11 Apr 2023
Do you often send work emails with typos? One important tip is to remember to re-read them before hitting "send"! Check out more tips in this article on improving your business writing skills. Keep reading to learn more!
First impressions apply not only to personal encounters but also to writing. Your readers may decide how well organized, how trustworthy, and how competent you are based on the emails or documents you have written. Regardless of what your written material is about, you want to come across as a credible and knowledgeable professional.
Strong writing skills can help you gain instant credibility in the workplace. Logical structuring, correct punctuation, and good grammar speak volumes of your professionalism and attention to detail and help you accomplish your objectives faster. Being an effective business writer can also help you establish respectful relationships and increase your confidence.
Precise and error-free writing is a difficult skill to master and takes practice. Unless a document is complete and logical and fully expresses the writer’s intention, it may be ineffective or misunderstood. Writing ability is about clear thinking, conveying complete and accurate information, following a logical path, knowing the rules of grammar, being empathetic, and keeping it specific, simple, crisp, and courteous.
As opposed to poetry or fiction, business writing is more about efficiency than self-expression. Business writing focuses on being active, clear, and concise; therefore, conversational styles have become more widespread than the formal, passive, and wordy formal style. However, a conversational style is not an excuse to use poor grammar or overly casual phrases, and you also need to keep in mind that there is a debate on the use of formal versus informal styles in business communication. As a result, different audiences may have different expectations and selecting the appropriate style can make an impact on how your writing is received.
It takes time and practice to make sure that your writing communicates a professional tone that positively represents you and your organization. Use plain language to make your writing easy to follow. Plain language includes writing in the active voice unless passive voice is the best option. Use passive voice when you do not want to place the blame on someone. Another principle of plain language is using simple, common words instead of long, complex ones. Make sure that the words you use are appropriate to the audience, the context, and your purpose. To make your writing well-received, use positive language wherever you can and keep your sentences short. You can make your writing concise by eliminating unnecessary and repetitive words and ideas and choosing specific wording. Use inclusive language to bring everyone into the conversation and make them feel valued, respected, and welcome. Incorrect word choices may be interpreted as discriminatory or biased, regardless of how they are intended. Gendered pronouns, reference to marital status, and gender-biased stereotypes may sound exclusionary. To avoid biased language and ensure inclusivity in your writing, use gender-neutral terms and pronouns.
Though writing may seem easy while thinking about it, it often results in unorganized and scattered pieces of information on paper, which creates confusion or sends a wrong message. Thankfully, writing is a skill, and it can be learned like any other. Athiya’s business writing skills training is designed to help professionals improve their writing ability.