1. CHOOSING THE BEST PROCESS AND FORM
CHAPTER 6

2. THE WRITING PROCESS
Planning
Drafting
Revising

3. THE WRITING PROCESS Planning Drafting Revising Determining goals
Analysing the audience
Gathering and collecting information
Analysing and organising the information
Choosing a form, channel, and format
Avoid perfectionism when drafting
Keep going-don’t stop for excessive tinkering
Pursue any strategy that will help you make progress on the draft
Revising for content, organisation, and format
Editing sentences and words
Proofreading to catch mechanical and grammatical errors

4. IMPORTANCE OF READABLE FORMATTING
Formatting is critical to your messages’ success
Good formatting makes your messages inviting
Good formatting makes your information easier to find and follow

5. LETTERS Primarily used to communicate with external audiences
Present a professional, polished image of your company by choosing the letter format and attractive letterhead.
Letter Form- Date, address, salutation, body, and complimentary close.
Letter Formality- less formal than it used to be in the past; use conversational language.
Letter should always be regarded as an exchange between real people as well as a strategic means for accomplishing business goals.

6. MEMORANDUMS (MEMOS)
The memo is a form of letter written inside the business.
Hard-copy memos usually are processed on special stationary. (Memorandum at the top; Date, To, From, and subject follow)
Large organisations often use more information (Department, Plant, Location, Copies to, Store number, etc.)
Memos vary widely in formality, but most are relatively informal.
Most memos are written in the direct order, though sometimes strategic indirectness is needed.

7. EMAILS Emails are written to internal and external audiences.
s can communicate quickly to one person or to many.
is convenient because messages can be sent to anyone with an address, regardless of where the account is located.
provides HTML or other editing tools for text formatting.
provides a convenient means of archiving, filing, and retrieving messages.
s can have a tone that is casual, informal, or formal depending on the audience.
form has some characteristics of memos (e.g., Date, To, From, Subject lines) and some characteristics of letters (e.g., salutation and a complimentary close).
should never be considered confidential.
should not be used as a means of avoiding face-to-face or phone interaction.

8. OTHER FORMS OF MESSAGES
TEXT MESSAGES
INSTANT MESSAGES
SOCIAL NETWORKING
Text messaging is widely used today.
The writing stresses brevity and uses shortcuts.
But never at the expense of clarity.
Write your instant messages as though you were talking to the other person.
Social networking sites are becoming increasingly popular.
Business writers use them to connect with professional colleagues, co-workers, clients, and customers.
Be sure that content for any social networking site presents a positive professional image.

9. ONLINE DOCUMENTS Analyse your audience.
Organise your message in the Inverted Pyramid Writing Style ( main point is presented first, followed by supporting information and then by any background information)
Use Sans Serif font in at least 12-point type.
Keep lines of text and paragraph short.
Use emphasis devices such as bold text, italics, bullets, and headings; avoid underlining.
Ensure your site can be easily accessed by those who have disabilities.