2. Chapter 3 Building Goodwill Goodwill You-Attitude Positive Emphasis
Tone, Power, & Politeness
Reducing Bias Language

3. Goodwill Build goodwill through You-attitude Positive emphasis
Bias-free language

4. You-Attitude Looks at things from audience’s viewpoint
Emphasizes what audience wants to know
Respects audience’s intelligence
Protects audience’s ego

5. Five Ways to Create You-Attitude
Talk about audience, not yourself.
Refer to reader’s request or order.
Don’t talk about feelings.
In positive situations, use you more often than I. Use we when it includes the audience.
In negative situations, avoid you.

6. Talk About Audience, Not Yourself
Tell how message affects the audience
Don’t mention communicator’s work or generosity
Stress what audience wants to know
Yourself

7. Talk About Audience: Examples
Lacks you-attitude
I negotiated an agreement with Apex Rent-a-Car that gives you a discount.
We shipped your May 21 order today.
Contains you-attitude
You now get a 20% discount when you rent a car from Apex.
The three Birth Year coin sets you ordered will ship today and should reach you by June 6.

8. Refer to Reader’s Request or Order
Make specific references, not generic
Name content of order for person or small business
Cite purchase order numbers for customers that order often

9. Refer to Audience’s Request or Order: Examples
Lacks you-attitude
We shipped your order today.
Contains you-attitude
The 500 red and gray sweatshirts you ordered were shipped today and will reach you early next week.
Your P.O N shipped on 11/04 and will arrive within five business days.

10. Don’t Talk About Feelings
Express your feelings to
Offer sympathy to audience
Congratulate audience
Don’t talk about audience’s feelings
Don’t predict audience’s response
Give audience good news

11. Don’t Talk About Feelings: Examples
Lacks you-attitude
We are happy to give you a credit line of $2,000.
You will be happy to learn that your reimbursement request has been approved.
Contains you-attitude
You now have a $2,000 credit line with VISA.
Your reimbursement request has been approved.

12. In Positive Situations, Use You More Often Than I
In Positive Situations, Use You More Often Than I. Use We If It Includes the Audience
Use you in positive situations
Avoid I in printed text
Avoid we if it excludes the audience
YOU

13. In Positive Situations, Use You More Often Than I
In Positive Situations, Use You More Often Than I. Use We If It Includes the Audience: Example
Lacks you-attitude
We provide exercise equipment to all employees.
I will schedule a due date that works best for my schedule.
Contains you-attitude
You have access to the latest exercise equipment as a full-time employee of RAC Inc.
We will schedule the due date after we meet.

14. Avoid You in Negative Situations
Protect audience’s ego
Avoid assigning blame
Use passive verbs
Use impersonal style
Talk about things, not people

15. Avoid You in Negative Situations: Examples
Lacks you-attitude
You failed to sign your flexible spending account form.
You made no allowance for inflation in your estimate.
Contains you-attitude
Your flexible spending account form was not signed.
The estimate makes no allowance for inflation.
passive
impersonal

16. Positive Emphasis Way of looking at situations
Communication focuses on the positive
Create positive emphasis through
Words
Information
Organization
Layout
Half full or half empty?

17. Five Ways to Create Positive Emphasis
Avoid negative words
Focus on what audience can do, not limitations
Justify negative information by giving reason or linking to audience benefit
Omit unimportant negatives
Put negative information in the middle and present it compactly

18. Avoid Negative Words: Examples
Contains Negatives
Never fail to return library books on time.
Because you failed to pay your bill, your account is delinquent.
Omits Negatives (Better)
Always return library books on time.
Your account is past due.

19. Focus on What the Audience Can Do: Example
Negative
You will not get your refund check until you submit your official grade report at the end of the semester.
Better
To receive your refund check, submit your official grade report at the end of the semester.

20. Justify Negative Information by Giving Reason or Linking to Audience Benefit: Example
You cannot take vacation days without prior approval from your supervisor.
Better
To ensure that everyone’s duties will be covered, submit your first and second choices of vacation time to your supervisor by May 30.

21. Omit Unimportant Negatives
When audience does not need the information to act
When audience has the information in your previous message
When information is trivial

22. Put the Negative in the Middle and Present it Compactly
Put in middle of message and paragraph
Don’t put at bottom of page 1
Don’t list vertically
Make it short as you can
Give it only once
Negative

23. Tone, Power, & Politeness
Tone – implied attitude of the communicator toward the audience
Good tone
Businesslike, not stiff
Friendly, not phony
Confident, not arrogant
Polite, not groveling

24. Levels of Politeness: Examples
Highest: Would you be able to complete your report by Friday?
High: Progress reports should be turned in by Friday.
Mid: Please turn in your progress report by Friday.
Low: Turn in your progress report by Friday.

25. Reducing Bias
Bias-free language – words that do not discriminate on basis of
Sex
Age
Race
Physical condition

26. Making Language Nonsexist
Treat both sexes neutrally
Businessman = Business person
Woman doctor = Doctor
Manning = Staffing
Don’t assume everyone is heterosexual or married

27. Making Language Nonsexist, continued…
Avoid sexist job titles
Actress
Repairman
Chairman
Salesman
Foreman
Waitress

28. Making Language Nonsexist, continued…
Use Ms. as courtesy title for women
Use professional title instead (if any)
Use Miss or Mrs. if audience prefers it
Determine proper courtesy title for letter address and salutation
Omit sexist generic pronouns

29. Making Language Nonracist & Nonagist
Give age or race only if relevant
Refer to a group by term it prefers
Don’t suggest competence is rare:
She is an asset to her race.
He is an active 83-year-old.

30. Talking about People with Disabilities & Diseases
People-first language — Name person first; add disability or disease if relevant
Don’t imply that disability or disease defines person
Don’t use negative terms, unless audience prefers them (deaf vs. hard of hearing)