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Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 1
Icebreaker: Miscommunication
1. Consider all the ways you regularly communicate through writing: text,
Facebook posts, Tweets, email, etc.
• Have you ever had someone misunderstand one of your written
communications?
• Have you ever misunderstood something a friend or family member wrote to
you?
2. Describe what happened.
3. What did you learn, about writing, from this experience?
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 2
Learning Objectives
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 4
2-1 Exploring the Communication Process (1 of 7)
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 5
2-1 Exploring the Communication Process (2 of 7)
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 6
2-1 Exploring the Communication Process (3 of 7)
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 7
2-1 Exploring the Communication Process (4 of 7)
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 9
2-1 Exploring the Communication Process (6 of 7)
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 10
2-1 Exploring the Communication Process (7 of 7)
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 11
Knowledge Check 1
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 13
2-2 Applying the 3-x-3 Writing Process to Business
Messages (1 of 5)
• What is your purpose? • What is the audience • What techniques can you
• What do you want the profile? use to adapt your
receiver to do or believe? message to its audience?
• What does the receiver
• What channel should you already know? • How can you promote
choose: face-to-face feedback?
• Will the receiver’s
conversation, group
meeting, e-mail, memo, response be neutral, • What can you do to
letter, report, blog, Slack, positive, or negative? ensure positive,
tweet? conversational, and
• How will the response
• What are the benefits or affect your organizational courteous language?
barriers of each channel? strategy?
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 15
2-2 Applying the 3-x-3 Writing Process to Business
Messages (3 of 5)
• Edit your message to be • Take the time to read the • Will this message achieve
sure it is clear, concise, message carefully. its purpose?
conversational, and
• Does the tone sound
readable. • Look for errors in spelling,
pleasant and friendly rather
grammar, punctuation, than curt?
• Revise to eliminate wordy
names, and numbers.
fillers, long lead-ins, • Have you thought enough
redundancies, and trite • Check to be sure the about the audience to be
business phrases.
format is consistent. sure this message is
• Consider using headings appealing?
and numbered and bulleted • Did you encourage
lists for quick reading. feedback?
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 17
2-2 Applying the 3-x-3 Writing Process to Business
Messages (5 of 5)
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 18
Self-Assessment
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 19
2-3
Analyzing the Purpose and Anticipating the
Audience
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 20
2-3 Analyzing the Purpose and Anticipating the
Audience (1 of 8)
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 21
2-3 Analyzing the Purpose and Anticipating the
Audience (2 of 8)
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 22
2-3 Analyzing the Purpose and Anticipating the
Audience (3 of 8)
• Who is my primary reader or listener? • Who might see or hear this message in
addition to the primary audience?
• What are my personal and professional
relationships with this person? • How do these people differ from the
• How much does this person know about the primary audience?
subject? • Do I need to include more background
• What do I know about this person’s information?
education, beliefs, culture, and abilities?
• How must I reshape my message to
• Should I expect a neutral, positive, or make it understandable and accessible to
negative response to my message? others to whom it might be forwarded?
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 24
2-3 Analyzing the Purpose and Anticipating the
Audience (5 of 8)
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 25
2-3 Analyzing the Purpose and Anticipating the
Audience (6 of 8)
Choosing the Best Channel
• Consider the following factors to determine the most appropriate communication channel:
− Available technology
− Importance of the message
− Amount and speed of feedback and interactivity required
− Necessity of a permanent record
− Cost of the channel
− Degree of formality desired
− Confidentiality and sensitivity of the message
− Receiver’s preference and level of technical expertise
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 26
2-3 Analyzing the Purpose and Anticipating the
Audience (7 of 8)
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 27
2-3 Analyzing the Purpose and Anticipating the
Audience (8 of 8)
• Choosing the wrong medium can result in a message that is less effective or
even misunderstood.
• In choosing channels, keep in mind two tips:
− Use the richest media available.
− Employ richer media for more persuasive or personal communication.
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 28
2-4
Employing Expert Writing Techniques to Adapt to
Your Audience
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 29
2-4 Employing Expert Writing Techniques to Adapt to
Your Audience (1 of 4)
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 31
2-4 Employing Expert Writing Techniques to Adapt to
Your Audience (3 of 4)
• Overuse or misuse the second-person pronoun "you" can cause readers to feel
they are being manipulated.
• Emphasizing the “you” view and de-emphasizing "we/I" may result in overuse of
the passive voice.
• The active voice in writing is generally preferred because it identifies who is
doing the acting.
• Totally avoiding any first-person pronouns can make it difficult for you to show
your feelings and sterilize your writing.
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 32
2-4 Employing Expert Writing Techniques to Adapt to
Your Audience (4 of 4)
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 33
Knowledge Check 2
True or False:
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 35
2-5 Improving the Tone and Clarity of a Message
(1 of 5)
Choosing to Be Positive Rather Than Negative
• Positive language can improve the clarity, tone, and effectiveness of a message.
• Positive language generally conveys more information than negative language
does.
• Positive messages are uplifting and pleasant to read.
• Using positive language helps the writer avoid negative words that create ill will.
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 36
2-5 Improving the Tone and Clarity of a Message
(2 of 5)
Expressing Courtesy
• To maintain a courteous tone, avoid
− Sounding demanding or preachy.
− Being sarcastic.
− Expressing irritation, frustration or anger.
− Issuing orders
− Using first names without permission.
• Turning demands into rhetorical questions and giving reasons for your requests
can help you be a successful communicator.
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 37
2-5 Improving the Tone and Clarity of a Message
(3 of 5)
Avoiding Gender-, Age-, and Disability-Biased Language
• Be cautious about expressions that might be biased in terms of gender, race,
ethnicity, age, and disability.
− Choose alternate language for words involving "man" or "woman," by using
plural nouns and pronouns, or by changing to a gender-free word
("person" or "representative").
− Avoid the "his or her" option; it’s wordy and conspicuously perpetuates the
exclusion of other gender identities.
− Specify age only if it is relevant.
− Do not refer to an individual’s disability unless it is relevant.
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 38
2-5 Improving the Tone and Clarity of a Message
(4 of 5)
Preferring Plain Language and Familiar Words
• To avoid miscommunicating with primary and secondary audiences:
− Use plain language and familiar words your audience members will
recognize.
− Don’t avoid a big word that conveys your idea efficiently and is appropriate
for the audience.
− Reject pompous and pretentious language.
− Be selective in your use of jargon.
• Jargon describes technical or specialized terms within a field.
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 39
2-5 Improving the Tone and Clarity of a Message
(5 of 5)
Using Precise, Vigorous Words
• Strong verbs and specific nouns give receivers more information and keep them
interested.
• Use the thesaurus (available in print, online, and on your computer) to expand
your word choices and vocabulary.
Guffey and Loewy, Essentials of Business Communication, 12th Edition. © 2023 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 40