#28840
Every Email You Send is a Customer Service Email
If you do business online, there are times when you send your customers, prospects and subscribers an email or two. The emails you send tend to fall within one of three categories. Each of these three types of emails requires a slightly different approach. Their purposes are different, and each should be optimized to perform their respective tasks.
Usborne, Nick. Excess Voice (2007). Articles>Business Communication>Correspondence>Email
#31061
Everything Counts in Large Amounts 
Finance is not a skill set that comes easily to most technical communicators. Many of us earned our college degrees in majors (journalism in my case) that were more related to our verbal SAT scores than to our math scores. Also, those of us who aren't in business for ourselves often rely on invisible corporate functionaries to handle all that tedious, confusing money stuff so we can focus on more important, or at least more familiar, matters.
Dornbrook, Dan. Tieline (2008). Articles>Business Communication>Financial
#32014
Expressive Practices: the Local Enactment of Culture in the Communication Classroom 
As students participate in corporate communication classes, they may, on occasion, use the term culture to make sense of their experiences. The authors use Mino's idea of a learning paradigm to shift the emphasis away from teaching traditional theories of culture and use student-centered experiences to teach culture as an expressive practice. Using instances drawn from their own classrooms, the authors show how students can recognize the value of understanding their role in creating culture each time they choose how to act, how to evaluate others' behavior, and whether to label what is going on as cultural.
Wolf, Karen, Trudy Milburn and Richard Wilkins. Business Communication Quarterly (2008). Articles>Education>Business Communication>Cultural Theory
#31227
Technological changes keep happening, and every time a new phenomenon occurs, employers seem to react the same way. Questions that were asked about phones, e-mail, mobile phones and blogs in the workplace are now being asked about online social networks. Why do we keep repeating history? In my view, it’s because we can get so overwhelmed by the possibilities of the tools that we lose focus on the basic functions of communication and how these tools can help us with them.
Barbaro, Geoff. Communication World Bulletin (2008). Articles>Business Communication>Community Building>Social Networking
#31226
Final Check: Dotting Those i’s and Crossing Those t’s
You’ve worked long and hard on your article, newsletter, press release, promo brochure or report. Now it’s time to move your baby off your screen and into the world. Not so long ago your baby would have gone either onto a printed page or onto the Web. These days, your words will probably head for both. Even materials such as newsletters, white papers, reports and advertorials that are first published on paper are quite likely to be reprinted, archived or otherwise reused on the Web, perhaps even as an audio file or podcast. People may even blog about your content. What does this mean for you as a business communicator?
Canavor, Natalie and Claire Meirowitz. Communication World Bulletin (2008). Articles>Business Communication>Editing>Writing
#15133
Finding Proposal Money for Nonprofits 
Offers tips on how nonprofit organizations can search for and attain funding.
Munger, Roger H. Intercom (2001). Careers>Business Communication>Proposals
#31372
Finding Your Way: John Deveney, ABC, Discusses His Views on Consulting
Natasha Spring talks with John Deveney about the success of his consulting firm, client relationships, technology, and the challenges he has faced.
Spring, Natasha and John Deveney. Communication World Bulletin (2005). Careers>Consulting>Business Communication>Case Studies
#31209
Five Facets of Successful Global Communication
Managing internal communication across a global organization is an exciting and challenging task. How this task is approached will vary widely depending on the culture and structure of the particular organization, as well as the location of its headquarters.
Samuels, Paul. Communication World Bulletin (2008). Articles>Business Communication>Collaboration>International
#25785
Five FAQs About Business Writing
A few style guide tips for novice business writers.
ULiveandLearn.com (2005). Articles>Writing>Style Guides>Business Communication
#31281
Five Steps to Improve Your Communication Audit
Communication audits are like relatives from New Jersey: They never show up at an opportune time—even when you know they are coming. Like that obnoxious uncle leading the Jersey clan, communication audits can occupy all of your time and become an overwhelming task to get rid of, or to complete. Performing an effective audit is the first step in moving yourself from being a communicator who informs about business to being a businessperson who communicates.
