1. Business
Writing

2. What is Business Writing?
 Business writing addresses the needs of specific
audiences and has prose and lists for a particular
topic that concerns business.
 Types – Emails, letters, memos, proposals, reports,
presentations.
 Although these are different forms of communication,
they share similar writing styles.
 You have to aim to be concise, clear, simple,
organized and to convey information in an effective
way.

3. Types of Business Writing
There are four types of business communication:
 Results-oriented
 Informative
 Negative
 Persuasive

4. How to identify the type of
business communication?
 Result-oriented – requires quick and specific actions;
example is a memo
 Note: This needs to be motivational and positive to
produce great results.
 Informative – needs to be clear and concise to avoid
misinterpretation; examples include emails, help
manuals, etc.
 Negative – needs to be carefully planned, empathetic
and clear; examples include layoff emails
 Persuasive – needs to be positive, interesting and
convincing; examples include proposals and business
plans

5. Business Writing Do’s
 Understand the purpose
 Understand your audience
 Carefully plan and structure your writing
 Keep it simple and brief to communicate effectively
 Proofread at least twice before submissions
 State your purpose in the first sentence.
 Keep your reader’s needs and interests in mind.
 Always try to end your writing with a “call to action.”

6. How to define the purpose?
Ask these questions. Is your purpose:
 to inform
 to persuade
 to argue
 to invite
 to confirm information
 to make an inquiry
 to ask for approval
 to reject or approve
 to propose or suggest

7. How to understand your
audience?
Ask these questions:
 Why does the reader care?
 How does the reader benefit?
 What should the reader do?
 When should the reader do it?
 What happens if the reader does take action?
 What happens if the reader doesn’t take action?
 Who else will benefit? Why?
 Where does the reader go for more information?

8. How to write more
effectively?
 If you are sending an external communication to a
company, determine its vision, its mission, its
accomplishments and goals. Your writing should reflect
these.
 How to do it?
 Gather these data using the company’s website, social
media networks, and other corporate paraphernalia.
 Take a look at the company’s communication style through
its public documents and press releases.
 If you are sending a proposal to an individual, know
his/her preferences, pain, problem or wants. If you can
address one or two of them (sales, marketing, proposal,
etc.), it will make your writing more memorable.

9. Effective Communication
Checklist
After completing your writing, go through this checklist:
 Does your communication proceed in a logical and
organized way, moving from general to specific
information?
 Is information arranged in order of importance to your
audience?
 Is similar information kept together?
 Is each section organized around only one main idea?
 Do key sentences begin each paragraph?
 Have you eliminated unnecessary and/or obvious
information to your audience?

10. A few sentence framing tips …
 Turn nouns to verbs
 Example: Instead of “We would like to make a
recommendation that…”, say “We recommend that…”
 Refrain from using third person pronouns and use first-
second person instead, as appropriate.
 Example: Instead of “It is imperative that we examine this …”,
use “We examine …”
 Avoid using fancy terms
 Example: Instead of ‘utilize’, say ‘use’
 Use active voice
 The President makes mistakes. (Active – clear, precise,
action-oriented)
 Mistakes were made. (Passive – very vague, drab, boring)

11. A few sentence framing tips …
 Keep your tone confident, sincere and courteous.
 Example: Instead of saying “You must agree that I am
qualified for the position,” write “My qualifications in the
areas of accounting and customer service meet your job
requirements.”
 Use parallelism wherever possible
 Example: If a series of items starts with a verb, the rest of
the lines should start with a verb as well - “duties: analyze
data; call clients; write reports”

12. Thank You!