COMMUNICATION SKILLS - 1

Communication Skills-I
(BBA-106)
Self Learning Material
Kalinga University
Institute of Distance Education
Established by Government of Chhattisgarh
Approved by UGC under Sec 2(f) of UGC ACT 1956
(Recognised by Joint Committee of UGC-AICTE-DEC, Govt. of India)
Developed & Published by:
Kalinga University
Copyright:
Kalinga University
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PREFACE
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Syllabus
Unit-I
Fundamentals of Grammar and their Usage: How to Improve Command over Spoken and Written
English with Stress on Noun, Verb, Tense and Adjective. Sentence Errors, Punctuation, Vocabulary
Building to Encourage the Individual to Communicate Effectively, Common Errors in Business Writing.
Unit-II
Introduction to Business Communication: Basic Forms of Communication, Process of Communication,
Principles of Effective Business Communication, 7Cs; Media of Communication: Types of Communication:
Barriers of Communication (Practical exercise in communication)
Unit-III
Business letter writing: Need, Functions and Kinds, Layout of Letter Writing, Types of Letter
Writing: Persuasive Letters, Request Letters, Sales Letters, Complaints and Adjustments; Departmental
Communication: Meaning, Need and Types: Interview Letters, Promotion Letters, Resignation Letters,
News Letters, Circulars, Agenda, Notice, Office Memorandums, Office Orders, Press Release.
Unit-IV
Business Etiquettes and Public Speaking: Business Manners, Body Language Gestures, Email and
Net Etiquettes, Etiquette of the Written Word, Etiquettes on the Telephone, Handling Business Meetings;
Introducing Characteristic, Model Speeches, Role Play on Selected Topics with Case Analysis and Real
Life Experiences.
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Contents
Unit I 7 - 17
Unit II 18 - 49
Unit III 50 - 73
Unit IV 74 - 96
Sample test paper-1 97
Sample test paper-2 98
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NOTES
Unit I
Fundamentals of Grammar and their Usage:
Objective
• Introduction
• How to Improve Command over Spoken and Written English with Stress on Noun, Verb, Tense
and Adjective.
• Sentence Errors
• Punctuation
• Vocabulary Building to Encourage the Individual to Communicate Effectively
• Common Errors in Business Writing
• Summary
• Keywords
• Self Assessment
• Review Question
• Further Reading
Objectives
This unit will teach us about the various methods to improve spoken English with the help of
noun, verb and adjective. This unit will also explain about sentence error and errors in business
communication. It will also teach us about punctuation.
Introduction
While there are plenty of detailed rules of grammar for the English language, there are actually
five absolutely fundamental principles that must be understood and observed if one wishes to
communicate coherently and unambiguously in English.
Whether one is writing English or speaking English, the same principles apply, though not always
in the same way. Correct use of English depends on observing these principles.
The five key principles

1. Principles of word order
2. Principles of punctuation
3. Principles of tense and aspect
4. Use of Determiners
5. Use of Connectors
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How to Improve Command over Spoken and Written English with Stress on Noun, Verb,
Tense and Adjective.
Many people struggle with writing in English and it can seem like a real challenge to improve.
Don’t worry, though. Here are some simple steps that you can take to improve your written English
and impress people with your writing skills.
1. Expand your vocabulary

To express yourself clearly, you need a good active vocabulary. That’s not just being able to
recognise lots of words – it means actually being able to use them correctly. Do this by learning
new words with example sentences, not just word lists.
When you learn a new word, try learn all the forms of that word and the prepositions that are
usually used with it. (For example, rather than just the word ‘depend’, make a note of: to depend
on, to be dependent on, a dependant.)
2. Master English spelling

You must know how to spell those words correctly. Incorrect spelling changes the meaning of your
sentence. For example: ‘bare’ and ‘bear’ sound the same but ‘bare’ means naked and ‘bear’ is a
large animal. Additionally, incorrect spelling makes it difficult for the reader to understand what
you’ve written.
Practice your spelling using flash cards and test yourself whenever you have some spare time.
3. Read regularly
People often say that we learn to write best by reading. Reading in English is useful in many
ways. It is a great way to get an idea of the different styles of writing and see how to use words
appropriately.
Choose books or articles with topics that interest you. Learning shouldn’t be boring. Read each
text several times to make sure you understand how to use new words and expressions in the text.
4. Improve your grammar

Grammar is very important because it improves the quality of your writing. Always use the
appropriate tense and remember to use punctuation. Punctuation is a great way to make your
writing clear and fluent.
Always proof-read your writing twice. The first time, look for general mistakes and the second time
look for mistakes with the particular grammar point you are studying at the moment.
5. Just do it!
Writing can be daunting. However, the best way to improve is get a pen and paper or sit in front of
your computer and actually write. Be prepared to write several versions of each text because even
for professional writers, the first draft is never perfect.
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Improving spoken English

Practice Reading Loudly: To gain a good command over the language, always practice speaking
loudly. Whenever you read anything in English, speak in loud voice, so that you can hear your
own sound. With that, you will be able to understand each and every word of the content. Also, it
has been proved that speaking loudly increases your confidence level. So, start reading your point
of interest in a lower voice.
Speak in Front of Mirror: It has always been prescribed that in case you want to increase your
confidence, speaking skills, Mirror is the best guide for you. So, make Mirror your best friend
which can renovate you completely as it shows the real YOU. If you have the dare to chase yourself
in front of a mirror, then you can be the most successful person over the globe. Speaking in front of
the mirror enables you to overcome hesitation and improve your speaking skill set.
Always use a Dictionary: You have started reading English stuff, but you will collide with
countless words whose meanings are unknown to you. For that purpose, always take a Dictionary
along with you while reading anything. As soon as you collide with an unknown word, check out
its meaning from the dictionary and then try to make the meaning of that sentence. Along with that,
you can also make a habit to write one new sentence of your own with the newly discovered word.
With this habit, you will attain a good command over English.
Learn a new Word Everyday: With a habit to read on a daily basis, you will see an impressive
change in your English speaking capability. But later, when you will read regularly, you will find
less words to discover from the Dictionary. In that case, you can start taking a new word each day
and create your own meaningful sentence after understanding its meaning. You can take help of
Internet to get your Word of the Day. This will enhance your vocabulary and will make a good
collection of words.
Speak English with your Friends, Siblings, Colleagues: All your practice is half successful if
you overcome your hesitation in speaking with people within your surroundings. For that, you
should start speaking with your friends, college buddies, siblings in English and encourage them
also to revert in the same language. With that, you will not only overcome your hesitation and get a
good command over the language, but you will also become a helping hand for many others who
are facing the same situation nearby you.
Start Writing a Diary: Diary writing is a hobby of many. But to grab a good command over
English, you should start writing Diary on daily basis in English only. It will not only allow you
to express your thoughts in the form of words, but also will help you in thinking different English
words that can be used while writing.
Sentence Errors
Even if English is your native language, it doesn’t mean it’s easy to master. In fact, English is one of
the most difficult languages to learn because there are so many exceptions to its rules. Even though
most of us learn how to read and write in school, it is still very common for us to make mistakes
from time to time. It could be an occasional slip up, or it could be a misunderstanding of the correct
way to say things. When it comes to sentence construction, here are the five most common types
of errors.
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Subject-Verb Disagreement
The subject of the sentence, and the verb that describes what the subject is doing, must match.
Incorrect Example: The boy mow the lawn.
“The boy” is the subject of the sentence, and “mow” is the verb that describes what he’s doing.
Correct Example: The boy mows the lawn.
Parallelism – Structure Errors

When two or more parts of a sentence are doing the same thing, they must have matching structures,
or parallel structures.
Incorrect Example: Jamie loves to ride her bike, swimming, and to dance.
This sentence is saying that Jamie loves three different activities, and all of those activities must
have the same parallel structure.
Correct Example: Jamie loves to ride her bike, to swim, and to dance.
Correct Example: Jamie loves riding her bike, swimming, and dancing.
Parallelism – Incorrect Prepositions

Sometimes two or more parts of a sentence that are doing the same thing require different
prepositions. Leaving out or using incorrect prepositions leads to more errors in parallelism.
Incorrect Example: Jessica is interested and excited about the book.
In this example, “Interested” and “excited” are the two parts of the sentence that are doing the same
thing, but they require different prepositions. You can say she is “excited about the book,” but you
cannot say she is “interested about the book.”
Correct Example: Jessica is interested in and excited about the book.
Comma Splices
Two complete sentences can be combined, but they must be combined using both a comma and a
conjunction. If two complete sentences are combined without both a comma and a conjunction, it
is called a comma splice.
Incorrect Example: The dog walked on the beach, he didn’t go in the ocean.
In this example, “The dog walked on the beach” is a complete sentence. “He didn’t go in the
ocean” is also a complete sentence. They are combined with only a comma, however, and without
a conjunction.
Correct Example: The dog walked on the beach, but he didn’t go in the ocean.
“But” is the conjunction used along with the comma to combine the two complete sentences.
Sentence Fragments
Every sentence must have both a subject and a verb. If either a subject or verb is missing, it is an
incomplete sentence, or a sentence fragment.
Incorrect Example: The kitchen messy.
In this sentence, “the kitchen” is the subject of the sentence, but there is no verb.
Correct Example: The kitchen is messy.
Correct Example: The kitchen was messy.
Punctuation
Punctuation is used to create sense, clarity and stress in sentences. You use punctuation marks to
structure and organise your writing.
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You can quickly see why punctuation is important if you try and read this text which has no
punctuation at all:
perhaps you don’t always need to use commas periods colons etc to make sentences clear when i
am in a hurry tired cold lazy or angry i sometimes leave out punctuation marks grammar is stupid
i can write without it and dont need it my uncle Harry once said he was not very clever and i never
understood a word he wrote to me i think ill learn some punctuation not too much enough to write
to Uncle Harry he needs some help
Now let’s see if punctuating it makes a difference!
Perhaps you don’t always need to use commas, periods, colons etc. to make sentences clear. When
I am in a hurry, tired, cold, lazy, or angry I sometimes leave out punctuation marks. “Grammar is
stupid! I can write without it and don’t need it,” my uncle Harry once said. He was not very clever,
and I never understood a word he wrote to me. I think I’ll learn some punctuation - not too much,
enough to write to Uncle Harry. He needs some help!
Use the pages in this punctuation section to learn how to make your English clearer and better
organised.
PUNCTUATION RULES IN ENGLISH

the period (or full stop in British English)
the comma
the exclamation mark
the question mark
the colon
the semicolon
the quotation mark
the apostrophe
the hyphen and the dash
parentheses and brackets
Vocabulary Building to Encourage the Individual to Communicate Effectively

