In order to craft effective business messages, beginning writers should follow the writing process closely. The first step in this process is to analyze the purpose and audience of the message.

As you first begin the composition process, which of the following questions should you ask yourself? Check all that apply.

Will the audience listen to me?

Why am I sending this message?

What do I hope to achieve by sending this message?

Should this be an e-mail or a memo?

Do I really want to write this message?

Read the following scenario, and answer the questions.

The Freebird Turbocharger is being recalled. All customers who submitted warranty cards can have their installed turbochargers serviced free by authorized mechanics. If you do not have a warranty with Freebird, bring your original receipt to your local Freebird dealership and they will complete the repairs at cost.

What is the primary purpose of this message?

To give a price quote

To sell a turbocharger

To inform a customer about a recall

To refuse a refund

What is the secondary purpose of this message?

To retain the customers goodwill

To provide a refund

To sell more turbochargers

After identifying the purpose of your message, you should select the most appropriate communication channel. When determining the most effective channel for your message, which of the following should you consider? Check all that apply.

Necessity of a permanent record

Receivers preference and level of technical expertise

Amount of effort involved

Importance of the font choice

How long it will take to write the message

Degree of formality desired

Importance of the message

Consider the following situation and choose the most appropriate communication channel.

Youve been getting e-mails for weeks from people who are excited about your companys marketing strategies. They want to learn more. Youd like to share your experiences and ideas with fans and competitors alike, but youre not sure how to address a wide audience quickly.

You should use:

Technology and competition continue to accelerate the pace of business; thus, business writers switch to increasingly faster means of communication. Consider the following scenario, and determine if a faster communication channel would be more appropriate.

Marianna is writing a letter to a customer informing him that Flannery Electronic will not be able to replace his defective stereo because the warranty has expired.

Marianna has chosen the correct channel.

Marianna should call the customer.

Marianna should send the message as an e-mail.

A good writer anticipates the audience of a message. Although you cant always know exactly who the audience is, you can imagine the general characteristics of the receiver. Profiling your audience allows you to adopt the appropriate tone, language, and channel.

Which of the following are appropriate questions to ask when profiling your audience? Check all that apply.

Will someone other than my audience see my message?

Who is my primary audience?

Should I expect a neutral, positive, or negative response to my message?

How can I prevent other people from seeing this message?

Do I need to include more background information?

Read the following scenario, and answer the questions.

You are a store manager for a midsize shoe retailer located near the campus of a large state university. During the summer months, you need fewer retail associates. You have a great team and dont want to impact employee morale negatively by laying off members of the team. Therefore, in order to reach the best outcome, you decide to try to convince your retail team to schedule vacation time carefully so that no one will be laid off for the summer.

Should the tone for this message be formal or informal?

Informal

Formal

Which communication channel would be most appropriate?

Face-to-face meeting

Letter

E-mail

Instant message

The retail team will likely have a response to the message you send.

Who might be the secondary audience for your message? Check all that apply.

Your boss

Retail associates at other locations

Competing retail stores

Assume you just wrote the following e-mail message to a subordinate about a presentation.

Hey Jim,

Nice work on that presentation. Im going to send a copy to the CEO to show off your creativity. Congratulations to you and your team.

Speaking of teams, Im sending a recommendation to Human Resources. Your leadership during the presentation really shows, and you deserve a promotion for all that hard work. A team is only as good as its leader, after all.

Before sending the message, it occurs to you that your e-mail will probably be forwarded to other subordinates.

What will you need to change to make the message appropriate for both a subordinate and other subordinates?

Start with the promotion discussion and use a more formal tone.

Focus on congratulating the team using each individuals name and use a more formal tone. Send news about the promotion recommendation in a separate e-mail.

Make the message even more friendly and informal but focus only on congratulating the team.