Effective Communications (7 Cs)

Lecture # 6

The seven Cs
When We talk about Effective Communication

one thing that comes in mind, what are the basic principles of effective communication . These principles tells us how your message can becomes effective for your target group. These principles also tell about style and importance of the message. These principles commonly known as 7 Cs of effective communication.

Seven Cs of Effective Communication

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

Completeness Conciseness Consideration Concreteness Clarity Courtesy Correctness

1) Completeness
Message Receiver- either listener or reader, desire

complete information to their question. e.g. suppose you are working with multinational company which is engaged with engineering goods , like A.C. Now lets say one of your major customers wants some technical information regarding thermostat (because he wants to convey the same to the end users ). In this case you have to provide him complete information in a short span of time. If possible, provide him some extra information which he does not know. In this way you can maintain a good business relation, good will with him, otherwise he may switch over to another company.

Every person should therefore, be provided with all the required facts and figures.
For example:-when the factory supervisor instruct workers to produce goods, he must specify the exact size, the shape, quality and cost of the product. Any assumptions behind the message should also be clarified. All the questions raised must be replied.

If your customer has four queries and you answer only two of them, it will not bring the desired result.
While answering the letter, devote a paragraph each to all his questions and number the paragraphs. This practice will save your answers from getting lost in a jungle of words.

A complete message offers the following benefits:1.Complete messages bring the desired results 2. They can do a better job of building goodwill. 3. Complete messages can help avert costly lawsuits that may result if important information is missing.

Guidelines for completeness

1. Provide all necessary information 2. Answer all the questions asked 3. Give something extra, when desirable.

Five Ws
One way to make your message complete is to answer the

five Ws. WHO? WHAT? WHEN? WHERE? WHY? The five question method is useful when you write requests, announcements, or other informative messages. For instance, to order (request) merchandise, make clear WHAT you want, WHEN u need it, WHERE it is to be sent.

Conclusion of completeness
At the end we can say that, you must provide him:1. All necessary information as requested by him. 2. Answer to his all questions carefully. 3. Provide some more information which he is not requiring just to maintain good relations.

2) Conciseness
Conciseness means convey the message

by using fewest words. Conciseness is the prerequisite to effective business communication. As you know that all businessmen have very short time . Hence a concise message saves the time and expenses for both the parties.

In business communication, you should be brief and be able to say whatever you have to say in fewest possible words without sacrificing the other C qualities. A concise message is complete without being wordy.

Conciseness is desired because of the following benefits

1. A concise message saves time and expenses of both sender and receiver.
2. Conciseness contributes to emphasis; by eliminating unnecessary words, you let important ideas stand out. 3. When combined with a You-view concise messages are inherently more interesting to recipients as they avoid unnecessary information.

How To achieve the conciseness ?

For achieving the conciseness you have to consider the following. 1.Avoid wordy expressions 2.Include only relevant material 3.Avoid unnecessary repetition 4. Organize your message well

Avoid Wordy Expression

E.g. Wordy:- at this time.

Instead of at this time you can just use only a concise word:- NOW , Always try to use To the point Approach in business scenario perspective.

Include only relevant information

Always try to provide only relevant information to the

receiver of the message. Lets say one of your customers requested

for list of clients of the company in reply you should provide simply list of clients to the panel of your company. No need to provide detailed business information about client at all.

Observe the following suggestions to Include only relevant

information.

Stick to the purpose of message Delete irrelevant words Avoid long introduction, unnecessary explanation etc. Get to the important point concisely.

Avoid un-necessary Repetition

Some times repetition is necessary for

focusing some special issue. But when the same thing is said without two or three reasons, the message becomes wordy and boring. Thats why try to avoid Un-necessary repetition.

Some ways to eliminate unnecessary words

Use shorter name after you have mentioned the

long once. e.g. Spectrum communications Private limited use spectrum. Use pronouns or initials E.g. Instead of world trade organization use WTO or You can use IT for Information Technology.( keeping in views that receiver knows about these terms)

3) Consideration
Consideration means To consider the

receivers Interest/Intention. It is very important for effective communication that while writing a message you should always keep in mind your target group. Consideration is very important C among all the seven Cs.

In order to communicate effectively, the sender should think and look from the receivers angle. He should understand and focus on the needs of the receiver.

