks for your patience” can go a long way while still conveying
humility. In the same vein, avoiding honing in on your insecurities or perceived
weaknesses.

5 DO set clear expectations

Confident writers champion their communication by establishing clear next
steps for their reader. If you want the person reading your writing to take a
specific action or follow a certain timeline, it’s important to make that known.

Ultimately, confident writers are able to balance

respect and authority. They communicate concepts and
ideas clearly, establish clear next steps, and exude
trustworthiness and expertise.

To put these tips in action, take a look at the two

examples on the next page.

6
 Version One Version One
Hi, Jacqueline! Hi, Jacqueline!

I hope this email finds you well. Thank you
so much for taking time out of your busy
schedule to meet with me yesterday. The
feedback you provided on this draft was
very informative and helpful. I have so
much to learn in this area and it was great
to talk through this with you.
I took your feedback very seriously and
implemented your corrections throughout
the document. I would appreciate your
feedback on this round, whenever you have
the chance to look at it. I’m sorry if I
missed anything. Just let me know and I’ll
be sure to get it fixed as soon as possible.
If you have any questions or concerns, let
me know.
Best regards,
Nigel
Thank you for your constructive feedback
on the HubSpot Report yesterday. I have
attached V2 of the report. Please review
the updated version and provide feedback
by EOD Thursday.
I appreciate your help and look forward to
hearing from you.
Best regards,
Nigel
How would you feel if you were
Jacqueline and received the first email?
It's considerably longer than the second
and is riddled with hedging statements
that undermine Nigel’s ability and the
overall efficacy of the message.

Making Writing Actionable

Regardless of what you’re writing, when you are wielding a pen (or, perhaps more likely, a keyboard)
you are in the position to be a master architect. You are creating a roadmap for your reader—how
effective that roadmap is, ultimately, is up to you. Be it a Slack message, an email to a vendor, or an
executive summary, there are a few tips that you can follow to write something engaging and worthy
of action.

Get to the Point Quickly Make It Scannable End With a Clear Call to Action
Nix the gimmicks and Walls of text are the silent killers The final piece of any writing
ambiguity. Use the hook (be of actionability. Annotations, should be a CTA. This is your
it your email’s subject line or stylized formatting, and bulleted last chance to give the reader
the introduction of a lists are just a few changes you direction on next steps. A solid
presentation) to grab the can make to help the reader to CTA communicates an
reader’s attention and make more quickly understand long appropriate level of urgency
it clear what you want them pieces of content—and more and provides clear instruction.
to do. quickly determine what action A strong call to action is clear,
you want them to take and why concise, and compelling.

7
Writing with Clarity
When it comes to writing, many of us just want to communicate with clarity. Clear writing
contributes to clear communication, and in turn, impacts business outcomes. Consider these
strategies for writing with clarity.
Definitive Language
The way you write can influence how your
reader will think about what you are trying to
convey. Being clear and definitive allows a
reader to be certain about the message you
are communicating; which leads to better
understanding and greater retention of
information. Choosing action verbs, writing in
an active voice, and using precise language
are all ways to write more definitively.
Example: There are several tests in place that
will provide insight into how we can better
optimize our landing pages.
Revision: There are five landing page tests in
place to help us determine optimization
strategies.
Clear Pronoun References
Unclear pronoun references occur when a
pronoun could be in reference to more than
one noun in your sentence. For clearer writing,
be sure that every pronoun you use relates to
one specific noun, or rephrase the sentence to
make it more obvious.
Example: After meeting with the sales and
marketing teams yesterday, the finance
manager requested more information from
them.
Revision: The finance manager requested
more information from the sales team after
meeting with the sales and marketing teams
yesterday.
Transitional Words
A well-placed transition can go a long way in
terms of improving clarity. A good rule to
follow is to try keeping transitional words at
the beginning or the end of your sentences.
Including them in the middle can cause your
writing to be clunky and difficult to follow.
Common transitions include however,
therefore, in addition, also, but, moreover, etc.
Example: Our time-off policy, in addition to 12
corporate holidays, empowers our employees
to achieve better work-life balance.
Revision: Our time-off policy and the 12
corporate holidays we observe help empower
our employees to achieve better work-life
balance.
Noun Strings
Using many consecutive nouns can cause
confusion for your reader, even more so if you
are using industry jargon within those sentences.
Try rewriting your sentences to break up noun
strings, mentioning the true subject of the
sentence first.
Example: This company has an employee
professional development resource program.
Revision: This company has a program that
provides employees with professional
development resources.
8
Writing Concisely
Effective writing is succinct, trading grandeur for clarity and wordiness for brevity. The key is to
try and communicate your idea with as few words as possible without sacrificing clarity. Concise
writing has a cropped word count, but good concise writing harnesses a balance of brevity and
precision. You would be surprised to find out how much unnecessary padding that you add to
your writing without even realizing it. Here are a few ways to work towards conciseness.