Learning how to build a better vocabulary can be a pleasurable and profitable investment of both
your time and effort. At least fifteen minutes a day of concentrated study on a regular basis can
bring about a rapid improvement in your vocabulary skills, which in turn can increase your ability
to communicate by writing, conversing, or making speeches. Acquiring a large vocabulary can
benefit you in school, at work, and socially. It will enable you to understand others’ ideas better and
to have the satisfaction of getting your thoughts and ideas across more effectively.
Of course, you already know thousands of words, and you will continue to learn more whether
you work at it or not. The fact is that many of the words you know were probably learned simply
by coming across them often enough in your reading, in conversation, and even while watching
television. But increasing the pace of your learning requires a consistent, dedicated approach. If
you learned only one new word a day for the next three years, you would have over a thousand
new words in your vocabulary. However, if you decide right now to learn ten new words a day, in
one year you would have added over three thousand words to what you already know, and
probably have established a lifetime habit of learning and self-improvement.
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Four basic steps to a better vocabulary
While there are not any magic shortcuts to learning words, the larger your vocabulary becomes,
the easier it will be to connect a new word with words you already know, and thus remember its
meaning. So your learning speed, or pace, should increase as your vocabulary grows. There are four
basic steps to building your vocabulary:
1. Be Aware of Words
Many people are surprised when they are told they have small vocabularies. “But I read all the
time!” they protest. This shows that reading alone may not be enough to make you learn new words.
When we read a novel, for instance, there is usually a strong urge to get on with the story and skip
over unfamiliar or perhaps vaguely known words. But while it is obvious when a word is totally
unknown to you, you have to be especially become aware of words that seem familiar to you but
whose precise meanings you may not really know.
Instead of avoiding these words, you will need to take a closer look at them. First, try to guess at a
word’s meaning from its context—that is, the sense of the passage in which it appears; second, if you
have a dictionary in hand, look up the word’s meaning immediately. This may slow down your reading
somewhat, but your improved understanding of each new word will eventually speed up your
learning of other words, making reading easier. Make a daily practice of noting words of interest to you
for further study whenever you are reading, listening to the radio, talking to friends, or watching
television.
2. Read
When you have become more aware of words, reading is the next important step to increasing your
knowledge of words, because that is how you will find most of the words you should be learning.
It is also the best way to check on words you have already learned. When you come across a word
you have recently studied, and you understand it, that proves you have learned its meaning.
What should you read? Whatever interests you—whatever makes you want to read. If you like
sports, read the sports page of the newspapers; read magazines like Sports Illustrated; read books
about your favorite athletes. If you are interested in interior decorating, read a magazine like House
Beautiful—read it, don’t just look at the photographs.
Often people with very low vocabularies don’t enjoy reading at all. It’s more of a chore for them
than a pleasure because they don’t understand many of the words. If this is the way you feel about
reading, try reading easier things. Newspapers are usually easier than magazines; a magazine like
Reader’s Digest is easier to read than The Atlantic Monthly. There is no point in trying to read
something you simply are not able to understand or are not interested in. The important idea is to
find things to read you can enjoy, and to read as often and as much as possible with the idea of
learning new words always in mind.
3. Use a Dictionary
Most people know how to use a dictionary to look up a word’s meaning. Here are some pointers on
how to do this as a part of a vocabulary-building program:
• Have your own dictionary: Keep it where you usually do your reading at home. You are
more likely to use it if you do not have to get it from another room. At work, there may be a
Self Learning good dictionary available for your use. At home, most people do not have a big, unabridged
Material dictionary; however, one of the smaller collegiate dictionaries would be fine to start with.
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• Circle the words you look up: After you have done this for a while, your eye will naturally
move to the words you have circled whenever you flip through the dictionary. This will give
you a quick form of review.
• Read the entire entry for the word you look up: Remember, words can have more than one
meaning, and the meaning you need for the word you are looking up may not be the first one
given in your dictionary. Even if it is, the other meanings of the word will help you understand
the different ways the word is used. Also, the word’s history, usually given near the beginning
of the entry, can often give a fascinating picture of the way the word has developed its current
meaning. This will add to the pleasure of learning the word as well as help you remember it.
4. Study and Review Regularly

Once you have begun looking up words and you know which ones to study, vocabulary building is
simply a matter of reviewing the words regularly until you fix them in your memory. This is best
done by setting aside a specific amount of time each day for vocabulary study. During that time
you can look up new words you have noted during the day and review old words you are in the
process of learning. Set a goal for the number of words you would like to learn and by what date,
and arrange your schedule accordingly. Fifteen minutes a day will bring better results than half an
hour once a week or so. However, if half an hour a week is all the time you have to spare, start with
that. You may find more time later on, and you will be moving in the right direction.
In order to review words effectively, all the information on a word should be kept in one place—in
a notebook, for example, or on an index card. Index cards are convenient because the words can be
placed in alphabetical order, which makes them easy to find when reviewing; and the cards can be
carried around with you, so you can study them anywhere. You should try to be systematic about
studying, so that you are sure to review each word at least once every couple of weeks.
Do not throw cards away, though; you can get a great feeling of accomplishment by looking at the
growing stack of words you have learned and by occasionally glancing at an old card and thinking,
“Once I actually didn’t know the meaning of this word!”
Common Errors in Business Writing

How many business documents do companies produce each week? Think about the countless
emails; the proposals for clients; the reports for management; the plans for colleagues. Whether by
necessity or desire, we are a nation of prolific business writers.
Quality is essential; quantity is preferable. So, with this in mind, is the content we are producing
actually any good? The sad truth is that many companies appear resigned to wasting hundreds of
thousands of dollars each year while their employees struggle for hours to produce badly written,
poorly structured documents. Worse still is that much of this content doesn’t ever get read.
It is very easy to make a hash of business writing. Reports and proposals are often written in a
hurry, cobbled together at the last minute – with little thought about the impression they will give
or the impact they will make.
Time pressures and stress levels are not always avoidable however, and there is no real reason why
people should be able to write well. Writing is a skill that needs to be learnt like any other, but even
the most reluctant writers can improve their business documents by learning to avoid the most
common mistakes which are listed below:
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1. Typos, poor punctuation and grammatical errors

Avoid careless mistakes at all costs. They say, ‘This person can’t write’ or, ‘This person doesn’t care
enough to check what they’ve written’. And often they result in a client questioning how much care you
will take with their business. Read through everything. Check and then recheck and then ask a colleague
to check again. Sub editing is difficult and another set of eyes often spots something that you haven’t.
2. Management speak and buzz words

People are tired of reading about ‘synergy’ and ‘high performance’. ‘Cutting edge’ or ‘innovative’
products and services are two-a-penny these days, so these words are a real turn off. Create jargon-
free documents that are useful and speak directly to your reader. Explain any acronyms and outline
any terms. It is a myth that a reader feels patronized by explanations – readers feel empowered by
the reiteration of terms they may already know.
3. Forgetting the reader

Rather than just focusing on ‘getting it written’, spare a thought for the poor reader first. What
information do they want; in what form; with how much detail? What is the main message to leave
them with? Plan and structure your document based on what the client needs. Only then should you
begin to write it.
4. Long words and elaborate phrases

These are not a sign of intellect and your readers are far too busy to spend time deciphering them.
Who wants to translate complicated words and phrases before they can start to understand the main
message? Clear and concise content gets a message across. Be blunt, keep your work simple and
stick to the point. Intellectual doesn’t have to mean incomprehensible.
5. Complex sentences
People do not give business documents their undivided attention. Chances are they will have other
things in their mind, so help them out by avoiding long complicated sentences that they have to
keep re-reading. Write clear and straight forward sentences and avoid unnecessary punctuation,
which may trip the reader up.
6. Poor planning
It doesn’t matter how tight the deadlines are, time spent planning is never wasted. The temptation
to start writing immediately may be strong, but the result is often lengthy and muddled content that
may quickly be discarded. Decide what information is essential, what information is desirable and
what information is not necessary. Then prioritize your work in that order.
7. Failing to make an impression

A strong introduction will grab the reader’s attention; a good conclusion will leave a lasting impact.
Many people start their document in the middle, promising themselves that they will write the
introduction later. Even more absurdly, conclusions are often left out completely. The introduction
and the conclusion are the most crucial parts of any document: don’t ignore them.
8. Too much text

White space is good; it makes a document appear easier to read. Ideally a document should be 50
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size as well as insufficient line spacing can prevent a reader from reading content. Like the content,
the font and overall look of a document should make it as easy-to-read as possible. San serif fonts
such as Arial, for example, make larger bodies of text easier to read.
9. Abbreviations
Certain abbreviations and acronyms may be acceptable and common knowledge within an
organization, but don’t take it for granted that anyone outside the organization will understand
them. Many writers worry about patronizing their clients. Clarity and explanation is not patronizing
– it is both empowering and makes a document easier and more enjoyable to read.
10. Being vague

Quantify statements wherever possible. Don’t make claims like, ‘It is widely understood that…’
Say who understands it. Specify how much money a company has made. Vague statements lack
impact and are open to misinterpretation.
Summary
English is an important factor in both hiring and promotion decisions. A phrase is a word or group
of words that functions as a unit within the sentence. The future tense is correctly used for the first
and last verbs because these verbs indicate future consequences. The adjective is the part of speech
that modifies or describes a noun (usually the subject) in the sentence. Use dashes to set off material
that is inserted in the sentence when the inserted material includes commas.
Keywords
Nouns: Nouns perform the function of naming. Nouns name persons, places, animals or things, as
well as groups, ideas and qualities.
Phrase: A phrase is a word or group of words that functions as a unit within the sentence.
Predicate: The component of a sentence in which something is said about the subject.
Sentence: a group of words that expresses a complete thought.
Verbs: Verbs make statements about nouns, ask questions, give commands, or show states of being.
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Self Assessment Questions

1. A group of words that expresses a complete thought.
(a) Subject
(b) Predicate
(c) Phrase
(d) Sentence
2. A group of words with a subject and a predicate.

(a) Sentence
(b) Phrase
(c) Clause
(d) Subject
3. Use a… ................... between two independent clauses (two complete sentences) when the two
sentences are closely related.
(a) semicolons
(b) colons
(c) dashes
(d) ellipsis dots
4. Use… .................to set off material that is inserted in the sentence when the inserted material
includes commas.
(a) semicolons
(b) colons
(c) dashes
(d) ellipsis dots
5. Adjectives can also be….....................in that they indicate a noun or object is the ―best or
―greatest (by comparison) to all other choices.
(a) comparative
(b) superlative
(c) multiple
(d) None of these
6. Put … ........................ between two complete independent clauses separated by a coordinating

conjunction
(a) semicolons
(b) colons
(c) dashes
(d) comma
7. Use a semicolon to separate items in a list that already includes information separated by
colons.
(a) True
(b) False
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8. Nouns perform the function of naming.

(a) True
(b) False
9. Adjectives make statements about nouns, ask questions, give commands, or show states of
being.
(a) True
(b) False
10. A suffix is a letter or groups of letters attached to the ends of roots, words or word groups and
serve a grammatical function.
(a) True
(b) False
Review Questions
1. Explain how to improve command in English.
2. What are the attributive and predicative adjectives? With example.
3. Describe the choice of words of use in language skills.
4. What do you mean by punctuation?
5. What are the common errors of Business Writing?
Answers for Self Assessment

1 (d) 2 (c) 3 (a) 4 (c) 5 (b) 6 (d) 7 (b) 8 (a) 9 (b) 10 (a)
Further reading
Reference Books
1. Boove, C.L., Thill, J.V., and Chaturvedi, M., (2009) Business Communication Today, Pearson
Education.
2. Murphy and Hildebrandt, (2008) Effective Business Communication, McGraw Hill Education.
3. Krizan, A. C. Buddy, and Merrier, Patricia (2008) Effective Business Communication, 7th
Edition,
Cengage Learning.
4. Lesikar, (2009), Business Communication: Making Connections in a Digital World, McGraw
Hill
Education.
5. McGraw, S. J., (2008) Basic Managerial Skills for All, 8th edition, Prentice Hall of India.
6. Wren & Martin, (2008), English Grammar and Composition, Sultan chand & Sons.
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Unit II
Introduction to Business Communication:
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Types of Communication
• Process of Communication,
• Principles of Effective Business Communication
• 7Cs
• Media of Communication
• Barriers of Communication (Practical exercise in communication)
• Summary
• Keywords
• Self Assessment
• Review Question
• Further Reading
Objectives
After studying this Unit you will be able to: Discuss the concept of communication, discuss the
importance of communication. Explain the scope/purpose of communication; discuss the process
of communication and effectiveness. It will explain the communication it models, the factors
responsible for growing importance of communication. In this unit we will discuss the verbal and
non-verbal communication. Also it will explain the types of business communication. Explain the
media of non-verbal communication.
Introduction
The word ―communication derived from the Latin word ―communicare that means to impart, to
participate, to share or to make common. It is a process of exchange of facts, ideas, and opinions
and as a means that individual or organization share meaning and understanding with one another.
In other words, it is a transmission and interaction of the facts, ideas, opinion, feeling and
attitudes. It is the ability of mankind to communicate across barriers and beyond boundaries that
has ushered the progress of mankind. It is the ability of fostering speedy and effective
communication around the world that has shrunk the world and made ―globalization a reality.
Communication had a vital role to play in ensuring that people belonging to a particular country
or a culture or linguistic group interact with and relate to people belonging to other countries or
culture or linguistic group. Communication adds meaning to human life. It helps to build
relationship and fosters love and understanding. It enriches our knowledge of the universe and
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Types of Communication
Communication is a very important part of any organization. It takes place among business entities,
within markets, various groups of employees, buyers and sellers, service providers and clients,
sales person and prospective buyers, within the organization and with the press.
Communication can be Internal, External, Upward, Downward, Formal, Informal, Lateral,