Three specific ways to indicate consideration

i-Focus on you instead of I or We ii-Show audience benefit or interest of the receiver. iii-Emphasize positive, pleasant facts. iv- Show empathy. Ask how would you feel if were to receive this message. Using you help you, but over use lead a negative reaction.

Always write a message in such a way how audience should be benefited from it. e.g. We attitude I am delighted to announce that we are extending the shopping hours.

You attitude You will be able to shop in the evening with the extended hours. Readers may react positively when benefits are shown to them. Always try to address his/her needs and wants. To make letter more effective, we must avoid Is and wes and have Yous.

We should not forget the readers point of view

We- attitude 1. we have four different saving schemes in which our customer can invest 2. I am happy to announce that we will be extending our hours to make shopping more convenient I-attitude 1.You have a choice of four saving schemes in which you can invest your savings. 2. you will be able to shop in the evenings with the extended hours.

Consideration
In a business letter, the reader accepts calmly and coolly all the nos, regrets and sorrys if they are expressed in a positive manner. A negative beginning irritates the reader and makes him feel that you lack business manners and gentlemanliness.
A positive and pleasant approach says no but retains the customers goodwill.

Negative 1. we regret to inform you that we will not be able to execute your order until..

Positive 1. Thank you for your order. The goods will be sent to you as soon as.

Avoid gender bias

Use words from gender bias:- The chairperson handled the situation tactfully. (and not chairman)
b. Use a slash to include both the genders Dear Sir/Maam Gentlemen/ ladies c. Use plural forms inclusive of both the genders Dont write: Each member cast his vote Write : All the members cast their votes.

d. Use the for his/her: Dont write : The manager talked to his customer. Write: The manager talked to the customers.

4) Concreteness
It means that message should be specific,

definite and vivid instead of being vague and general. Misunderstanding of words create problems for both parties (sender and receiver). when you talk to your client always use facts and figures instead of generic (general) or irrelevant information.

The following guidelines should help you to achieve the Concreteness. i- use specific facts and figures ii-choose image building words iii- Dont speak in passive voice e.g General He is very intelligent student of class and stood first in the class.

Facts lend credibility to our communication since it is not possible to refute them.

Concrete Alis GPA in B.Sc Electrical Engineering 2k3-f session was 3.95/4.0, he stood first in his class. Always write on a very solid ground. It definitely creates good image.

Vague and General 1.This piece of jewellery is inexpensive. 2. Yours savings would earn a high rate of interest.

Concrete and Effective 1. These diamond ring costs only Rs. 3,900. 2. Your savings would earn 8% interest compounded quarterly.

Passive 1. Your efforts are appreciated by all of us. 2. Your report will be discussed by a committee.

Active 1. All of us appreciated your efforts. 2. A committee will discuss your report.

5) Clarity

Accuracy is purpose of clarity

In effective business communication the message should be very much clear. The message must be put in simple terms to ensure clarity. So that reader can understand it easily. You should always choose precise words. Always choose familiar and easy words. Construct effective sentences and paragraphs.

In business communication always use precise words rather than longer statements. You should try your level best to use familiar/easy words so that your reader quickly understands it. You should use accurate and familiar words with proper intonation, stresses and pauses.

To a layman the familiar terms are easier to understand than next familiar words

Familiar 1-after 2-home 3-for example 4-pay 5-invoice

Next familiar words subsequent domicile e.g. remuneration

statement for payments

Do not use complex or high sounding and pretentious words which may be unfamiliar to the reader.
Your sentences should be of 17-20 words in length. Use paragraphs to state your views clearly. Each paragraph should convey one thought and also be linked to the next paragraph.

Important considerations to attain clarity

1. Choose precise, concrete and familiar

simple words. 2. Construct effective sentences and paragraphs.

Pompous Words(Avoid them) Demonstrate Visualize Utilize Compensate Terminate facilitate

Simple Words (Use them)

Show See Use Pay End

Help

Long phrases (Avoid them) At a later date At the present moment At all times Subsequent to Prior to For the purpose of Despite the fact that In the event that Until such time as

Single Words( Use them) Later Now Always After Before For Although If Until/when

6) Courtesy

Courtesy
Knowing your audience allows you to use statements of

courtesy; be aware of your message receiver.