Eliminate Redundancies
Redundant pairs are great when you want to emphasize or exaggerate—but that’s not our goal. If
two words in a pair have the same meaning, just choose one. Similarly, keep an eye out for
double negatives (e.g., “not unlikely”) and always choose the more precise word choice wherever
possible (e.g., “many books” vs. “24 books”).

Example: “Each and every one of you will be a better writer if you follow this guide.”

Revision: “Each one of you will be a better writer if you follow this guide.”

Ditch Unnecessary Qualifiers

Qualifiers are added to other words to either enhance or minimize their quality. Examples of
common qualifiers include: actually, very, basically, fairly, practically, somewhat, and extremely.
When trying to tighten your writing, many qualifiers can be removed without taking away from
the sentence’s clarity or value.

Example: “Joaquin was extremely busy last week. There was practically no available
time on his calendar.”

Revision: “Joaquin was busy last week. There was little available time on his calendar.”

Switch to Active Voice

The use of active voice is the better option in terms of succinctness. In active voice, the subject
typically precedes the sentence’s verb. Active voice will usually use fewer words than passive
voice and will almost always provide more clarity.

Example: In 1867 in Warsaw, Poland, Marie Curie was born.

Revision: Marie Curie was born in 1867 in Warsaw, Poland.

Trim the Context

When you are working towards tightening your writing,
revisiting how much context you are providing is a great
place to start. While you don’t want to leave out any
valuable information, there is opportunity to review your
messaging to ensure that you are only providing relevant
details. Avoid bogging down your reader with unneeded
context and keep the focus on the most important aspects
of what you are trying to say.
9
Stronger Word Choices
Instead of: “I hope this finds you well”
You could say: It’s a pleasure connecting with you / I hope you had a great weekend / I hope
you’re having a productive week / How are things in [CITY]? / Do you have any plans this
weekend? / I know you’re busy, so I’ll keep this brief

Instead of: "Thank you for your time”

You could say: I appreciate your time / I appreciate your help / I appreciate your consideration /
I appreciate your guidance / Thank you for your understanding / Thank you for your assistance /
Many thanks for your assistance / I am grateful for your help / I appreciate your support

Instead of: “Please find attached”

You could say: Here is [the file] / I’ve attached [the file] / This email has [the file] / I’m sharing
[the file] with you / You’ll find [the file] below / Let me know if you have any questions about [the
file] / [the file] is below / Relevant information is in the attached file / The attached file includes
[XYZ] / When you review the attached file, you’ll find… / Take a look at [the file] / For reference,
I’ve attached [the file] / I’ve linked [the file]

Instead of: “Let’s touch base”

You could say: Let’s sync offline / Let’s brainstorm that together / Let’s schedule time to discuss /
Let’s check in [next week] / Let’s meet again [in a week] / Please send me an update on your
progress [next week] / Let’s talk through that [next week] / Could you catch me up on that [next
week]? / Would you follow up with me on that [next week]?

Instead of: “Sorry for the late response”

You could say: Thank you for your patience / I’ve been thinking
about your request / I appreciate you getting in touch / Thank you
for following up

Instead of: “As per our conversation"

You could say: Last time we spoke / As promised / As discussed /
To clarify / I’d like to make sure we’re on the same page / Based
on our last conversation / Circling back to our discussion

Instead of: “ASAP”

You could say: COB or close of business / EOD or end of day / EOW or end of week / promptly /
as soon as you’re able / at your earliest convenience / This is time sensitive / Would you mind
prioritizing this? / I appreciate your quick response / Could you submit any feedback by [Friday]?