Interactive, Mass or Grapevine.
Internal Communication
Internal communication takes place within the organization or group–among people within, among
different groups of employees and between employers and employees. It could be oral or written,
visual or audio-visual, formal or informal, and upward or downward. Internal communication
serves to inform, instruct, educate, develop, motivate, persuade, entertain, direct, control and
caution people in the organization.
When a personal letter is written at an official address, besides writing the name of the addressee,
the envelope is superscribed ‘Private’ or ‘Confidential’ to convey the nature of communication.
Knowledge, skills, goal orientation, sharing of corporate concerns, review and monitoring,
performance appraisal, counseling and training are among the issues that internal communication
addresses.
External Communication
Unlike internal communication, external communication flows outward. It addresses people
outside the organization, like the prospective customers, competitors, public, press, media and the
government. External communication can take place in various ways and through different
channels.
Letters, notices, brochures, demonstrations, telephone calls, business meetings, press releases, press
conferences, audio-visual presentations, publicity films product launch events and advertisements
are all examples of external communication. It is important to note that the external agency or
person targeted through such communication, quite often forms an image or impression based on
such communication and it is, therefore, very necessary that adequate care is taken in making it
clear, intelligible and appealing.
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There may be some communication, which would move both upward and downward. A typical
example of this is performance budgeting, which is a two-way process. It is a top to bottom as well
as bottom-to-top exercise
Upward Communication
Large organizations have different hierarchical levels or tiers. Banks, finance companies, insurance
businesses, railways and such other people-oriented organizations have typically a 3-tier or a 4-tier
structure. The process of communication to be complete and effective, should encompass all these
levels and tiers. Upward communication is one which moves upward, i.e., from bottom to top levels
in the hierarchy.
Any communication that moves from employees to supervisors, supervisors to managers, managers
to executives, regional manager to general manager and so on, may be categorized as upward
communication. Similarly, communication from branches to regional offices, regional offices to
zonal offices, zonal offices to head office is referred to as upward communication. Employee
suggestions, market reports, performance reports, feedback on new products and requests for
facilities or instructions are all examples of upward communication in the organizational context.
Downward Communication
Downward communication moves from top to the bottom, i.e. from the CEO downwards. It travels
through senior executives to junior level functionaries, from the controlling office to the branch,
from the head of the division to the head of the unit. Corporate goals, business priorities, motivational
letters, work-related instructions, newsletters, letters from the CEO/General Manager’s desk are all
typical examples of downward communication.
There may be some communication, which would move both upward and downward. A typical
example of this is performance budgeting, which is a two-way process. It is a top to bottom as well
as bottom-to-top exercise
Formal Communication
Towards ensuring communication on an on-going basis, organizations develop formal systems.
Staff meetings, union-management meetings, branch managers’ conferences, periodical sales
review meetings and customer meets are examples of forums that facilitate formal communication.
Formal communication generally follows a well-defined hierarchical pattern and periodicity.

Memos, circulars, instructions, guidelines, clarifications, agreements and reports are some of the
channels that facilitate the flow of formal communication in business organizations.
Informal Communication
This type of communication takes place in an unstructured manner and outside the formal forums.
There is an element of spontaneity in this communication. Informal communication works well
in smaller, loosely knit organizations. It is used more often in situations where there are no rigid
hierarchical tiers.
While formal structure of communication is a must in large organizations, it is the informality that
helps sustain goal orientation in small well knit units. Informal communication takes place through
chats, conversations, informal talks and the like.
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Lateral Communication
Lateral communication generally takes place in an organization and is neither upward nor downward.
It proceeds in a horizontal manner and takes place among equals and at peer level. It may also be
described as peer level communication.
Any communication that takes place, orally or in writing, from one branch head to the other, from
one division head to the other, from one group head to the other, may be described as lateral
communication. An important point worth noting in any such lateral communication is that there
is not much difference in terms of the hierarchical levels or positions of the sender and the receiver.
Interactive Communication
Interactive communication is essentially a two-way process. It takes place through meetings,
conferences, teleconferencing, multimedia presentations, group discussions and other such active
two-way exchanges. Interactive communication is most appropriate when the message or subject is
to be presented at length, e.g., in practical sessions, case study discussions and strategy formulation.
When many speakers are involved, there may be a need for a moderator who will facilitate effective
flow of communication from different speakers.
Mass Communication
Mass communication is distinctive in view of its scale. Essentially, it addresses a large mass of people.
Public speaking, newspapers, magazines and journals, radio, television, dotcoms, etc. are channels of
mass communication. Mass communication has developed into a specialized area of study.
Each of these areas or channels calls for distinct skills. By its very nature, mass communication
addresses a vast, well spread out and heterogeneous group of people and, as such, special efforts
will have to be made to sustain their interest and achieve the desired response.
At the government level too, there is often a separate ministry or department of mass communication
to deal with this functional area. Main branches of study relating to mass communication are public
relations, advertising and publicity, journalism and digital media.
Grapevine
Grapevine is a kind of informal communication that prevails in organizations and businesses. The
source of such communication may not be clear. It spreads by way of gossip and rumors. It travels
through informal networks and quite often travels faster than the formal messages. Sometimes, it
gets more powerful and becomes more receptive than the formal communication.
The prevalence of this type of communication in an organization has to be recognized and accepted.
A skilled communicator can derive benefits from such a communication as well. It may not always
be possible to control the grapevine, but, nevertheless, an able communicator knows how to
influence it. Like any other type of communication, this one has its own merits and demerits.
Process of Communication
PHASE 1
A person has an idea or thought which he wants to communicate to the other person. Now the
sender sends the message with a carefully selected medium and channel. The sender encodes the
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idea(i.e) Written or spoken word , facial expression , gesture. The message length, tone, and style
all depends on your audience and your personal style or mood. The sender transmits the message
to the receiver in the form of channel (i.e) Telephone, letter, memo, email, report , face to face
exchange.
PHASE 2
The message will now enter in to the sensory world of the receiver. By Sensory world we mean all
the noise that surrounds a person that the senses sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch can detect.
PHASE 3
From this sensory world the receiver picks up the messages through his senses. But receiver’s
senses cannot detect all that exists in the world around him. Just how much they can detect
depends on number of factors. One is the ability of his senses. As you know not all eyes see
equally well and not all ears hear equally well. And so it is with the other senses. Another factor
is receiver mental alertness. There are times when he is keenly alert to all that his senses can detect,
and there are times when he is dull – in a stupor, a daydream, or the like. Then there are the
distractions “NOISES” that occur around receiver at the moment. They can weaken, perhaps even
eliminate, the stimuli sent. Furthermore, receiver’s cultural background has sensitized him more
to some stimuli than to others. Yet another limiting factor is the receiver’s will. In varying degrees,
the mind is able to tune in or tune out events in the sensory world. In a noisy room full of people
for example, the conversation of a single person can be selected and the other voices ignored.
PHASE 4
When receiver’s senses pick up sender’s message, they relay it to his brain-that is, as much or as
little of the message as they detect. But the sender’s message may not be all that receiver senses
pick up. In addition to sender’s message, his sensory world may contain outside sounds,
movements of objects, facial expression, and the like. In fact, these senses are continually picking
up messages from the world around him. Sender’s message is just the primary one at the moment.
The others are there, and they might interfere with sender’s message.
PHASE 5
When sender’s message gets to receiver’s brain, it goes through a sort of filtering or decoding
process. Through that process the receiver’s brain gives meaning to sender’s message. In other
words, the message is filtered through the contents of receiver’s mind. Those contents are made up
of all receiver knows. It includes all the cultural influences of his family, his organization
memberships, his social group, and such. In fact, it includes all receiver has learned, experienced
and thought throughout his life. Obviously, no two people have precisely identical filters, for no
two people have minds with precisely the same contents. Because people’ filters differ, the
meanings they give to comparable message may differ. Thus, the meaning receiver gives sender’s
message may not be precisely the same as the one that someone else would give it. And it may
not be meaning sender intended.
PHASE 6
After his mind has given meaning to sender’s message, receiver may react to the message. If the
meaning he received is sufficiently strong, he may react by communicating some form of response
called feedback. This response may be through words, gestures, physical actions or some other
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PHASE 7
When receiver elects to communicate a response, through his mind he determines the general
meaning encoding that the response will take. This process involves the most complex workings of
the mind, and we know little about it. There is evidence, however, that ability, here and throughout
this stage, is related to one’s intelligence and the extent that one permits the mind to react. Receiver
ability to evaluate filtered information and formulate meaning also is related to his stage, is related
to one’s intelligence and the extent that one permits the mind to react. Receiver ability to evaluate
filtered information and formulate meaning also is related to his ability with language. Ability with
language equips one with a variety of symbols, words and other ways of expressing meaning. And
the greater the number of symbols one possesses, the better one can be at selecting and using them.
Receiver ends this stage of the communication process by forming a message. That is, he converts
meaning in to symbols decodes mainly in to words, and then he sends these symbols to sender. He
may send them in a number of ways: as spoken words, written words, gestures, movements, facial
expression, diagrams on paper etc.
PHASE 8
When receiver sends his message to sender, one cycle of the communication process ends. Now a
second cycle begins. Now the sender becomes the receiver and receiver becomes the sender.
The message enters receiver sensory world. His senses pick it up and send it through his nervous
system to his brain. The unique mental filter influences the meaning he gives to sender message.
This filtered meaning also may bring about a response. If it does, receiver, through his mind,
selects the symbols for his response. Then he sends them to sender, and another cycle of
communication begins. The process may continue, cycle after cycle, as long as both sender and
receiver want to communicate.
Although our description of the communication process illustrates face to face, oral communication,
it also fits written communication. But there are some differences. Perhaps the most significant
difference is that written communication is more likely to involve creative effort. It is more likely to
be thought out, and it may even begin in the mind rather than as a reaction to a message received. A
second difference is the time between cycles. In face to face communication, cycles occur fast, often
in rapid succession. In written communication, some delay occurs. How long the delay will be
varies. While instant and text messaging may be read within a few seconds of sending, fax or email
messages may be read within few minutes after they are transmitted, letters in a few days, reports
perhaps in days, weeks, or months. Because they provide a record, written messages may
communicate over extremely long time periods. A third difference is that written communication
usually involves a limited number of cycles and oral communication usually involves many. In fact,
some written communication is one cycle communication. That is a message is sent and received, but
none is returned.
Principles of Effective Business Communication