True courtesy involves being aware not only of the perspective of others, but also their feelings. Courtesy stems from a sincere you-attitude.
It is not merely politeness with mechanical insertions of

please and Thank you .

Courtesy
Applying socially accepted manners is a form of courtesy.

Rather, it is politeness that grows out of respect and concern for others.
Courteous communication generates a special tone in their

writing and speaking. It is necessary that you respect other person by listening to him patiently.

How to generate a Courteous Tone ?

Following are the suggestions for generating a courteous tone: Be sincerely tactful, thoughtful and appreciative. Use expressions that show respect for the others Choose non-discriminatory expressions that reflect equal treatment regardless of gender, race, colour ethnic origin and physical features.

Be sincerely Tactful, Thoughtful and Appreciative Though few people are intentionally abrupt or blunt, these negative traits are common cause of discourtesy. Avoid expressions like those in the left hand column below; rephrase them as shown in the right-hand column

Tactless, Blunt
Stupid letter; I cant understand

More Tactful
I should understand it, as there is no confusing word in this letter, could you please explain it once again ..? Sometimes my wording is not precise; let me try again

Its your fault, you did not properly read my latest FAX

Thoughtfulness and Appreciation Writers who send cordial, courteous messages deserve congratulations and appreciation (to a person inside & outside) help to build goodwill. The value of goodwill or public esteem for the firm may be worth thousands of dollars.

However courtesy does not mean servility.

A business letter should never be written in a flattering tone because excessive servility lowers the writers status and defeats the very purpose of communication.

Comparison of Avoid and use

Avoid 1. we request you to please send. 2. You must have been ignorant of 3. You failed to send us the goods before Diwali. Use Please send us 2. Perhaps, you are not aware of 3. We did not receive the goods before Diwali.

Following guidelines to ensure courtesy

1. Thank the person generously for being

kind to you. 2. If you have committed a mistake, express your regrets promptly and sincerely. 3. Avoid irritating and negative expressions. 4 Use non-discriminatory expressions that reflect equal treatment of people regardless of gender, race, ethnic origin and physical features.

7) Correctness

7) Correctness
Correctness is proper grammar, punctuation and spelling. Message must be grammatically and mechanically perfect. . The term correctness, as applied to business messages means o Use the right level of language o Check the accuracy of figures, facts and words o Maintain acceptable writing mechanics

Use the right Level of Language

There are three levels of language 1. formal 2. informal 3. substandard. Take a quick guess: what kind of writing is associated with each level? What is the style of each?

Formal and Informal Words

Formal writing is often associated with scholarly writing: doctoral dissertations, scholarly, legal documents, toplevel government agreements and other material where formality is demanded. Informal writing has more characteristics of business writing. Here you use words that are short, well-known and conversational as in this comparison list: More Formal less formal Participate Join Endeavor try Ascertain find out Utilize use Interrogate question

Substandard Language
Avoid substandard language. Using incorrect words, incorrect grammar, faulty pronunciation all suggest inability to use good English. Some examples follow: Substandard More Acceptable Aint isnt,arent Cant hardly can hardly Aim to proving aim to prove Desirous to desirous of Stoled stolen

Facts and Figures Accuracy

Check Accuracy of Facts, Figures and words It is impossible to convey meanings precisely, through words, from sender to receiver. Our goal is to be as precise as possible, which means checking and double-checking and double-checking to ensure that the figures, facts and words you use are correct. A good check of your data is to have another person read and comment on the validity of the material

Facts and Figures Accuracy

Figures and facts Verify your statistical data Double-check your totals Avoid guessing at laws that have an impact on you, the sender and your receiver Have someone else read your message if the topic involves data. Determine whether a fact has changed over time

If the information is not correctly conveyed, the sender will lose credibility. Transmission of incorrect information to supervisors will vitiate decision making process. Transmission of incorrect information to outsiders will spoil the public image of the firm.

To convey correct messages, grammatical errors should also be avoided.

If your messages involve any legal matter, you should know the correct legal position before you commit anything. Outdated information is useless. Transmitting outdated information involves wastage of time, money and human resources. You should be sure that you are transmitting correct facts in correct language. All messages must be transmitted and responded to at the most appropriate time.

End