Unit 2: Writing for Work
This unit will show you how and when to use the direct communication we discussed in Unit 1. Now that you're familiar with using direct communication in business writing, you can practice using it to communicate professionally. Business writers use many small genres, or writing categories, such as emails, memos, reports, and even text messages. In this unit, you'll practice using concision to continue being direct with your writing, and see a variety of different business writing categories. Finally, you'll have the opportunity to revise an email to make it fit business writing guidelines.
Completing this unit should take you approximately 6 hours.
Upon successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- recognize when to use a variety of professional documents;
- explain to rewrite business writing for concision and clarity;
- identify and correct errors in business writing documents to prevent miscommunication; and
- identify essentials of professional business correspondence documents such as informative messages.
2.1: Concision
In academic writing, there is a tendency to use a lot of fancy words to explain a point. In business writing, however, the opposite is true. Part of using direct language is to write with concision, meaning to make your point with as few words as possible. Writers also shift between active and passive voice, depending on the professional situation. The key to business writing is that the writer tries to make their point easy to understand to their reader, which saves time and is more efficient. Read this section to learn strategies for concise writing and using active or passive voice.This article will teach you strategies to improve concision in writing, like using straightforward sentence structure.
A memorandum, often referred to as a memo, is a common document used in business writing. These documents address a recipient at the top, have a clear subject focus, and get right to the main idea so that the reader can understand the message quickly and easily. Memos require concise writing and clear ideas. Review this article on memos to see how concise writing is important for these documents and tips for effective business memos.
2.2: Informative Messages
Writing occurs for a variety of purposes. In academic writing, we often write to learn and share knowledge, while the purpose of personal writing may be to find out what is happening with the people we care about. Business writing focuses on information. Business writers seek information and provide information to build professional relationships, complete tasks, and communicate with others in the workplace. This section describes the different ways business writers communicate.Most business communications are in fact "informative" messages. This article will help you Identify the appropriate use of informative business messages.
2.3: Etiquette When Corresponding in Business
Manners, manners, manners! Just like in-person conversations, written conversations in business require us to use manners. Online etiquette, or netiquette, is important when corresponding professionally. Whether you are sending a coworker a text message, writing an email to a manager, or drafting a letter to a client, there are guidelines that you must follow. This section will explain the guidelines for appropriate business correspondence.The way that you represent yourself in writing carries significant weight. This article outlines the guidelines for communicating through text messages, emails, memos, and letters.
Unit 2 Assessment
- Receive a grade
Take this assessment to see how well you understood this unit.
- This assessment does not count towards your grade. It is just for practice!
- You will see the correct answers when you submit your answers. Use this to help you study for the final exam!
- You can take this assessment as many times as you want, whenever you want.