Effective business messages have common basic characteristics
1. Provide practical information : Business messages usually describe how to do something ,
explain why a procedure was changed , highlight the cause of a problem or a possible solution
, discuss the status of a project, or explain why a new piece of equipment should be purchased.
2. Give facts rather than impression: Business messages use concrete language and specific
details. Information must be clear, convincing, accurate and ethical. You must present hard
evidence ( not just opinion ) and present all sides of an argument before you commit to a
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conclusion.
3. Clarify and condense information : Business messages frequently use tables , charts , photos
,or diagrams to clarify or condense information, to explain a process, or to emphasize
important information.
4. State precise responsibilities: Business messages are directed to a specific audience. Therefore
, you must clearly state what is expected of, or what you can do for, that particular audience.
5. Persuade others and offer recommendations: Business messages frequently persuade
employers, customers, or clients to purchase a product or service or adopt a plan of action. To
be effective, persuasive messages must show readers just how a product, service or idea will
benefit them specifically.
7Cs
Seven C‘s of Effective Communication:

To compose effective written or oral messages, you must apply certain communication principles.
These principles provide guidelines for choice of content and style of presentation, adapted to the
purpose and receiver of your message. Called the ―seven C‘s they are completeness,
conciseness, consideration, concreteness, clarity, courtesy and correctness.
Completeness
Your business message is complete when it contains all facts the reader or listener needs for the
reaction you desire. As you strive for completeness, keep the following guidelines in mind:
(a) Provide all necessary information – answering the five W‘s helps make messages clear: who,
what, when, where and why.
(b) Answer all questions asked – look for questions: some may even appear buried within a
paragraph. Locate them and answer them precisely.
(c) Give something extra, when desirable – use your good judgment in offering additional material
if the sender‘s message was incomplete.
Conciseness
Conciseness is saying what you have to say in the fewest possible words without sacrificing the
other C qualities. A concise message is complete without being wordy. To achieve conciseness,
observe the following suggestions:
(a) Eliminate wordy expressions – use single word in place of phrases. For example, use ―now ”
instead of ―at this time”.
(b) Include only relevant material – delete irrelevant words and rambling sentences.
(c) Avoid unnecessary repetition – it leads to dullness.
Consideration
Consideration means preparing every message with the message receivers have in mind, try to put
you in their place. Three specific ways to indicate consideration are:
(a) Focus on ―”you” attitude instead of ―”I” and “we” – using “you” does help project a “you
attitude”. But overuse can lead to a negative reaction.
(b) Show audience benefit or interest in the receiver – readers may react positively when benefits
are shown them.
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(c) Emphasize positive, pleasant facts – because of past connections with words, readers will react
positively or negatively to certain words.
Concreteness
Communicating concretely means being specific, definite, and vivid rather than vague and general.
Often it means using denotative (direct, explicit, often dictionary-based) rather than connotative
words (ideas or notions suggested by or associated with a word or phrase). The following guidelines
should help you compose concrete, convincing messages.
(a) Use specific facts and figures – whenever possible, use an exact, precise statement or a figure
in place of a general word to make your message more concrete.
(b) Put action in your verbs – active verbs help make your message more specific, personal,
concise and emphatic.
(c) Choose vivid, image-building words – business writing uses less figurative language than does
the world of fiction.
Clarity
Getting the meaning from your head into the head of your reader ----accurately ---- is the purpose
of clarity.
(a) Choose precise, concrete and familiar words – when meaning of words is in doubt, use more
familiar words; audiences will understand them better.
(b) Construct effective sentences and paragraphs – important characteristics to consider are length
(between 17 and 20 word for an average sentence), unity, coherence and emphasis (put main
ideas up front within a sentence).
Courtesy
Knowing your audience allows you to use statements of courtesy; be aware of your message’s
receiver. The following are the suggestions for generating a courteous tone:
(a) Be sincerely tactful, thoughtful and appreciative
(b) Use expressions that show respect – omit irritating expressions and questionable humour.
(c) Choose non-discriminatory expressions
Correctness
At the core of correctness are proper grammar, punctuation and spelling. However, a message may
be perfect grammatically and mechanically but still insult or lose a customer. The term correctness,
as applied to business messages, also means the following three characteristics:
(a) Use the right level of language
(b) Check accuracy of figures, facts and words – a good check of your data is to have another
person read and comment on the validity of the material.
(c) Maintain acceptable writing mechanics.
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Media of Communication:
VERBAL COMMUNICATION
Verbal communication is the expression or exchange of information or messages through written
or oral words. Forms of verbal communication are as follows:
1. Oral communication: Oral communication is the process of communication in which
messages or information is exchanged or communicated within sender and receiver through
the word of mouth. It can be divided into two parts: a. Speaking b. Listening.
2. Written communication: Written communication is the process of communication in which
messages or information is exchanged or communicated within sender and receiver through
written form. It can be divided into two parts: a. Writing b. Reading.
NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION
Nonverbal communication is the expression or exchange of information or messages without
using any spoken or written word. Some of the forms of non-verbal communications are as
follows:
1. Facial expression
2. Gestures
3. Body language
4. Proximity
5. Touch
6. Appearance
7. Silence
8. Paralinguistic
9. Eye Gaze or eye contact etc.
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Written
Over time the forms of and ideas about communication have evolved through progression of
technology. Advances include communications psychology and media psychology; an emerging
field of study. Researchers divide the progression of written communication into three revolutionary
stages called “Information Communication Revolutions”.
During the 1st stage written communication first emerged through the use of pictographs. The
pictograms were made in stone hence written communication was not yet mobile.
During the 2nd stage writing began to appear on paper, papyrus, clay, wax, etc. Common alphabets
were introduced and allowed for the uniformity of language across large distances. A leap in
technology occurred when the Gutenberg printing-press was invented in the 15th century.
The 3rd stage is characterised by the transfer of information through controlled waves and electronic
signals.
Communication is thus a process by which meaning is assigned and conveyed in an attempt to

create shared understanding. This process, which requires a vast repertoire of skills in interpersonal
processing, listening, observing, speaking, questioning, analyzing, gestures, and evaluating, enables
collaboration and cooperation.
Barriers to successful communication include message overload (when a person receives too many
messages at the same time), and message complexity.
Misunderstandings can be anticipated and solved through formulations, questions and answers,
paraphrasing, examples, and stories of strategic talk. Written communication can be clear by
planning follow-up talk on critical written communication as part of the normal way of doing
business. Minutes spent talking now will save time later having to clear up misunderstandings later
on. Then, take what was heard and reiterate in your own words, and ask them if that’s what they
meant.
Oral
Oral communication implies communication through mouth. It includes individuals conversing
with each other, be it direct conversation or telephonic conversation. Speeches, presentations,
discussions are all forms of oral communication. Oral communication is generally recommended
when the communication matter is of temporary kind or where a direct interaction is required. Face
to face communication (meetings, lectures, conferences, interviews, etc.) is significant so as to
build a rapport and trust.
Advantages of Oral Communication

• There is high level of understanding and transparency in oral communication as it is
interpersonal.
• There is no element of rigidity in oral communication. There is flexibility for allowing changes
in the decisions previously taken.
• The feedback is spontaneous in case of oral communication. Thus, decisions can be made
quickly without any delay.
• Oral communication is not only time saving, but it also saves upon money and efforts.
• Oral communication is best in case of problem resolution. The conflicts, disputes and many
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• Oral communication is essential for teamwork and group energy.

• Oral communication promotes a receptive and encouraging morale among organizational
employees.
• Oral communication can be best used to transfer private and confidential information/matter.
Disadvantages/Limitations of Oral Communication

• Relying only on oral communication may not be sufficient as business communication is
formal and very organized.
• Oral communication is less authentic than written communication as they are informal and not
as organized as written communication.
• Oral communication is time-saving as far as daily interactions are concerned, but in case of
meetings, long speeches consume lot of time and are unproductive at times.
• Oral communications are not easy to maintain and thus they are unsteady.
• There may be misunderstandings as the information is not complete and may lack essentials.
• It requires attentiveness and great receptivity on part of the receivers/audience.
• Oral communication (such as speeches) is not frequently used as legal records except in
investigation work.
Face to Face
Conversation means the informal discussion among the people. When one person discusses his
views, opinion to another person and exchanges their views in the presence of both then it is called
face to face conversation. It also includes the face-to-face discussion on a particular issue. In this
method, both the information receiver and sender can exchange their views freely and fairly.
So, face-to-face conversation is an informal discussion through spoken language and words on a
particular issue among the people to exchange their views freely and fairly weighs each other.
ADVANTAGES OF FACE-TO-FACE CONVERSATION:

In modern society, with the rapid development of technology, people have more choices and ways
to communicate with each other such as face-to-face, letters, emails or telephones. However, I
believe that face-to-face communication is much better than other types of communication, such
as a letter, email or telephone calls. The advantages of face-to-face communication are described
as below:
1. Get Response immediately: When people communicate with each other in person, they can
get a response immediately without misunderstanding. During the conversation, people can
not only hear a response from others, also see how they are feeling; people can guess what
will take place next, how the conversation is about, which is very important to have a
successful talk.
2. Express of feelings: Using face-to-face communication helps people express their feelings,
ideas much better. Instead of using words only when people choose letters, emails or phone
for communication, people can use eye contact, verbal language in order to show their
opinions. Scientists show that more than seventy percent people use body or verbal language
in communicating; thus, it’s very important for people to use actions to express views.
3. Suitable for respect: Face-to-face communication enjoys yet another distracts advantage, the
message being communicated also gets the assistance of facial expressions and gestures.
4. Suitable for discussion: Face-to-face communication is particularly suitable for discussion,
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for there is immediate feedback from the listener. Face-to-face communication provides the
Material speaker with a much better opportunity for adjustment. A twist of the lips, a frown on the
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forehead, a contraction of the facial muscles point out that the message is not welcomed, then
change of tone or sympathetically looking is to be needed. These adjustments are possible
only in face-to-face communication.
5. Conversation to learn: We learn a great deal via conversation, including conversations with
ourselves. We learn highly valuable life lessons.
6. Conversation to coordinate: Coordinating our action in ways that are mutually beneficial.
Anytime we negotiate one favor for another, we use conversation to reach an agreement to
transact.
7. Collaborate: Coordination of action assumes relatively clear goals, but many times social
interaction involves the negotiation of goals. Conversation is a requisite for agreeing on goals,
as well as for agreeing upon and coordinating our actions.
DISADVANTAGES OF FACE-TO-FACE CONVERSATION

The limitations of face-to-face communication are given below:
1. Difficult to practice in a large-sized organization: Face-to-face communication is extremely
difficult to practice in large-sized organizations, particularly if their various units or departments
are situated at different places.
2. Not effective in large gatherings: It is very difficult to get a message across to large gatherings.
Even though the speaker is addressing them face-to-face, the vital personal touch is missing. In
the absence of a satisfactory feedback, his speech lapse into a monologue.
3. Ineffective if the listener is not attentive: A limitation which the face-to-face communication
shares with oral communication is that its effectiveness is closely linked with the listener’s
attentiveness. Since human beings can listen to grasp the message faster than the speed at which
they are delivered, they will easily get delivered thus making communication ineffective.
Visual
Visual communication is nothing but using visuals like charts, graphs, diagrams to represent
information. Right from school, we see many visual communications in our books, we draw some
in our projects. In businesses, these form one of the essential forms of communication, especially
in presentations.
Introduction to Visual Communication

Put up a graph or a chart, and suddenly everything you’re saying makes sense! Graphs or charts
help people understand data quickly. Whether you want to make a comparison, show a relationship,
or highlight a trend, they help your audience “see” what you are talking about.
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The trouble is there are so many different types of charts and graphs that it’s difficult to know which
one to choose. Click on the chart option in your spreadsheet program and you’re presented with
many styles. They all look smart, but which one is appropriate for the data you’ve collected?
Can you use a bar graph to show a trend? Is a line graph appropriate for sales data? When do you
use a pie chart? The spreadsheet will chart anything you tell it to, whether the end result makes
sense or not. It just takes its orders and executes them!
Visual communication forms:

Visual communication can be represented in the form of a graph, a map, a chart, a Venn diagram, a
pie chart, a model, a table, or even multimedia like gifs, videos, and images.
Advantages of Visual Communication:

