One-Minute Communications Tips Archive
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January 2009: Improve Your Readability Score
February 2009: How to Analyze Your Audience
March 2009: How to Deliver Bad News
April 2009: Communicating in Stressful Times
May 2009: Too Many Questions Diminish Your Authority
June 2009: Introduce Yourself in 30 Seconds
July 2009: Using Humor in Presentations
August 2009: How to Achieve Accuracy
September 2009: 2 Tips on Editing Your Writing
October 2009: Use Anecdotes to Make Your Point
November 2009: Social Media for Business Networking
December 2009: Keeping Happy Hour Happy
2007
Archive
2008 Archive
Improve Your Readability Score
Your Flesch Reading
Ease score in Word depends on the number of words per sentence and the number of
syllables per word. Of the two, the second carries greater weight. The lower
your syllable count, the higher your readability score.
Short words usually
have fewer syllables than long words, so using big words reduces your score.
As an example,
take "Mary had a little lamb" (7 syllables). It has a Reading Ease of 83.3. But
"Mary possessed a diminutive lamb" (10 syllables), with the same number of
words, scores only 32.5.
To further
illustrate the influence of short words, let's add a few to that second
sentence: "Mary had a diminutive lamb in her possession." The Reading Ease rises
to 50.6, even though it’s a much worse sentence.
If your primary
goal is to achieve a high readability score, use short words instead of long
ones. Just be sure your substitute word precisely conveys your meaning.
Access Consulting is a marketing
communications and technical writing firm based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA.
Sign up for Access Consulting's One-Minute Communication Tip at http://www.AccessConsultingInc.com.
Once a month, you'll receive an actionable idea or technique on an aspect of
business communications, distilled into about 150 words.
How to Analyze Your Audience
Successful
communication depends largely on how well you know your audience. Here are some
ways to evaluate your audience.
Knowledge. How much does the reader know about the subject? This will
tell you how much background, detail and jargon to include.
Interest. Knowing the audience's level of interest helps you organize your
content and keep it to an appropriate length.
Attitude. How do readers feel about the topic? If they are skeptical, you
will need to provide more support for your claims.
Also, consider the audience's attitude toward you. What's your credibility and
authority with them? If you enjoy high credibility, your arguments will be
readily accepted.
Purpose. Is your audience seeking a status report, or information that
will enable it to make a decision?
Effect. Your communication will have a certain effect on its recipients.
Are you asking them to take some action? If yes, is your presentation convincing
enough?
The better you understand your audience, the more persuasive you will be.
Access Consulting is a marketing
communications and technical writing firm based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA.
Sign up for Access Consulting's One-Minute Communication Tip at http://www.AccessConsultingInc.com.
Once a month, you'll receive an actionable idea or technique on an aspect of
business communications, distilled into about 150 words.
How to Deliver Bad News
Bad news can range
from "the cafeteria will be closed next week" to employment termination.
Whatever your topic, your goals are to have your message accepted and to retain
the audience's goodwill. Here are some ways you can accomplish both.
Determine your medium. Letters and emails allow you to control your
content. Phone calls and visits are suitable for situations that call for
sensitivity.
Use the right style. Start with an explanatory sentence or two, then get
to the bad news quickly. Don't keep your audience waiting. They've probably
sensed what's coming.
Watch your words. Write "and" instead of "but" or "however." Use positive
or neutral language, in the passive voice wherever appropriate.
Use the right tone. Be professional and respectful. Stay away from
editorializing and personal remarks.
End on a positive note. Tell what you're doing to solve the problem or to
help the medicine go down.
Access Consulting is a marketing
communications and technical writing firm based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA.
Sign up for Access Consulting's One-Minute Communication Tip at http://www.AccessConsultingInc.com.
Once a month, you'll receive an actionable idea or technique on an aspect of
business communications, distilled into about 150 words.
Communicating in Stressful Times
When employees are
under abnormal amounts of stress, communicating effectively calls for extra
empathy and tact. The guidelines below will help you avoid communication
landmines in times of high anxiety.
Keep communications short and clear. Stressed-out workers have many things on
their minds.
Don't communicate too often or too seldom. Over-communicating can raise
suspicions that you're "protesting too much," while under-communication makes
people wonder what you're not telling them.
Encourage active listening by asking your colleague to repeat what you said.
Be careful with your wording in emails. If an email message can be misconstrued,
it will be. Especially by a person battling several sources of strain.
