S 1 2 The Writing Strategy

The Writing Strategy
BUSINESS COMMUNICATION
Effective Business Writing: Some requirements
and considerations
• Reader Orientation
• Gender neutral Language
• 7 C’s (clear, concise, concrete, correct, coherent, complete and courteous)
• Be logical
• Grammatical Correct
• Apply Your Mind
1. The Written communication strategy
Elements:
•Purpose
•Audience Analysis
•Context
Audience Analysis
• Interest of audience, relevance of message
• Selective selection & Selective exposure- Core of Audience Psychology
• The Business Document’s Life Cycle (from audience’s point of view)
• Development Stage (5W 1H: Who, What, When, Where, Why & How)
• Reading Stage (at audience level)
• Action Stage
• Writing for a Standard Audience
• Lenny Laskowski’s framework for audience analysis
• Types of Audience Analysis
• Formal & Informal analysis
Lenny Laskowski’s Framework
These features come together to create a perfect audience.

2. The Message
• Components of Message
• Types: Sender-centric message; Receiver-centric message
• Message preparation involves three important aspects (Aristotle):
• Invention;
• Arrangement; and
• Style and presentation
3. Approaches
• Direct
• Indirect
• AIDA (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action)
Direct Message Delivering Bad News
Direct Message Delivering Information
An InDirect Message providing Information/bad news
Persuasive Communication
• Three elements of persuasive communication (By Aristotle):
Exercise-1
• Being a Manager, write a message to persuade the salespeople to reduce their expenses towards
travelling and to economize.
• How would you write??
• Consider following points:
• What is Purpose?
• Why?
• What do I want the reader to do after reading the messages?
• Have I incorporated the perspective of the reader?
• What is the impact of the message on them?
• What is in it for me?
• What is my ethos?
• How do I frame this message so that my credibility is enhanced?
4. Framing: An important Communication Skill
Experts suggest two ways to help frame messages accurately.
1. The Mental Map/ Mind Map

• A mental image or picture of the form and organization that anyone’s writing will
take, it includes answers of following questions:
• What is the purpose of my communication?
• Why I am writing this now?
• What do I want the reader to do after reading this?
• Have I incorporated the perspectives of the reader?
• What is the impact of the message on them?
• What is in it for me?
• What is my ethos?
• How do I frame the message so that my credibility is enhanced?
Example of Mind Map
4. Framing: An important Communication Skill
2. Minto’s Pyramid Principle
• Based on hierarchical structured thinking.
• It offers simple advice to readers regarding organizing information, which is that
“the thinking process must be structured”.
• Steps to draft messages are:
• First craft key phrases (and not sentences).
• Split this into smaller points or manageable “chunks”.
• The chunks should be arranged from top down such that the most important
point is placed at the top and the remaining points are arranged below in form
of a pyramid.
• The information each point must develop and support the points above it to
maintain continuity and flow of thought.
Minto’s Pyramid Principle
Principal Ind
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Ind nkin ing e
thi Inductive
thinking
Why How Where

tiv g
ive
In king
e
ing e
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In ink
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Induct
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In
Information Information Information Information Information

1 2 3 4
Deductive 5
thinking
The parts of a Document
• The Introduction
• The Middle
• The Close
1. The Introduction
• It should include:
• Purpose
• Query
• Context
• Response
2. The Middle
• It provides facts and evidence.
• Evidence includes supporting materials such as statistical data.
• Tables, charts and graphs
• Quotes from authorities and well known specialists in that subject area
3. The Conclusion
• An ideal conclusion should:
• Show the readers why the document is important and what it will do for them.
• Synthesize the main points.
• Gives the readers something to think about.
• Demonstrate how the ideas discussed will work practically in the field.
• Reflect the importance and answer the question posed in the introduction.
Pillars of good business writing
• Logic
• Deductive & Inductive Logic
• Organization: types of organizations plans: when ideas are arranged in following

manner:
• Sequencing
• Categorical
• Causal
• Spatial
• Persuasion: Structure
• Ethos
• Logos
• Conclusion (based on reasoning)
• Action
Document Layout
 Subject Heading and Sub Heading
 Descriptive & Functional/Talking Heading
 Topic Heading; Second-level Heading; Third-level Heading
 Chunking
 White Space
 Typography: the style and appearance of printed matter(i.e. font type, font size, typeface etc.
 Font types: Serif fonts (eg Times New Roman) & Sans Serif Fonts (eg. Arial)
 Typeface: incorporates ways to emphasize text such as Bold, Italic, Underline, Highlight
etc.
Situation Statement
• Eg: “I want to argue in favour of reduced lecture hours in MBA class”; “I want to
argue in favour of …………………………….” etc.
• Pre-writing
• Purpose
• About you
• About your reader (What ideas do they have about the topic?; What argument do
they have against the idea?; What line of reasoning have they chosen?; What
influences the reader most?)
• Make Pros/cons chart

• To identify areas that can be addressed in the message.
Exercise-1
Read the following communication scenario and answer the
questions that follow it.
As the personnel manager of a software solutions firm, you have to draft a letter of refusal to an employee who is
asking for sabbatical from the organization for a period of two years. The employee has been with the company
for seven years now, but is rather indispensable. You are keen to retain her. She is excellent at software and data
processing skills, and the company cannot afford to let her go for two years. You have to remind her that her
promotion is due and that she may be elevated to a more senior position with corresponding remuneration.
•Map the profile of the “audience” in this case.
•What writing approach will you follow and why?
•Draft a situation statement.
•Frame the logic used in your writing.
•Organize the document in terms of the introduction, the middle, and the close.
•Compose the document

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S 1 2 The Writing Strategy

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The Writing Strategy

These features come together to create a perfect audience.

1. The Mental Map/ Mind Map

Why How Where

Information Information Information Information Information

• Organization: types of organizations plans: when ideas are arranged in following

• Make Pros/cons chart

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