• Words are describing but they can be tiring to read through. Even listening to someone needs a
visual aid to actually picture the information, especially if there are a lot of numbers involved.
• Imagine I am reporting to you about our company sales numbers and I relay every year’s
revenue to you orally, my information is useful as you get to compare the previous month
revenue with the next month, but the problem is to see the whole picture it is hard to remember
so many numbers.
• Even if we did, it takes significant mind space that is unnecessarily wasted on capturing
information. The idea of visual communication is to make this capturing of information easier
for the audience so that they only have to observe and draw inferences.
• Visual communication makes the aesthetics of a presentation better. They not only are easier
to read, but they also make the information more attractive to look at. Charts, graphs, tables,
etc are color coded making them easier to perceive. Imagine numbers thrown on a sheet vs
numbers visually arranged on the sheet using shapes that are easier to comprehend. A human
brain can only take in limited information and that should definitely not go into making sense
of information. That should go into why the information is being presented to them in the first
place.
• Visual communication supports the audio mostly. The literal aim of an ideal visual
communication should be to not need any other communication at all. This way it’s optimized
well. But Visual communication goes hand in hand with verbal communication to explain
what inferences are to be drawn from it.
AudioVisual
Audio visual communication is a productive form of communication. Using sound and lighting
equipment improves communication by heightening the awareness of your audience’s sight and
hearing.
Audiences who use more of their senses to engage at events remember those events for a longer
period of time. Their retention of the event material 3 days after an event is 6 times greater when
the information is presented using creative AV. Not all people are auditory learners who can obtain
information from lectures and speeches. Many people are visual learners who respond better to
still or moving images. It is the combination of sight and sound that promotes and reinforces this
retention, and enables an audience to better connect to the brand or message. AV makes it easier for
your audience to psychologically access and remember information once they have left the event.
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AV can also save your business time! If a subject matter contains too much information, the ability
to widely present projected visual aids such as pie charts, graphs, diagrams, photographs, video
shorts and animation can often help explain a subject matter quickly, and again be more easily
absorbed by the audience.
Audio visual equipment allows the presenter to engage the audience, provide additional information,
reinforce key points, emphasise whatever is being said, clarify points, and create excitement.
Presenters that use AV build audiences that are better equipped to put event information to use in
real life business situations. And presenters who use AV are more persuasive than those who don’t.
We all know competition in the business world is as strong as ever. It is important to stand apart
from your competition in the minds of people who matter ie stakeholders, customers, investors and
the press. Using quality AV equipment is an effective way of achieving this.
Modern media-telex
Telex, international message-transfer service consisting of a network of teleprinters connected by a
system of switched exchanges. Subscribers to a telex service can exchange textual communications
and data directly and securely with one another. Communication is opened by entering the assigned
call number of the destination subscriber. On older telex equipment, this is done using a dial or the
keyboard on the sender’s teleprinter, but it can also be done via the keyboard on telex terminals or
on personal computers connected to the telex network. The destination subscriber responds with a
code verifying its identity, and the communication line is opened.
The message is converted to a low-bit-rate electrical signal, which is transmitted over the
network—usually channels leased from the telephone system and routed by switching centres
operated by the telex provider. When the message arrives at the destination, it is either printed
immediately or stored for subsequent printing or display on a monitor.
Telex systems originated in the United Kingdom and several other European countries during the
early 1930s. In 1931 the American Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T) introduced its
teletypewriter exchange service, TWX. Telex systems in the United States continued to be operated
by private corporations, while in most other countries they were operated by government agencies
responsible for postal, telegraph, or telephone services. In 1962 the Western Union Telegraph
Company established its Telex system in the United States (where the name Telex is a registered
trademark); eight years later it acquired TWX from AT&T. Telex and TWX could not communicate
directly with one another because the keyboard coding schemes and transmission speeds were
different for the two systems. The amalgamated systems were connected by processing computers
that translated between the two codes during transmission. This permitted direct communication,
though on a somewhat delayed basis. In subsequent decades telex systems around the world were
modernized by computer-based switching, which provided enhanced performance and also allowed
automated conversion to and from formats used in other data-transmission services.
Beginning in the 1980s, the ability to conduct high-speed digital communication—particularly fax
transmission—over nonleased dial-up telephone lines led to a decline in the use of telex. Western
Union sold its Telex network to AT&T in 1990, before declaring bankruptcy in 1993. In 2008 both
AT&T and British Telecoms (BT) announced that they would no longer directly provide telex,
though access to their telephone networks was obtained by smaller companies that continued to
provide the service.
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Telex is still available as a data-transmission service for applications in which high transmission
speeds are not necessary or for areas where more modern data equipment may not be available.
Owing to the secure transmission lines and the verification protocols exchanged between telex
senders and receivers, transmitted telex messages are considered to be legally valid documents.
For this reason the service is still used by many financial institutions. Telex is also still common on
merchant ships.
Fax
A fax (short for facsimile and sometimes called telecopying) is the telephonic transmission of
scanned-in printed material (text or images), usually to a telephone number associated with a
printer or other output device. The original document is scanned with a fax machine, which treats
the contents (text or images) as a single fixed graphic image, converting it into a bitmap. In this
digital form, the information is transmitted as electrical signals through the telephone system. The
receiving fax machine reconverts the coded image and prints a paper copy of the document.
Almost all modems manufactured today are capable of sending and receiving fax data. Fax/modem
software generates fax signals directly from disk files or the screen. Even if a document is text
only, it is treated by the computer as a scanned image and is transmitted to the receiver as a bitmap.
Faxing a message online works well if the recipient wants only to read the message. However, if
the document requires editing, it must be converted into ASCII text by an OCR (optical character
recognition) program, or it must be retyped manually into the computer. A more efficient method of
sending documents that require modification is through the e-mail system. E-mail files are already
ASCII text so they can be edited immediately in any text editor or word processing program.
The Internet now provides a new and cheaper way to send faxes in some cases. A number of
free and commercial companies provide arrangements for using the Internet rather than the public
telephone system for most or part of the path to the fax point. Some services also provide the ability
to broadcast a fax to multiple addresses.
Teleconferencing
Nowadays business is global and no one can stop this trend now. One thing that has emerged and
has become tremendously popular is teleconferencing. What is teleconferencing? It has become the
future wave, since the majority of people have started to work from home and run own business.
Since there are so many diversities in locations, and communication being the most significant
thing, so it needs a sophisticated solution. This demand has boosted teleconferencing products to
be more available and be more popular.
What Is A Teleconference?
Do you know what does teleconference mean? Teleconferencing definition is basically meeting
with telecommunications medium. This is a general term to link people at two or more locations
with electronics.
It is a telephone meeting with two participants or more that involves in technology, which is more
sophisticated than a two-way simple phone connection. Teleconference at its simplest case, is when
an audio conference is done with both or one ends of the conference that shares a speaker phone.
The audio teleconferences of today are arranged on dial-up phone lines sometimes and use bridging
services to offer necessary equipments for the call.
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When there are many more equipments having special arrangements considerably, it is called a
video teleconferencing where participants can view motion or still video images of each other. Now
the modern technologies have made it possible for teleconference to have every participants appear
as if they are present in the same room.
There are different types of teleconferencing and different methods are used in each technology,
but some common factors like telecommunication channel, interactive two-way communications,
linking people at multiple locations and dynamic users’ active participation always contribute to
the teleconference definition.
Types of Teleconferencing
In the part above, we have introduced you the teleconference definition. In the following part, we’d
like to share you the different types of teleconferencing to get you better understood.
Type 1. Video Teleconferencing

This mode of teleconference is a combination of video and audio for providing video communications.
There can be various modes like one-way video or two-way audio and two-way video or two-way
audio. It displays anything captured by TV camera and mainly used for displaying moving images.
Since the bandwidth of video is high and there is opportunity for multiple, large display screens,
video teleconferencing will need special telecommunication arrangements made with a special
room at each end. High-bandwidth cabling or equipment has become more common place, so
video teleconferencing may be done from one’s own mobile setting and also on the computer.
There’re various video teleconferencing solutions for you to keep communicate and connect with
colleagues, customers and others. Among all ezTalks Meetings stands out. It’s versatile and reliable,
which provides you with high-definition audio and video, meeting scheduling, screen sharing and
content sharing, meeting recording and playback and more to simplify your teleconferencing
services.
Type2. Audio Teleconferencing

Audio teleconferencing is also called Voice-only or known as conference calling sometimes. It can
interactively link people at remote locations through telephone lines. Audio bridges basically tie
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every line together. Meetings may be conducted through audio conferencing where preplanning is
required. Activities like chair naming, setting of the agenda, along with offering printed materials
for participants are done earlier so that it can be reviewed.
Distance learning is also one application of audio conference, which is a cost effective solution for
education.
Type 3. Audiographics Teleconferencing

Here narrowband telecommunications channels are used for transmission of visual information like
alpha-numerics, graphics, documents, or video pictures like adjunct for voice communication. Also
called as enhanced audio or desktop computer conferencing. Devices like electronic tablets, freeze-
frame video terminals, remote-access microfiche, Fax, integrated graphics systems, slide projectors
uses this teleconferencing mode.
Type 4. Web Teleconferencing;

As for web teleconferencing, telephone lines are used for connecting two or more modems and
computers. Any program done on the computer may be sent through lines, and it may asynchronous
or synchronous. An asynchronous mode example is electronic mail.
Web conferencing is also very helpful in distance education. Now some institutions are offering
credit programs by computer completely and students get texts trough mail.
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Media of nonverbal communication

Non-verbal communication occurs without using any oral or written word.
Instead of written or oral words, it relies on various non-verbal cues like physical movements,
tasks, colors, signs, symbols, signals charts etc. to express feelings, attitudes or information.
Although no word is used in non-verbal communication, it can effectively communicate many
human feelings more accurately than verbal methods of communication.
Types of Nonverbal Communication

• Eye contact.
• Facial expressions.
• Gestures.
• Posture and body orientation.
• Body Language.
• Space and Distance.
• Proximity.
• Para-linguistic.
• Humor.
• Touch.
• Silence.
• Personal Appearance.
• Symbol.
• Visual Communication.
Eye contact
Eye contact, an important channel of interpersonal communication, helps regulate the flow of
communication. And it signals interest in others.
Furthermore,
Eye contact with audiences increases the speaker’s credibility. Teachers who make eye contact
open the flow of communication and convey interest, concern, warmth, and credibility.
Facial expressions
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The face is an important communicator. It is commonly said that face is the index of the mind.
It expresses the type of emotions or feelings such as joy, love, interest, sorrow, anger, annoyance,
confusion, enthusiasm, fear, hatred surprise, and uncertainty.
Facial expressions are indicated through the mouth (open, wide or closed), eyelids (raised or
lowered), nose (wrinkled or relaxed), cheeks (drawn up or back) and the forehead (lowered or
raised).
Within the facial area, eyes are especially effective for indicating attention and interest. However,
interpretations of facial expressions differ from culture to culture.
Smiling is a powerful cue that transmits:

• Happiness.
• Friendliness.
• Warmth.
• Liking.
• Affiliation.
Thus, if you smile frequently you will be perceived as more likable, friendly, warm and approachable.
Smiling is often contagious and students will react favorably and learn more.
Gestures
If you fail to have gestures while speaking, you may be perceived as boring, stiff and un-animated.
A lively and animated teaching style captures students attention, makes the material more interesting,
facilitates learning and provides a bit of entertainment.
Head nods, a form of gesture, communicate positive reinforcement to students and indicate that
you are listening.
Gestures are movements of the arms, legs, hands, and head. Some authors opine that gesture is the
deliberate body movement as because they express specific and intentional meaning.
For example;
A wave of the hand has a specific meaning-“hello” or “good-bye”; a forefinger and a thumb
touching to form a circle have the meaning -“ok”.
Alike facial expressions, interpretations of some gestures also differ across cultures.
For example, in Europe, raising thumb is used to convey that someone has done something excellent
while in Bangladesh the same gesture means something idiotic.
Posture and body orientation

