7 Cs Of Communication

7 Cs OF BUSINESS WRITING COMPLETENESS CONCISENESS CONSIDERATION CLARITY CONCRETENESS COURTESY CORRECTNESS

COMPLETENESS Answer all questions that are asked Give something extra when desirable Check for five Ws & one H Who What When Where Why and How

Exercise-1 The owner of a mutual fund stock wrote to

the investment department of your bank ,that he wanted to sell his shares. He asked,” just how does your bank want me to authorize this sale?”

How would you reply to this query keeping

the five Ws and one H guideline in mind?

Exercise-2 •        You are the president of an industry

association and have received the following inquiry from an out of town member, “I think I would like to attend my first meeting of the association, even though I am not acquainted with your city. Will you please tell me where the next meeting is being held?

How would you reply to this letter keeping in

mind Completeness of the message?

CONCISENESS 1. Eliminate wordy expressions 2. Include only relevant statements   

be focussed, prune & avoid long explanations avoid gushing politemess

3. Avoid unnecessary repetitions  

use short forms the second time use pronouns

CONSIDERATION Focus on YOU instead of I & WE Show reader benefit & interest Emphasize positive& pleasant Apply integrity & ethics

Ex.5-Write with a ‘you ‘ attitude , it shows consideration   I want to send my congratulations for --We will ship soon the goods your May 4

order---We pay eight percent interest on -----

Ex.5-Write with a ‘you ‘ attitude , it shows consideration ( contd) May I take this opportunity to express my thanks

for the account you recently opened with our store. We are pleased to furnish a wide variety of products for the home of the individual customer. We want you to take full advantage of the store services, for we have the largest store in the city. Also we make deliveries for our customer free of charge with in a 30 miles radius of our store.We welcome you to Ebony. If we can be of additional help please let us know .

Ex 6-Avoid negative – unpleasant words to show consideration It is impossible to open an account for you today. We don’t refund if the returned item is soiled and unusable. When you travel on company expense, you will not receive approval for first class fare.   T To avoid further delay and inconvenience , we are sending this report by express mail.

CONCRETENESS Use specific facts and figures Put action into verbs Choose vivid image building words by

comparison & figurative language (?) Use more adjectives and adverbs

Ex:9-Put action into the words by using active instead of passive voice. Tests were made by us

  A full report will be sent to you by the supervisor. The contract had a requirement …. Mr. Singh will give consideration to the report ….

Ex : 10-Use vivid image building words – adjectives and adverts , and use less of abstract nouns  The camera has a system that gives good pictures.

 

CLARITY Choose short , familiar & conversational

words Construct effective sentences and paragraphs by unity of idea and sequencing Achieve appropriate readability by using formal & informal language Include examples, illustrations & visual aids

Ex : 11-Use simple words Circa(L) Subsequent Promulgate Inadvertence e.g..(L) Domicile Remuneration

Headings:8-10 words Sentence length:15-20 words Paragraphs:40-70 words

Soft words vs hard words

COURTESY Be sincere , tactful, thoughtful and

appreciative Omit expressions that hurt , irritate, or

insult Grant apologies graciously

Ex : 13-Show courtesy by avoiding tactless & blunt language. Your letter is not clear at all:

Obviously, if you would read your policy carefully you will be able to answer these questions yourself. Apparently you already forgotten what I wrote you two weeks ago.

Ex : 14-Use gender friendly substitutes Mankind  The best man for the job  Manmade  Manpower  Businessman  Sales man  Chairman

CORRECTNESS Use the right level of language Check accuracy of facts, figures and words Maintain acceptable writing mechanics Choose non discriminatory language Use parallel language