Realize that employees' communication styles can reach extremes under heavy
pressure. For example, your staff may become more assertive or compliant. These
modes are dictated by the need to reduce internal stress. Don't take them
personally, and adapt your communication style to fit the new dynamic.
Access Consulting is a marketing
communications and technical writing firm based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA.
Sign up for Access Consulting's One-Minute Communication Tip at http://www.AccessConsultingInc.com.
Once a month, you'll receive an actionable idea or technique on an aspect of
business communications, distilled into about 150 words.
Too Many Questions Diminish Your Authority
When writing an
article or marketing copy, you may be tempted to open with a series of
questions. The questions supposedly get the reader thinking and nodding yes,
prepping her for the solution you're about to suggest.
But that barrage of questions sets the wrong tone.
Your reader expects you, the expert, to provide information — not queries that
force her to do mental work. Thanks to habits developed on the Web, we're all in
a hurry to get to the meat of the matter with the least amount of effort
expended.
Instead of peppering your reader with questions, make statements that show your
authority. They reassure the reader she's in the hands of a professional who
understands her concerns.
It's all right to begin with a thought-provoking question, or ask an occasional
one in the body of your text. But as the boss or expert, you need to supply the
answers in fairly short order.
Access Consulting is a marketing
communications and technical writing firm based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA.
Sign up for Access Consulting's One-Minute Communication Tip at http://www.AccessConsultingInc.com.
Once a month, you'll receive an actionable idea or technique on an aspect of
business communications, distilled into about 150 words.
Introduce Yourself in 30 Seconds
With jobs
teetering or lost, people are networking in increasing numbers. Almost all
face-to-face networking encounters begin with that highly charged touchpoint,
the 30-second self-introduction.
Here are some ways to get the most out of it.
Let the other person go first. Most people aren't listening to you
because they're composing their speeches while waiting to speak. Once they've
spoken about themselves, they're more likely to give you their full attention.
Listen for opportunities for helping each other. You're both there for
your mutual benefit.
Involve the listener. Talk about how your work affects him. Describe your
job in terms he can relate to.
Be specific. Avoid generalities like "We help people lead fuller lives."
Specifics help the listener paint a mental picture.
Be memorable. Ask a thought-provoking question. Say the person's name as
you take his leave. Few people do.
Prepare introductions for different audiences and occasions. Rehearse.
Access Consulting is a marketing
communications and technical writing firm based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA.
Sign up for Access Consulting's One-Minute Communication Tip at http://www.AccessConsultingInc.com.
Once a month, you'll receive an actionable idea or technique on an aspect of
business communications, distilled into about 150 words.
Using Humor in Presentations
Humor helps your
presentation stick. It creates a bond between you and your audience, because by
sharing a laugh, both sides confirm they share the same view of a situation.
You can make your humor effective by following these tips:
Tell a joke or anecdote that involves you. A little self-deprecation helps, but
not at the expense of your authority on the subject.
Transition smoothly from the anecdote to your speech. An unrelated joke will
have the audience scratching their heads.
Insider humor works well, but use it only if you know your audience will get it.
If a joke bombs, do what Leno does — laugh at yourself. This releases the
tension in the room.
Limit the amount of humor. The audience should remember your content, not how
funny you were.
Finally, be comfortable with the setting and your audience. Carrying off a joke
requires a certain amount of self-confidence.
Access Consulting is a marketing
communications and technical writing firm based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA.
Sign up for Access Consulting's One-Minute Communication Tip at http://www.AccessConsultingInc.com.
Once a month, you'll receive an actionable idea or technique on an aspect of
business communications, distilled into about 150 words.
How to Achieve Accuracy
Worse than being
verbose, worse than being unclear, worse than sloppy grammar, is the business-communication crime of being inaccurate.
Inaccuracy leads your reader to make poor decisions and damages your credibility.
To ensure accuracy in your messages:
- Be careful about what you say and what you don’t say.
- Collect and present all the facts, not just the ones that bolster your position. Answer who, what, where, when, why and how.
- Verify your facts. Get information from independent sources if possible. If a piece of data doesn’t look right, question it and research it further.
- Double-check names, dates and numbers.
- Watch for words that signal your bias, e.g., "market crash" vs. "market decline."
- State any assumptions you made and how you arrived at them. Present best- and
worst-case scenarios that could be achieved under alternative assumptions.