You communicate numerous messages by the way you walk, talk, stand and sit.
Standing erect, but not rigid, and leaning slightly forward communicates to students that you are
approachable, receptive and friendly.
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Furthermore,
Interpersonal closeness results when you and your students face each other.
Speaking with your back turned or looking at the floor or ceiling should be avoided; it communicates
disinterest to your class.
Body Language
Body language is another widely recognized form of non-verbal communication. Body movements
can convey meanings and message. Body language may take two forms of unconscious movements
and consciously controlled movements.
For example;
When a person is bored, he may gaze around the room rather than look at the speaker or he may
shift positions frequently.
When a person is nervous, he may bite his nails or mash hair. These are usually made unconsciously.
On the other hand, leaning forward toward the speaker to express interest is the case of conscious
body movements.
Space and Distance

Space and distance are significant non-verbal tools in the case of organizational communication.
A spacious and well-decorated room indicates a person’s position in the organization hierarchy and
external people gets a message about his importance and authority only by visiting his room.
Distance is another communication tool, which expresses the degree of intimacy and individual
acceptance.
Proximity
Cultural norms dictate a comfortable distance for interaction with students.
You should look for signals of discomfort caused by invading students’ space. Some of these are:
• Rocking
• Leg swinging
• Tapping
• Gaze aversion
Typically, in large college classes space invasion is not a problem. In fact, there is usually too much
distance.
To counteract this, move around the classroom to increase interaction with your students.
Increasing proximity enables you to make better eye contact and increases the opportunities for
students to speak.
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Para-linguistic
This facet of nonverbal communication includes such vocal elements as:
• Tone
• Pitch
• Rhythm
• Timbre
• Loudness
• Inflection
For maximum teaching effectiveness, learn to vary these six elements of your voice.
One of the major criticisms is of instructors who speak in a monotone. Listeners perceive these
instructors as boring and dull.
Students report that they learn less and lose interest more quickly when listening to teachers who
have not learned to modulate their voices.
Humor
Humor is often overlooked as a teaching tool, and it is too often not encouraged in college
classrooms. Laughter releases stress and tension for both instructor and student.
You should develop the ability to laugh at yourself and encourage students to do the same. It fosters
a friendly environment that facilitates learning.
Obviously, adequate knowledge of the subject matter is crucial to your success; however, it’s not
the only crucial element. Creating a climate that facilitates learning and retention demands good
nonverbal and verbal skills too.
Touch
Touch is a widely used form of non-verbal communication tool. By touching, one can express a
wide range of emotions. However, the accepted modes of touch vary depending on the gender, age,
relative status, intimacy and cultural background of the persons.
For example, in the context of our culture, when one touches you from the back of the examination
hall, your understanding is that he wants to know something.
Silence
Silence is a powerful tool for communication. It may have a positive or negative meaning.
In a classroom, silence indicates that students are listening carefully and attentively. In the same
way, through silence one can communicate his lack of interest or a failure to understand.
For example, silence often indicates that a person receiving instruction does not understand the
action required or sometimes silence indicates consent.
Personal Appearance
Appearance is also an important non-verbal communication tool. Appearance includes dress, hair,
jewelry, makeup, belt buckles and so on.
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Appearance indicates the degree of importance or interest a person conveys to an occasion. By

means of uniform, we can identify a student, a doctor, a lawyer, a police officer etc.
In an organization, one’s dress is keenly observed to see whether it conforms to accepted standards
of appearance. As an example, workers may wear different clothes when they are on strike than
they do when they are working.
Symbol
A symbol is something which represents an idea, a physical entity or a process but is distinct from
it. The purpose of a symbol is to communicate meaning.
For example, a red octagon may be a symbol for “stop”.
On a map, a picture of a tent might represent a campsite. Numerals are symbols for numbers.
Personal names are symbols representing individuals. A red rose symbolizes love and compassion.
Visual Communication
When communication occurs by means of any visual aids, it is known as visual communication.
Thus, communication that occurs through facial expression, personal appearance, gesture, posture,
printed picture, sign, signal, symbol, map, poster, slide, chart, diagram, graph etc. is called visual
communication.
For example, to indicate ‘danger’, we use red sign; to mean ‘dangerous’, we use a skull placed
between two pieces of bone put in crosswise fashion; to indicate ‘no smoking’, we use an image
showing a lighted cigarette with a cross mark on it.
Importance of Nonverbal Communication

Some important points expressing the importance, necessity, advantages or functions of non-verbal
communication are discussed below:
Well Expression of the Speaker’s Attitude

Various non-verbal cues of the speaker like physical movements, facial expression, a way of
expression, etc. play important role in expressing the inner meaning of the messages in face-to-face
conversation and interview.
For example, the facial expression of the speaker indicates his attitude, determination depth of
knowledge etc.
Providing Information Regarding the Sender of the Written Message

The format, neatness, language and the appearance of the envelope used in a written message send
a non-verbal message regarding the writer’s tests, choice, level of education etc.
Expressing the Attitude of the Listener and Receiver

Sometimes the appearance of the listeners and receivers conveys their attitudes, feelings, and
thoughts regarding the messages they have read or heard.
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Gaining Knowledge about a Class of People

Clothing, hairstyle, neatness, jewelry, cosmetics, and stature of people convey impressions
regarding their occupation, age, nationality, social or economic level, job status etc.
For example; students, policemen, nurses etc. can easily be identified through their dresses.
Gaining Knowledge about the Status of a Person

Non-verbal cues also help to determine the relative status of persons working in an organization.
For example, room size, location, furnishings, decorations, lightings, etc. indicate the position of a
person in the organization.
Communicating Common Message to All People

In some cases, non-verbal cues can effectively express many true messages more accurately than
those of any other method of communication.
For example; use of red, yellow and green lights and use of various signs in controlling vehicles
on the roads.
Communicating with the Handicapped People

Non- verbal cues of communication greatly help in communicating with the handicapped people.
For example; the language of communication with the deaf depends on the movements of the
hands, fingers, and eyeball.
Conveying Message to the Illiterate People

Communication with illiterate people through written media is impossible. There may also be some
situations that do not allow the use of oral media to communicate with them.
In such situations, non-verbal methods like pictures, colors, graphs, signs, and symbols are used as
the media of communication.
For example; to indicate danger we use red sign and to mean dangerous we use a skull placed
between two pieces of bone put in a crosswise fashion.
Quick Expression of Message

Non-verbal cues like sign and symbol can also communicate some messages very quickly than
written or oral media.
For example; when drivers of a running vehicle are to be communicated that the road ahead is
narrow or there is a turn in the road ahead, we generally use signs or symbols rather than using any
written or oral message.
Presenting Information Precisely

Sometimes quantitative information on any issue may require a lengthy written message. But this
quantitative information can be presented easily and precisely through tables, graphs, charts etc.
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Barriers of Communication (Practical exercise in communication)

Many companies develop difficulties within their organization due to communication issues.
There are five key barriers that can occur within a company: language, cultural diversity, gender
differences, status differences and physical separation. These barriers to communication are
specific items that can distort or prevent communication within an organization.
The ability for a company to recognize the communication issues and come to a resolution can
drastically improve working conditions, sales and organizational culture. Let’s look at
communication barriers through examples at Paint Your Face Cosmetic Company.
Paint Your Face Cosmetics is a makeup company that sells products globally. They recently have
had numerous excellent ideas for new product development but, for some reason, have been
unsuccessful with bringing the final product to the marketplace. Additionally, there have been
some problems with issues in the departments being hidden and not resolved, trouble within sales
meetings, issues between office locations and difficulties with language barriers. The CEO has a
feeling that there are some serious communication issues happening with the organization.
Wrong choice of medium

A wrong medium or an inappropriate medium chosen for communicating a message will act as a
barrier to communication.
Example: On a shop floor you cannot use a long written memo of instructions whereas your
information on a new product in the market could be only through an effective and attractive
advertisement
Using Chat messenger or email instead of video conferencing in important meeting or business
matters in two different workplaces
Physical barriers
Physical barrier is the environmental and natural condition that acts as a barrier in communication
in sending message from sender to receiver. Organizational environment or interior workspace
design problems, technological problems and noise are the parts of physical barriers.
When messages are sent by the sender, physical barriers like doors, walls, distance, etc. do not let
the communication become effective. The barriers are less if the proximity of the sender and the
receiver is high and fewer technologies are required.
Disturbance in hearing due to thunders, telephone call disconnection, problems in television

reception, message not being sent in chat, etc. are some examples of physical barriers of
communication.
Types of Physical Barriers
Distortion
Distortion is the meaning of message getting lost during the handling process in communication
while encoding and decoding. It is related to meaning of the message which is affected by human
perception.
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Noise
Noise is the disruption found in the environment of the communication. It interrupts the
communication process and acts as a barrier as it makes the message less accurate, less productive
and unclear. It might even prevent the message from reaching the receiver.
Causes of Physical Barrier
Environment or Climate
Thunder, rain, wind and other environmental factors create noise which cannot be stopped and disturb
the message flow. Natural noise is present in the environment which disturbs the communication.
Likewise, unstable temperature makes people unfocused on creating the message. If temperature of
a place is too high or low, people cannot concentrate on the information they are sending. It promotes
uncomfortable feelings which leads to environmental and physical barrier to communication.
Similar is the case of improper lightening which impairs proper visual communication.
Communication is also affected by people being concerned about their own lives which does not
let the sender and receiver focus on the message. This is the environment of the particular person.
Context (natural environment or person’s immediate situation) of the communication also acts and
causes to be a barrier as the context might not be right for the particular message to be sent.
Time and Distance

If a message is not sent in inappropriate time, the message will not have the effect that it should
have, as the intention will not be met. This causes barrier in communication. So, the time of the
message should be accurate. The person from Asia will not be able to Skype a person in U.S. if the
time zone difference is wrong and the second person is sleeping.
Likewise, the geographical distance also affects the message. Distance adds more requirements
and barriers to communication as greater the distance, the more technical channels are needed.
The sender and receiver need to include machines as mediums, encoding, decoding, etc. Face to
face communication has the least physical communication barrier and are easier as there as more
communication channels.
New technologies are being made to reduce noise in the mediums and channels. In all, advantages
and disadvantages of different mediums must be analyzed for different distances before using one.
Medium Disturbance or Technical Problem