Mikorenda, Jerry. Communication World Bulletin (2007). Articles>Business Communication>Communication
#29374
Five Tips for Developing the Soft Skills IT Pros Need
As an IT support pro, you not only need to be able to diagnose computer problems, you also must be able to effectively communicate the problem to the user. Use these tips to develop your soft skills, become a star player, and move up the IT ladder.
Firey, Carla. TechRepublic (2003). Careers>Business Communication>Technology
#31544
Five Tips for Measuring Public Relations and Catching the CEO's Attention
Measuring the effectiveness of PR is critical to moving PR from a tactical function to a strategic component of your company's plan for success. But the old ways of counting clips just aren't good enough to convince today's management executives that their investment in PR and overall communications is paying off. Here are 5 Tips about how to measure PR in ways that will catch the CEO's attention and increase the stature of PR in any organization:
McNamara, Julie. Communication World Bulletin (2003). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Assessment
#24165
Flexing Your Marketing Muscles: Tactics for the Reluctant Marketer
I don’t like to market myself. Sometimes I think, 'Heck, I’m good at what I do. I've been doing this for thirty years. Why don’t people come to me?' Then I get over it, consult my marketing plan, and get on with it. (See my previous column, 'Building a Marketing Plan,' in the May 2004 issue of Intercom.) I don't like to market my services, but I like to have marketedmy services. And I keep one thought foremost in the process: 'Marketing is like swimming: If you stop, you sink!'
Frick, Elizabeth G. 'Bette'. Intercom (2004). Articles>Business Communication>Marketing
#26583
This paper explores the possibility that trained business communication professionals might perceive differentially the quality of the identical entrepreneurial presentations, depending on whether they are in audio or print form. By conducting a comparative analysis of heard and read versions of these speeches, we uncovered evidence which frames the following discourse. Results point to the variables which shape either (1) oral communication with an immediately- present audience, or (2) written transcripts with a distanced or imagined set of readers. This has aided us in identifying the funding for new ventures.
Sokuvitz, Sydel and Stephen Spinelli. Association for Business Communication (2004). Articles>Business Communication>Collaboration>Genre
#25051
An application story is a form of promotional writing that highlights the practical benefits of a new product. The story tells why a client company purchases the product over comparable market offerings to solve a business problem. The story is complete when the writer (1) states the client's problem; (2) gives the solution to the problem; (3) shows how the new product solves the problem; (4) describes the criteria the organization had originally set for a new system; (5) shows the benefits of the new system; and(6) describes future applications of the technology. Using this 6-step formula, promotional writers can produce successful application stories.
Matherne, Beverly M. STC Proceedings (1994). Articles>Business Communication>Marketing
#21579
A Framework for Developing Research-Based Curricula in Professional Writing Programs
For our field, these are times of significant change. Undergraduate and graduate professional writing programs are proliferating across the country. At the same time, our students are moving into anincreasingly broad range of workplace settings. To respond to this reality, we need to establish reliable frameworks for developing curricula that are aligned with the discursive, technical, social, and ethicaldemands our students will face in these settings. We are proposing such a framework -- i.e., a set ofguiding principles -- for designing research-based curricula for professional writing programs. More specifically, we will describe how this framework can be used to orient the empirical research that willallow us to 1) identify the knowledge, abilities, critical awareness, and aspects of identity that ourgraduates will need as practicing professionals and 2) develop curricula that respond to these needs.
Smart, Graham and Nicole Brown. STC Proceedings (1994). Articles>Education>Business Communication
#31130
The Freelance Copywriter's Six-Pack
This 24-page e-book is a compilation of six articles, all focused on starting and growing a successful freelance copywriting business. In addition to the articles, there is also a resource page with suggestions for courses and further reading.
