Business Writing Made Easy

Transcription

1 Business Writing Made Easy by Jane Watson J Watson Associates Inc. for PRO Aquatics Conference 2010 November 5, 2010 Jane Watson is a trainer, speaker and author in written communications. She conducts workshops for both the public and private sectors on topics such as s, letters, proposals, business cases, reports, minute taking, grammar, customer service, and plain language writing. Her books, The Minute Takers Handbook and Business Writing Basics, are available in bookstores across North America. She also produces a weekly, electronic grammar tip subscribed to by over 4,000 people worldwide.

2 Business Writing Made Easy by Jane Watson Academic Versus Business Writing # of readers? Expertise? Goal? How? Definitions Business writing involves... Plain language writing involves... Copyright 2010 J Watson Associates Inc. 2

3 Jane Watson Business Writing Made Easy Today s readers are... What does this mean to letters and s? Reports? Copyright 2010 J Watson Associates Inc. 3

4 Business Writing Made Easy by Jane Watson Myths Never end a sentence with a preposition. Never start a sentence with "and," "but," or "because." Never repeat a word. Never use more than one page. Seven Deadly Sins of Writing Packing a sentence Remember Avoid writing meandering, lengthy sentences. Sounding unprofessional It is just as wrong to be too formal as it is to be too casual. Remember Use the same vocabulary as you would use on the phone to that audience. Avoid clichés. or Intimidating the reader Remember Your documents must look easy to read. Copyright 2010 J Watson Associates Inc. 4

5 Jane Watson Business Writing Made Easy Failing to link your sentences Remember Your thoughts must be logical and organized. Use connecting words. Confusing the reader Remember Tell your reader what he or she needs to know. Don t waste their time. Being a dictator Remember Today s readers prefer to be considered team players not servants. Ignoring spelling and grammar Remember Blatant spelling and grammar errors distract your reader from the message. Copyright 2010 J Watson Associates Inc. 5

6 Business Writing Made Easy by Jane Watson Changing the Tone Formal Neutral Informal Words Long words Mixed Short, simple Contractions None Some Yes Sentences Long Variety Short Paragraphs Long Mixed Short Voice Passive Mixed Active Personal Pronouns It I, me, we, our You, your Be polite. Use the words of courtesy, such as please and thank you. Avoid the word kindly. Copyright 2010 J Watson Associates Inc. 6

7 Jane Watson Business Writing Made Easy Public Letter TO OUR VALUED CLIENTS, AND CLIENTS OF OTHER FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS: Processing disruptions at RBC this week have caused inconvenience and frustration for our clients, and for many clients of other financial institutions. We apologize. And we want to let you know what s happening. YOUR MONEY IS SAFE. First, and most importantly: your money is safe. Your records are secure. YOU WON T BE CHARGED. You ll not be faced with any overdraft charges or fees because of this disruption. If any charges or fees do appear in your accounts, we promise to refund them. We ve arranged with other banks that their customers will receive a full refund for any reasonable service charges, fees or overdraft interest costs resulting from our processing delays. ACCESSING CASH IS EASY. Next: how do you access cash this weekend? Our banking machines are available 24 hours a day and will provide both cash from your account and a courtesy overdraft whenever possible. There will be no charge for this overdraft. As well, many RBC Royal Bank branches will be specially open today. If your branch is closed, we ll post signs advising you where to find the nearest open branch. You can also call Royal Direct at Royal-1-1 ( ) for assistance or visit Again, I apologize for the frustration and inconvenience this disruption has caused, and I thank you for your patience. Sincerely, Gay Mitchell Executive Vice-President Copyright 2010 J Watson Associates Inc. 7

8 Business Writing Made Easy by Jane Watson 1 Number of spaces after a period Guidelines for Writing by Numbers 2 Average number of sentences between connecting words 2-3 Maximum number of lines in the opening paragraph of an 3-4 Maximum number of lines in the opening paragraph of a print document 4 Maximum number of pieces of punctuation in an easy-to-read sentence 5 Maximum number of lines in the body paragraph of an 5 Approximate number of paragraphs between subheads in a report 7 Average number of easy-to-understand points for a list or sections in a report 8 Maximum number of lines in the body paragraph of a print document Clichés to Avoid Enclosed please find Thanking you in advance As per If you have any further questions, please don t hesitate/feel free to At your earliest convenience Under the abovementioned circumstances Copyright 2010 J Watson Associates Inc. 8