Clear Business Communication: 4 Steps To Success

Business owners know the bottom-line impact of business communication. It doesn’t matter if the communication is a memo to employees, a sales letter to prospects, or a thank you note to customers... A clear, quality message can build your business and the wrong message can demolish it.

Clear messages motivate employees, create positive change in the workplace, increase the possibility of getting a raise, and (most importantly) make a sale! The wrong message can mean lost opportunities, upset employees, and can even send your customer to the competition! Which type of message would you rather give?

Use these 4 steps to make sure that your communication improves your bottom line.

1. Know your audience. Ask yourself what is important to your audience? Make sure that every sentence resonates clearly with the message that you know what your audience wants and you can deliver it. For example: If you are writing to your boss and you’re asking for a raise, don’t complain about the rising cost of homes; your boss is concerned about the business’ bottom line. So instead, talk about how you are going to be more productive and improve the business’ bottom line because of your raise.

2. Know the action you want your audience to take. Often, our messages can be muddled if we are not clear in stating what we want. Don’t “beat around the bush”… make it obvious that you’d like to see a specific action occur as a result of what you’ve written. For example, if you are sending a memo to employees, don’t just write several paragraphs about the need to be on time in the morning. Your employees will think that your memo is right but won’t necessarily take action to correct their behavior. Instead, clearly point out the time you expect them to show up, the consequences for not showing up, and a specific action they can take to indicate that they have arrived on time.

3. Make your communication easy to read. At the beginning of your communication write what you are going to cover. Then cover the topics in the order you stated at the beginning. Then review the topic quickly at the end. If appropriate, put a space between each paragraph and break up lists into bullets. Repeat your point clearly in the first and last paragraph. Avoid unnecessary words.

4. Proofread your work! Nothing reduces the perceived value of a business communication like a missing or incorrectly spelled word. If you are dashing off an email to a coworker, give it a quick read-through. If your work will be read within company walls by subordinates or superiors, have someone else read through it too. If the message is leaving the company to go to prospects, customers, or vendors, make sure that you have at least two other people read the communication before it leaves the building.

Written business communication is an important way that we interact with others. The right messages can build our business and the wrong messages can demolish it. To increase productivity, to improve customer service, and to make more sales, follow these 4 business communication steps to success.

Good Communication Is Essential For Your Home Business

1) The most important factor in a successful home business is:

a) Marketing Plan

b) Sales Copy

c) Web Site Layout

d) Customers

2) My communication skills are:

a) Poor

b) Average

c) Good

d) Excellent

Every aspect of your work at home business relies on your communication. Your business plan; your sales copy; your e-mails; your web site; your phone calls; your marketing plan; AND your customers. How important are your patrons in your plan for work from home success? How eager are you to meet and exceed the needs of your clients in your online business or home business? How willing are you to improve your communication skills?

Your client's requirements are the same whether you have a work from home business, a brick and mortar store or an internet venture. They need to trust you and good communication can develop that credibility. Your number one goal is to create a long term association with your customers. And the way to accomplish that purpose is to convey through your messages that your clients are your most important asset.

Communication is exchanging information between people. The key ingredient to good interaction is that the receiver must understand the intent of the speaker. To increase your opportunity for success, you will need good communication skills.

An online internet store or a home business provides an opportunity for unlimited amounts of interaction with your customers. They will call you with questions about your products, your shipping costs, your delivery times. They will call you with a complaint, a concern, or a cancellation. You must always be ready to use your communication skills to enhance your relationship with your clients.

Here are four ideas for improving your communication skills. These concepts can be applied to the written word or to the spoken word. They can be applied to your internet store, your home business or your personal life. The key ingredient is to put yourself in the place of the recipient. How would you respond to the meaning of your words?

1) Be Reassuring

The intent of your words is to give confidence to the individual that you are communicating with. You can open wide the road of trust if you articulate that everything will be okay. Think about situations where you were involved and you were unsure about the outcome. How did you feel when you received reassurance? When it was missing, how did you respond? Give your customers the reassurance that they need and they will trust you.

2) Be Encouraging

The purpose of your communication is to make the listener feel better while you are interacting with them. Give your clients optimism with your written or spoken words. Have you ever dealt with frustration? Did you receive encouragement at that moment? What happened when it was missing? Put yourself in the position of your listener. Use words that encourage and they will rely upon you.

3) Be Respectful

The goal of your message is to convey to your audience that they are an important asset. Scenario #1:You are on the phone talking with a representative of a company that you are considering doing business with. The individual makes you feel that you are important to the success of their company. Will you to do business with them?

Scenario #2: You are on the phone with another representative and the tone of the person’s voice conveys annoyance. Will you give them your hard earned money? Communicate high regard to the person that you are speaking with or that you are writing to. Treat your listener as if the success of your home business is dependent upon them. They will become a life long customer.

4) Be Helpful

The aim of your information is to articulate an attitude of eagerness to satisfy your customers. Communicate this willingness to go the extra mile with your spoken and written words. How do you feel when a sales person does everything they can do to make you a satisfied customer? How do you react when the sales person rushes through the transaction? Where will you take your business? Go above and beyond the call of duty and they will tell their friends about you.

Your communication skills contribute to the success of your online business or your home business. Every positive aspect that you bring to your venture will pave the road to your prosperity for making money online or at home. What will YOU do to make your work at home business successful?

"Your own resolution to success is more important than any one thing."