Usborne, Nick. FreeIQ (2007). Careers>Freelance>Writing>Business Communication
#27774
Freelancing From Home: Don't Interview Folks in Your Pajamas
Have you ever considered breaking out of your nine to five and 5-by-5-foot cubicle to become a full-time freelance writer?
Hartsock, Nettie. WhitePaperSource (2006). Careers>Freelance>Business Communication>White Papers
#27829
From a Wasteland of Words to Corporate Language
In recent years, the subject of terminology and its significance to technical documentation has gained importance. Training and education are paying more and more attention to this area, and an increasing number of software companies are offering sophisticated solutions to give companies a technological tool for handling terms efficiently.
Schaefer, Gregor. tekom (2006). Articles>Language>Business Communication
#26593
From Sentence to Bullet: How to Style a One-Page Résumé for Traction
The one-page MBA résumé has become, in graduate management education, the self-representational document of choice. Sentences are out, bullets are in, details remain. The key is how to detail the bullet to describe, define, and deliver, in non-narrative form, professional achievements and accomplishments. In this paper, I examine samples of raw quasi-narrative descriptions and suggest restyled improvements for single-line bullets that more clearly, precisely, and effectively represent how authors describe their achievements. The raw data come from a data set of some 400 résumés submitted as a task in a studio-based broadcast course on business communication. The authors are mid-level managers in Latin America enrolled in a global MBA program. The paper examines the content and form of the objective, summary, and professional experience sections of the résumé and provides a set of tips for written language use in the résumé.
Staczek, John J. Association for Business Communication (2005). Careers>Resumes>Management>Business Communication
#23567
From Technical Writing To Marketing Communication: Growth From Common Ground
If you think marketing communications are written by an entirely different brand of writer—in a version of the language wholly unlike the one you employ— then think again. Marketing and technical communications do share common ground. And by expanding the horizons of this landscape, you can move into marketing writing. To begin, you must explore what the disciplines share, what attributes are peculiar to marketing communications, and how you can go about developing your skills in this field.
Baker, Dina. STC Proceedings (1994). Articles>Writing>Marketing>Business Communication
#31493
From Vista to Zune: Why Microsoft Can’t Sell to Consumers
Microsoft’s marketing of Windows Vista and the Zune have failed in large part due to the fact that Microsoft has not learned how to effectively sell consumer products. Consumers buy Windows and Office, but that’s because they have no choice, not because of the company’s marketing savvy. Microsoft only effectively markets its products to businesses, which represents a very different type of sales relationship.
RoughlyDrafted (2008). Articles>Business Communication>Marketing>Case Studies
#31231
Frontline Managers and Human Resources: Partnering for Effective Communication
In my human resources consulting practice, when I ask employees about their major concerns, their primary complaint is how poorly their managers communicate with them about human resources issues, especially compensation and job performance objectives. Ensuring that effective employee communication is embedded in the company’s culture is everyone’s responsibility—from senior executives on down. However, the primary players in effective employee communication are human resources professionals and frontline managers.
Rubino, John A. Communication World Bulletin (2007). Articles>Management>Business Communication
#31543
Recent research tells us that 97 percent of all public relations departments are involved in media relations, and 88 percent evaluate their campaigns using media analysis. On one hand, industry leaders urge us to measure the results of our work via business outcomes; yet on the other, communicators are still asked to supply output results as 'proof of performance.' Is there some link between the two that can cover both? Here are some relatively easy ways to make your media results speak with numbers that management will respect and understand.
Jeffrey, Angela. Communication World Bulletin (2003). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Assessment
#31710
Fundamentals of Leadership: Communicating a Vision
Great leaders are not always born that way. Unfortunately, many management training programs don't sufficiently emphasize leadership development, but instead focus on fundamentals and the day-to-day tasks that confront managers within the organization. This article takes a look at how having vision and then communicating it is the foundation of leadership and contributes to the makeup of a truly great leader.
Harris, Kerri. Writing Assistance (2006). Careers>Management>Collaboration>Business Communication