Instead of: “For example”

You could say: For instance / To illustrate / To give you an idea / Examples include / E.g., / Such
as / Case in point

Email Greeting Alternatives

You could say: Good morning / Good afternoon / Good evening / Greetings / Hey / Hi / Hello

Email Sign-off Alternatives

You could say: Warm regards, Best regards, Best wishes, Best, Thank you, Sincerely, All the best,
Have a great day/week/weekend, Looking forward to hearing from you, Talk soon, Looking
forward to chatting more, Many thanks, much appreciated, With appreciation, Looking forward to
hearing from you
How to Write...
12 Emails

13 Memos

15 Proposals
Writing Better Emails
Let’s take the concepts from earlier in this guide and
apply them to the most common form of
professional communication. Whether you’re
sending an internal update, asking a favor of a co-
worker, coordinating with vendors, or drafting a
sales email, there are a few things you can use to
level-up the quality of your message.

Use the Subject Line Wisely

In many ways, the subject line is the first call to action that you
are presenting your reader with. Be upfront and clear, aiming
to summarize the point of your email in just a few words.

Tailor your greeting

Using someone’s name in the greeting of an email grabs their attention, helping them shift into an
attentive mindset. You could also consider personalizing the first line of your message to include
something specific to the person you’re writing to.

Define the purpose early on

The first sentence or two of your email should clearly define what your message is regarding. With
more than 347.3 billion emails being sent and received each day, no one has time to try and
understand what an email is about. Use the real estate of your email wisely and get to the point
as quickly as possible—without being curt, of course.

Provide Lightweight Context

You should only provide enough context to frame the action you want your reader to take. While
there are certainly instances where in-depth documentation is warranted, it’s unlikely that a
business email is one of those times. Think of the details your reader needs in order to take the
next step and include only those.

Outline Next Steps

Be sure to make your reader aware if there are specific actions that are required for a project to
move forward or a timeline that you need everyone to follow. Depending on the context of your
message, this could be as simple as outlining action steps in a bulleted list or a more subtle
conclusive prompt like “Check out this blog post on how to write effective sales emails!”

Leave the Floor Open

It’s professional courtesy to acknowledge that your reader might have questions or feedback.
Before signing-off, consider leaving a quick note such as “Let me know if you have any
questions!” or some acknowledgement of gratitude for their time.

FREE RESOURCE
How To Write A Sales Email
11
Writing Better Memos
Purpose
Memos are brief communications that are frequently used within organizations to communicate
organizational change, financial updates, or other important information that is of immediate
interest. Memos might be used to declare a business policy, notify readers about a problem, or
remind them of an important event.

Structure
Best practice calls for you to identify the recipient,
the sender, the subject, and the date in the memo
heading. The subject line is also the memo's title.

Date: Include the full date

To: If addressing a group, such as a

specific department, simply state the group
name. If addressing individuals, include
each name and job title.

From: Include your full name and job title

Subject: Be direct and brief

Content
Be succinct, direct, and professional.

Get to the point quickly by starting off with the reason for the memorandum
If it is necessary for the memo to be more than 1-2 paragraphs, consider using headings or
stylized formatting to help readers scan the message
Clearly highlight any necessary action that should be taken by the reader

The tone of the memo should be reflective of the brand’s existing culture. If your company
typically disseminates information casually, it might feel strange for your memo to be written
with formal language. Consider the content of your message and your company’s style while
determining the right tone to use.

FREE RESOURCE
Free Memo Templates

12
Writing Better Proposals
Purpose & Tone
There are many kinds of proposals you might come across at work, depending on the type of role
you hold and the industry you work in. Some proposals are only for internal stakeholders, like a
proposal to adopt a new internal structure. Other proposals are written for people outside of your
business and could be used to win a new client, to gain funding, or to sell a product.