Access Consulting is a marketing
communications and technical writing firm based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA.
Sign up for Access Consulting's One-Minute Communication Tip at http://www.AccessConsultingInc.com.
Once a month, you'll receive an actionable idea or technique on an aspect of
business communications, distilled into about 150 words.
2 Tips on Editing Your Writing
You can edit a
document in many ways. These two methods are painless
and bring quick results:
1. Omit meaningless modifiers. Many adjectives and adverbs don't add
information or interest:
advance warning (you can't warn someone about the past)
end result (results are always at the end)
past history (as opposed to future history?)
could potentially (potentially implies that something could happen)
unexpected surprise (if it was expected, it wouldn't be a surprise)
This is an easy edit, because such modifiers don't modify. Banish
them.
2. Erase the phrase "the ________ of."
Phrases like these litter business documents:
the state of
the field of
the act of
Cut the entire phrase. For example, instead of "the state of Florida,"
just say "Florida." Readers will know you mean the state.
There may be instances where you need the phrase for clarity, but most
of the time, you'll do better without it.
Access Consulting is a marketing
communications and technical writing firm based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA.
Sign up for Access Consulting's One-Minute Communication Tip at http://www.AccessConsultingInc.com.
Once a month, you'll receive an actionable idea or technique on an aspect of
business communications, distilled into about 150 words.
Use Anecdotes to Make Your Point
The next time
you're trying to persuade someone — say, your boss or colleague or a job
interviewer — spice up your logical appeals with a little anecdote.
Well-told stories add an extra dimension to facts and let the listener
experience them in the theater of his or her mind. They bring the listener into
your world.
Elements of a good story include:
Relevance. Your job is not to entertain but to persuade. Telling
irrelevant anecdotes works against you.
Action. The character(s) in your story must take some action. Describe it
in vivid words the listener can visualize.
Brevity. Don't belabor the setup. Edit the blow-by-blow details and cut
to the chase.
A positive outcome. Again, it should be relevant to your task.
Truth. If your story turns out to be fake, your credibility will
collapse. Why make stuff up? Reality is interesting enough.
Access Consulting is a marketing
communications and technical writing firm based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA.
Sign up for Access Consulting's One-Minute Communication Tip at http://www.AccessConsultingInc.com.
Once a month, you'll receive an actionable idea or technique on an aspect of
business communications, distilled into about 150 words.
Social Media for Business Networking
Business
networking on social media sites should be well planned and executed, or your
online interactions will quickly soak up your time without producing
satisfactory results. Maximize your returns from social media by following these
steps.
Pick your sites. Target the ones where you're likely to find your preferred
audience. Don't spread yourself too thin. Experts recommend sticking to
LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.
Write a profile that clearly tells your potential associates who you are and
what your business does.
Make friends with people who share your interests.
Post frequently, or you'll pass like a ship in the night. In Twitter, for
example, once your tweet is off the first screen, few followers will find you.
Be engaging. Be interesting and human. Let your personality show. Post relevant
and useful information, and contribute thoughtfully to the conversation.
Shine the light on others. It's better to share someone else's content than
repeatedly link to your own website.
Access Consulting is a marketing
communications and technical writing firm based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA.
Sign up for Access Consulting's One-Minute Communication Tip at http://www.AccessConsultingInc.com.
Once a month, you'll receive an actionable idea or technique on an aspect of
business communications, distilled into about 150 words.
Keeping Happy Hour Happy
Going out with
colleagues or clients for happy hour after work? You're not alone. Workers
around the world know the benefits of knocking back a few with the people they
toil next to all day.
Communication barriers tumble, personal bonds grow, bosses become more
approachable. Projects at work receive help from newly created friendships.
But amid all the camaraderie, danger lurks for the unwary.
Despite appearances, the happy hour is a business event. Your boss is still your
boss; your client is still your client. They won't be impressed by your drinking
skills as much as your social skills.
A question or two about work is OK, but for the most part, talk about topics
outside your profession. Bone up on current events, sports and the arts so you
won't be tongue-tied in front of someone whom you only see on the job.
And remember, drink in moderation — or not at all.
Access Consulting is a marketing
communications and technical writing firm based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA.
Sign up for Access Consulting's One-Minute Communication Tip at http://www.AccessConsultingInc.com.
Once a month, you'll receive an actionable idea or technique on an aspect of
business communications, distilled into about 150 words.
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