Mediums and channels of communication must be decided upon by the role it plays, distance that
must be covered, disturbances that might arise, etc. The medium that is suitable for a particular
distance with the least noise should be used for communication. If not, then the medium itself acts
as a communication barrier and disrupts communication flow. Every kind of medium has one or the
other defects and disadvantages over another.
Mediums have to use network facilities which might lead to technical and technological problems.
Mechanical and technical breakdowns such as computer virus or crash or no network coverage can
happen anytime. Thus, mediums must not always be trusted to be totally effective.
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Workspace Design
Workspace also has an effect in the communication in an office setting.
If the employees’ workspaces are far away from the room of employers’, they will not be able
to communicate with the employers, take proper orders, make plans, get feedbacks and suggest
new ideas. They must work through phones or emails. These mediums have more noise and other
technical problems than face to face communication. In this way, workspace designs act as a
physical barrier to effective communication.
Seating arrangements and physical comfort also fosters or impairs communication. Likewise,
organizational structures also act as a barrier to communication. A person has to go through their
superior to communicate or to send any message to the main authority of the organization. They
cannot talk directly which disturbs the flow of message and alters the meaning of the message.
Thus, new concepts like open workspace designs and parallel communication approaches have
been emerging to challenge this type of physical communication barrier.
Noise
Noise causes obstacles for the message to reach the receiver and cause physical communication
barrier. There are many kinds of noise in communication process such as physical noise, written
noise, technological noise, etc.
Physical noise are the disturbances that occur due to outside or background disturbance and
environment. This type of noise occurs in mostly all kinds of communication like face to face,
written, etc.
Written noise like bad handwriting or typing is also taken as physical barrier.
Technological noise are the noise that occur in the medium or channel like no sound while talking
on phone or message sending failure in chats.
All of the mentioned types of noises are included as physical communication barriers.
Information Overflow
When information becomes more than that can be received at a particular time by the receiver, then
communication fails.
The receiver does not have the capacity to get all the information and can miss some important
points or misinterpret the meaning of the whole message altogether. The message will not get the
desired outcome causing the communication to not be effective and act as a barrier. Work overload
and information duplication also help to cause physical communication barrier.
Physical factors obstruct effective communication, in any form of communication. If physical

barriers are reduced or eliminated, the communication becomes effective as there is less distortion
and interference.
Semantic barriers
The Semantic barrier in communication can be defined as the misunderstanding and interpretation of
meaning which restrict effective communication. It can be in form of language, sign and symbol. The
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word semantic is credited to the Greek word “semantikos” which indicates “significant”. Semantics
is a broad interdisciplinary study which deals with philosophical and logical understanding behind
the language. The Semantic barrier can be caused in every type of communication. The variations
of meaning in language are visible between individuals in minor and cultures in major. Thus
semantic barrier is an important element in communication theories at different levels. Differences
in dialect, cultural differences, body language, and the choice of word, pronunciation differences
and spelling errors are the main causes of a semantic barrier.
Types of Semantic Barrier

There are two types of semantic barrier of communication. They are as follows:
1. Denotative barriers which are based on and caused by the direct meaning of a word. These
kinds of barriers happen when sender and receiver disagree with the meaning of the word. The
word “comment” for new generation Facebook users are different from the older generation
who never used or aware of social media networking websites.
2. Connotative barriers refer to the differences in the meaning of the defined word. In addition to
its exact or lexical meaning, words also acquire implied meanings called connotative meanings.
Connotations are understood based only on an individual’s experience. Here both sender and
receivers are aware of the meaning of the word but the disagreement occurs when the context,
situation and emotion behind the word will be different. The meaning of the word does not arise by
itself but in the relation between the text and the context. This barrier becomes much complicated
since the significant meaning needs a mutual level of understanding for effective communication.
For example, in the context of instant messaging, the popular reply words like “ok” or “hmm” are
used as giving feedback. The word “hmm”(non-lexical filler) from receiver provides agreement
with the sender but also leaves a space for disagreement in the new media scene.
Here is a simple example, the word “bat” is common but the meaning changes from sports equipment
to a mammal. The word “touch” is having a physical meaning of touching once body but on other
hands it is having a psychological meaning of touching the soul. The usage like “master touch”,
“final touch”, “keep in touch” are some examples.
Similarly, examine the word ‘cheap’ as an adjective. You will enjoy a ‘cheap holiday’ because you
spend less than the real cost. Industries desire ‘cheap labour’ to reduce the overall cost of production.
These connotations of cheap as an adjective are different from the connotations in expressions like
“cheap popularity’ and “cheap joke”. If the receiver does not understand the connotation attributed
by the sender, miscommunication takes place. But when words are used for denotations alone, not
much damage will be done.
To avoid such semantic barriers, the communicator should choose the precise and exact word that
will carry the same meaning for the receiver in the given context. The meaning of the word is related
to the context at the connotational level. A complimentary expression may derive a connotative
derogative meaning which will ruin the communication process. If you examine the word ‘fellow’,
you will find so many connotations to it. The word used with adjectives such as ‘nice’ and ‘lousy’
change the complexion of the word ‘fellow’. A ‘nice fellow’ and a lousy fellow’ are poles apart.
If you call someone a ‘fellow scholar’, he is your contemporary. A ‘fellow traveller’ is simply
your co-passenger on a train, but in another context, he is a sympathizer or a secret member of the
communist party. Fellowship simply means companionship/friendliness. However, in special
contexts it can have different connotations. You can be a scholar with the UGC (University Grants
Commission) getting a fellowship.
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Overcoming Semantic Barrier

It is very important to overcome the semantic barrier in any communication. In order to achieve
effective communication, both sender and receiver should understand the attitude, communication
skills, knowledge, social system and culture of their corresponding communicator.
Socio-psychological barriers
Communication to be effective should be free of barriers which obstruct the free flow of
communication. Social and psychological factors are the most difficult barriers to communication.
These consist of the following:
1. Attitude and opinions:

The personal attitude and opinions of the receiver often interfere with communication. If the
message is consistent with the receiver’s attitude and opinion they receive it favourably. When the
message is inconsistent with the receivers attitude and opinions, they are not likely to be received
favourably.
2. Emotions:
Emotions like fear, anger, worry, nervousness block the mind. It also blurs the thinking power and
one fails to organise the message properly. When the message is not organised properly it cannot
be conveyed effectively.
3. Status difference:
Status consciousness is a very serious barrier. Subordinates fail to communicate to with their
superiors because either they are too conscious of their low status or too afraid of being snubbed
off.
Similarly many executives keep distance from their subordinates thinking it too degrading to
consult them.
4. In attention:
In attention arises due to mental preoccupations or distractions. This causes barriers to
communication.
5. Closed mind:
A person with closed mind is not willing to listen and is not prepared to reconsider his opinion. As
such it is very difficult to communicate with such person.
6. Distrust:
Distrust after fails to deliver the right message. When the receiver is biased or hostile towards the
sender the message is – either ignored or misinterpreted.
7. Poor retention:
Successive transmission of the message is decreasingly accurate. In the process of transmission a
part of the message is lost at every stage. This is because of poor retention on the part of the
receiver. Thus incomplete message is conveyed.
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8. Premature evaluation:
Premature evaluation prevents effective communication. Some people form a judgement even
before receiving the complete message. And once judgement is already formed the mind is closed
to the rest of the message.
Remedies to overcome barriers

There are a lot of communication barriers faced these days by all. The message intended by the
sender is not understood by the receiver in the same terms and sense and thus communication
breakdown occurs. It is essential to deal and cope up with these communication barriers so as to
ensure smooth and effective communication.
As, in the previous section we have discussed the major barriers of communication. Let’s talk about
how to overcome these barriers of communication.
1. Eliminating differences in perception: The organization should ensure that it is recruiting right
individuals on the job. It’s the responsibility of the interviewer to ensure that the interviewee
has command over the written and spoken language. There should be proper Induction program
so that the policies of the company are clear to all the employees. There should be proper
trainings conducted for required employees (for eg: Voice and Accent training).
2. Use of Simple Language: Use of simple and clear words should be emphasized. Use of
ambiguous words and jargons should be avoided.
3. Reduction and elimination of noise levels: Noise is the main communication barrier which
must be overcome on priority basis. It is essential to identify the source of noise and then
eliminate that source.
4. Active Listening: Listen attentively and carefully. There is a difference between “listening”
and “hearing”. Active listening means hearing with proper understanding of the message that
is heard. By asking questions the speaker can ensure whether his/her message is understood or
not by the receiver in the same terms as intended by the speaker.
5. Emotional State: During communication one should make effective use of body language. He/
she should not show their emotions while communication as the receiver might misinterpret
the message being delivered. For example, if the conveyer of the message is in a bad mood
then the receiver might think that the information being delivered is not good.
6. Simple Organizational Structure: The organizational structure should not be complex. The
number of hierarchical levels should be optimum. There should be a ideal span of control
within the organization. Simpler the organizational structure, more effective will be the
communication.
7. Avoid Information Overload: The managers should know how to prioritize their work. They
should not overload themselves with the work. They should spend quality time with their
subordinates and should listen to their problems and feedbacks actively.
8. Give Constructive Feedback: Avoid giving negative feedback. The contents of the feedback
might be negative, but it should be delivered constructively. Constructive feedback will lead
to effective communication between the superior and subordinate.
9. Proper Media Selection: The managers should properly select the medium of communication.
Simple messages should be conveyed orally, like: face to face interaction or meetings. Use of
written means of communication should be encouraged for delivering complex messages. For
significant messages reminders can be given by using written means of communication such
as : Memos, Notices etc.
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10. Flexibility in meeting the targets: For effective communication in an organization the
managers should ensure that the individuals are meeting their targets timely without skipping
the formal channels of communication. There should not be much pressure on employees to
meet their targets.
Summary
Communication is a process of interaction with people and environment. A leader is expected
to represent his/her followers and motivate them to reach heights of success through individual
and collective effort. Communication is necessary to issue directions by the top management or
manager to the lower level. The person who desires to convey the message is known as sender.
Message is a subject matter of any communication. Communication channel is the media through
which the message passes. Decoding is the process of interpretation of an encoded message into
the understandable meaning. The communication theory is the necessary key in order to make all
transactions and business connections successful. Verbal communication is an essential part of
business and when it is executed correctly, good things happen.
Keywords
Body Language:
Body language is a form of mental and physical ability of human non-verbal communication,
which consists of body posture, gestures, facial expressions, and eye movements.
Communication:
Communication is the activity of conveying information. Communication has been derived from
the Latin word “communis”, meaning to share.
Feedback: Feedback is a process in which information about the past or the present influences the
same phenomenon in the present or future.
Message: It is a subject matter of any communication. It may involve any fact, idea, opinion or
information.
Non-verbal Communication: Non-verbal communication is usually understood as the process of

communication through sending and receiving wordless (mostly visual) messages between people.
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Self Assessment Questions

1. …………..is an important objective of communication as it involves personal opinions and
is likely to be subjective.
(a) Information
(b) Advice
(c) Order
(d) Suggestion
2. ………….is an important objective of communication.

(a) Raising Morale
(b) Education
(c) Persuasion
(d) Warning
3. The. ...................is unvarying and importantly deals with the commanding nature.
(a) Instructive function
(b) integration function
(c) evaluation function
(d) direction function
4. The communication process is incomplete without the existence of. ............... of the message.
(a) communication channel
(b) receiver
(c) message
(d) feedback
5. ………….promotes successful communication.

(a) Mutual Interest
(b) Common language
(c) Common Frame
(d) Common environment
6. ………………does not mean inclusion of unnecessary details or diversions.

(a) Common environment
(b) Common language
(c) Completeness
(d) Conciseness
7. In. ...................... the information source typically refers to a person, who then sends a message
with the use of a transmitter.
(a) Berlo‘s model
(b) Shannon‘s model
(c) Schramm‘s model
(d) Helical model
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8. Telephone is a very popular form of oral communication.

(a) True
(b) False
9. Silence is not a very powerful tool of communication.