There are four main types of proposals: internal, external, solicited, and unsolicited. You may
often hear of solicited proposals referred to as RFPs, or “Request for Proposals”. Put plainly,
proposals are formal pieces of persuasive writing that are meant to convince its readers that a
specific plan is worth pursuing. They focus on value, opportunity, and results.

When writing a proposal, you are creating a narrative that will, ideally, persuade the reader into
following your recommendations. To do this effectively, you must develop a narrative that directly
connects the reader’s problems with the solution you are suggesting. It’s also important to be
personal wherever possible in your proposal. You want to tailor content to speak directly to your
reader and the specific pain points they are facing. As a result, your reader will be able to feel
connected, or maybe even excited, about the recommendations in your proposal.

Structure
You should only provide enough context to frame the action
you want your reader to take. While there are certainly
instances where in-depth documentation is warranted, it’s
unlikely that a business email is one of those times. Think of
the details your reader needs in order to take the next step
and include only those.

Executive Summaries
First impressions matter just as much in a proposal as
they would in a business meeting. Your executive
summary, or opening statement, is your chance to
captivate readers. Prospects are considerably more likely
to read the rest of your proposals with enthusiasm if you
can capture their attention right away.

Executive summaries should be only 1-2 pages. These summaries should only contain information
that is relevant to the proposal in question. It is also important to include only the most
important pieces of information from the overall proposal document. Make it brief, to the point,
and narrowly focused on the specific problems you want to solve. Provide relevant information
on deadlines, resources, and milestones as you describe how you intend to put your suggestions
into practice.

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Outcomes
Proposal readers are looking for results, but
they're also interested in the intricacies of how you
might make those results happen. Your proposal
should support your executive summary by
outlining your plan for solving the problem.

When outlining your scope of work, be as specific as

you can, indicating the precise actions your business
intends to take and leaving no room for ambiguity or
subjective interpretation. This accomplishes two things:
it demonstrates that you have a well-thought-out sales
strategy and lowers the likelihood that there will be
misunderstandings later on if you win the bid. Provide
your own value proposition without complicating your
offer excessively. Imagine that you are in competition
with a number of businesses that charge about the
same for comparable goods and services.

When outlining your scope of work, be as specific as you can, indicating the precise actions your
business intends to take and leaving no room for ambiguity or subjective interpretation. This
accomplishes two things: it demonstrates that you have a well-thought-out sales strategy and
lowers the likelihood that there will be misunderstandings later on if you win the bid. Provide your
own value proposition without complicating your offer excessively. Imagine that you are in
competition with a number of businesses that charge about the same for comparable goods and
services.

Social Proof
Social proof is a trust-builder that can come in many forms in your proposal, such as testimonials
or case studies. Including social proof in your proposals helps establish confidence and credibility
for your reader.

When including social proof, no matter what format, you want to focus on credibility and
relevance. Your proof becomes stronger as a result, and a skeptic will be persuaded more rapidly.
Try to choose sources of social evidence that are recent and sourced from clients who are similar
to the business this proposal was written for. They could be similar based on industry, company
size, or because of the problems that you were able to solve for them.

FREE RESOURCE
How To Create A Sales Proposal

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Conclusion
Whether you are working in business, with clients, or even just among friends, the ability to
communicate well will go a long way in helping you achieve success. Being an effective writer
is all about deciding what the best approach is for communicating your message, and then
sticking to it. With a little practice and these guidelines in mind, you should be able to make
your points clearly, concisely, and effectively.

Resources to Help You Write Better

Tools and Chrome Extensions

Grammarly - Helps address errors with grammar, spelling, and conciseness.

Hemingway App - Helps simplify writing by addressing complexities in word choice

and sentence structure.

Cliché Finder - Finds and highlights clichés in your writing.

Templates Writing and Grammar Guides

25 Sales Email Templates
Follow-Up Email Templates
10 Sales Proposal Templates
2 Business Proposal Templates
50 Customer Service Email Templates
Become a Stronger Writer
Writing Better Sales Copy
30 Common Grammar Mistakes
Grammar Cheat Sheet
20 Commonly Misused Words

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