(a) True
(b) False
10. When gestures and postures are used for communicating a message is called body language.
(a) True
(b) False
Review Questions
1. How do you define communication?
2. Discuss the elements of communication process.
3. What do we mean by ―effective communication”? How does the knowledge of the
communication process help us in communicating effectively?
4. Discuss the role of communication in our life.
5. What are models and theories of communication?
6. What is verbal and non-verbal communication in business?
7. Explain the non-verbal communication media.
8. Define the types of business communication.
9. Discuss the channels of communication.
10. What is media of communication?
Answers for Self Assessment Questions

1 (b) 2 (c) 3 (a) 4 (b) 5 (d) 6 (c) 7 (b) 8 (a) 9 (b) 10 (a)
Further reading
Reference Books
1. Boove, C.L., Thill, J.V., and Chaturvedi, M., (2009) Business Communication Today, Pearson
Education.
2. Murphy and Hildebrandt, (2008) Effective Business Communication, McGraw Hill Education.
3. Krizan, A. C. Buddy, and Merrier, Patricia (2008) Effective Business Communication, 7th
Edition,
Cengage Learning.
4. Lesikar, (2009), Business Communication: Making Connections in a Digital World, McGraw
Hill
Education.
5. McGraw, S. J., (2008) Basic Managerial Skills for All, 8th edition, Prentice Hall of India.
6. Wren & Martin, (2008), English Grammar and Composition, Sultan chand & Sons.
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Unit III
Business letter writing:
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Need
• Functions and Kinds
• Layout of Letter Writing
• Types of Letter Writing: Persuasive Letters, Request Letters, Sales Letters
• Complaints and Adjustments
• Departmental Communication: Meaning, Need and Types
• Interview Letters, Promotion. Letters, Resignation Letters
• News Letters
• Circulars
• Agenda
• Notice
• Office Memorandums, Office Orders
• Press Release
• Summary
• Keywords
• Self Assessment
• Review questions
• Further Reading
Objectives
After studying this chapter, you will be able to describe the business letters and explain the office
memorandum. You can define a good news and bad news letters and also describe Persuasive
letters Explain sales letters Describe letter styles/layout.
Introduction
Communication through exchange of letters is known as correspondence. We communicate our
feelings, thoughts etc. to our friends and relatives through letters that may be called personal
correspondence. A Businessman also writes and receives letters in his day to-day transactions,
which may be called business correspondence.
Business correspondence or business letter is a written communication between two parties.

Businessmen may write letters to supplier of goods and also receive letters from the suppliers.
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Customers may write letters to businessmen seeking information about availability of goods, price,
quality, sample etc. or place order for purchase of goods. Thus, business letters may be defined as
a media or means through which views are expressed and ideas or information is communicated in
writing in the process of business activities.
Need
Now-a-days business operations are not restricted to any locality, state or nation. Today production
takes place in one area but consumption takes place everywhere. Since the businessmen as well as
customers live in far off places they don’t have sufficient time to contact each other personally.
Thus, there arises the need for writing letters. In the past the situation was not so. Business letters
were not essential in olden days. But now the importance of letters has increased because of vast
expansion of business, increase in demand as well as supply of goods. Let us learn about the
importance of business letters.
i) Help in maintaining proper relationship

Now-a-days business activities are not confined to any one area or locality. The businessmen as
well as customers are scattered throughout the country. Thus, there is a need to maintain proper
relationship among them by using appropriate means of communication. Here business letters play
an important role. The customers can write letters to the businessman seeking information about
products and businessmen also supply various information’s to customers.
This helps them to carry on business on national and international basis.
ii) Inexpensive and convenient mode

Though there are other modes of communication like telephone, telex, fax, etc. but business
information can be provided and obtained economically and conveniently through letters.
iii) Create and maintain goodwill

Sometimes business letters are written to create and enhance goodwill. Businessmen at times send
letters to enquire about complaints and suggestions of their customers. They also send letters to
inform the customers about the availability of a new product, clearance sale etc. All this results in
cordial relations with the customers, which enhances the goodwill of the business.
iv) Serves as evidence

We cannot expect a trader to memorize all facts and figures in a conversation that normally takes
place among businessmen. Through letters, he can keep a record of all facts. Thus, letters can serve
as evidence in case of dispute between two parties.
v) Help in expansion of business

Business requires information regarding competing products, prevailing prices, promotion, market
activities, etc. If the trader has to run from place to place to get information, he will end up doing
nothing. It will simply result in loss of time. But through business letters, he can make all enquiries
about the products and the markets. He can also receive orders from different countries and, thus
enhance sales.
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Functions and Kinds

The term “business letters” refers to any written communication that begins with a salutation, ends
with a signature and whose contents are professional in nature. Historically, business letters were sent
via postal mail or courier, although the internet is rapidly changing the way businesses communicate.
There are many standard types of business letters, and each of them has a specific focus.
Sales Letters
Typical sales letters start off with a very strong statement to capture the interest of the reader. Since
the purpose is to get the reader to do something, these letters include strong calls to action, detail
the benefit to the reader of taking the action and include information to help the reader to act, such
as including a telephone number or website link.
Order Letters
Order letters are sent by consumers or businesses to a manufacturer, retailer or wholesaler to order
goods or services. These letters must contain specific information such as model number, name of
the product, the quantity desired and expected price. Payment is sometimes included with the letter.
Complaint Letters
The words and tone you choose to use in a letter complaining to a business may be the deciding
factor on whether your complaint is satisfied. Be direct but tactful and always use a professional
tone if you want the company to listen to you.
Adjustment Letters
An adjustment letter is normally sent in response to a claim or complaint. If the adjustment is in the
customer’s favor, begin the letter with that news. If not, keep your tone factual and let the customer
know that you understand the complaint.
Inquiry Letters
Inquiry letters ask a question or elicit information from the recipient. When composing this type of
letter, keep it clear and succinct and list exactly what information you need. Be sure to include your
contact information so that it is easy for the reader to respond.
Follow-Up Letters
Follow-up letters are usually sent after some type of initial communication. This could be a sales
department thanking a customer for an order, a businessman reviewing the outcome of a meeting
or a job seeker inquiring about the status of his application. In many cases, these letters are a
combination thank-you note and sales letter.
Letters of Recommendation
Prospective employers often ask job applicants for letters of recommendation before they hire
them. This type of letter is usually from a previous employer or professor, and it describes the
sender’s relationship with and opinion of the job seeker.
Acknowledgment Letters
Acknowledgment letters act as simple receipts. Businesses send them to let others know that they
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Cover Letters
Cover letters usually accompany a package, report or other merchandise. They are used to describe
what is enclosed, why it is being sent and what the recipient should do with it, if there is any action
that needs to be taken. These types of letters are generally very short and succinct.
Letters of Resignation
When an employee plans to leave his job, a letter of resignation is usually sent to his immediate
manager giving him notice and letting him know when the last day of employment will be. In many
cases, the employee also will detail his reason for leaving the company.
Layout of Letter Writing

Business Letter is a letter which is used by organizations to communicate in a professional way
with customers, other companies, clients, shareholders, investors, etc. Business letter uses formal
language and a specific format.
Companies use it to convey important information and messages. An individual can also use it
while writing an application for a job, cover letters, or any formal document. In this article, we will
learn how to write business letter in a professional way, parts of business letter with some samples
and examples.
Business Letter Definition

A letter written for business purpose is a business letter. Inquiry letters, offer letters, order letter,
cover letter, notices, termination of employment are some of the business letters. Suppose a person
wants to write any of these business letters. The main question is to how to write a business
letter?
There is a pre-specified format for writing a business letter. There are some parts of a business letter
and rules associated with them. Let us start to know how to write a business letter by knowing the
parts of a business letter.
Parts of Business Letter

A business letter will be more impressive if proper attention is given to each and every part of the
business letter.
There are 12 Parts of Business Letter

• The Heading or Letterhead
• Date
• Reference
• The Inside Address
• Subject
• Greeting
• Body Paragraphs
• Complimentary Close
• Signature and Writer’s Identification
• Enclosures
• Copy Circulation
• PostScript
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Let us discuss the parts of a business letter.
1. The Heading or Letterhead

It usually contains the name and the address of the business or an organization. It can also have an
email address, contact number, fax number, trademark or logo of the business.
2. Date
We write the date on the right-hand side corner of the letter below the heading.
3. Reference
It shows the department of the organization sending the letter. The letter-number can also be used
as a reference
4. The Inside Address

It includes the name, address, postal code, and job title of the recipient. It must be mentioned after
the reference. One must write inside address on the left-hand side of the sheet.
5. Subject
It is a brief statement mentioning the reason for writing the letter. It should be clear, eye catchy,
short, simple, and easily understandable.
6. The Greeting
It contains the words to greet the recipient. It is also known as the salutation. The type of salutation
depends upon the relationship with the recipient.
It generally includes words like Dear, Respected, or just Sir/Madam. A comma (,) usually follow
the salutation.
7. The Body Paragraphs

This is the main part of the letter. It contains the actual message of the sender. The main body of the
mail must be clear and simple to understand. The body of the letter is basically divided into three
main categories.
• Opening Part: The first paragraph of the mail writing must state the introduction of the writer.
It also contains the previous correspondence if any.
• Main Part: This paragraph states the main idea or the reason for writing. It must be clear,
concise, complete, and to the point.
• Concluding Part: It is the conclusion of the business letter. It shows the suggestions or the
need of the action. The closing of the letter shows the expectation of the sender from the
recipient. Always end your mail by courteous words like thanking you, warm regards, look
forward to hearing from your side etc.
8. The Complimentary Close

It is a humble way of ending a letter. It is written in accordance with the salutation. The most
generally used complimentary close are Yours faithfully, Yours sincerely, and Thanks & Regards.
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9. Signature and Writer’s Identification

It includes the signature, name, and designation of the sender. It can also include other details like
contact number, address, etc. The signature is handwritten just above the name of the sender.
10. Enclosures
Enclosures show the documents attached to the letter. The documents can be anything like cheque,
draft, bills, receipts, invoices, etc. It is listed one by one.
11. Copy Circulation

It is needed when the copies of the letter are sent to other persons. It is denoted as C.C.
12. PostScript
The sender can mention it when he wants to add something other than the message in the body of
the letter. It is written as P.S.
Types of Letter Writing: Persuasive Letters, Request Letters, Sales Letters
Persuasive Letters
Persuasive Letter is a letter written to persuade an organisation/s or individual/s towards accepting
the writer’s (sender’s) issue, interest or perspective. It can be written to any type of organisation i.e.
school, bank, college, NGO, municipality etc. The individuals can be a director, CEO, government
official etc. The motive of the persuasion letter is to ‘Get your work done’ in layman terms.
The persuasion can be related to any matter, it can be:

• A complaint
• A sale
• A petition
• A request or any other matter which requires convincing
Taking that into note, persuasion letter is a broad term inclusive of Cover Letter, Complaint Letter,
Petition Letter, Request Letter, and Sales Letter. This is because in all of the above mentioned there
is moderate to maximum amount of persuasion on part of the sender.
Depending upon the region where you live a Complaint Letter or a Sales Letter may be an
interchangeable name for a Persuasive letter. Persuasion letter comes under formal letter type
and follows certain formats like Full Block Style, Semi-Block Style, Modified Block Style and
Modified Semi-Block Style. As mentioned earlier about the formal nature of letters of persuasion,
you can include certain informal elements depending upon the need. While a persuasive letter may
or may not be successful in its objective, it does raise awareness about the matter addressed. And it
can act as a source of inspiration for others when you are addressing certain important social issues.
Request Letters
Request Letter is a letter which is written when you need certain information, permission, favour,
service or any other matter which requires a polite and humble request.
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A requesting letter is written for various purposes, these purposes can be related to:
• Meeting
• Holiday
• Banking purposes
• Jobs
Certain examples of Request:

• A fresh graduate needs to request a job interview
• An employee wants to request a promotion
• A student might need to request for information from a college or university
A request is often found in various other types of letters. An announcement letter is a request letter
when it requires your presence for a certain event. Invitation letters and persuasive letters are also
types of requests. A cover letter is also a type of request as it is asking to be considered for a post
or asking for information about a job. Similarly a cancellation letter, maternity leave letter, friendly
letter, love letter, petition letter etc. have requesting tones.
Request letter can be formal or informal in writing. A formal request letter is written in a formal
writing style, complete with your full details, and the full details of the recipient. A time comes
when we all need to ask about something from someone and if we know how to do that then we
can easily accomplish what we intend to. Depending upon the objective or motive request letters
can be lengthy or short. But they are always specific and direct in their approach. One of the
importances of a request letter is that it reduces the pressure on the recipient and saves the sender
from embarrassment. The recipient gets enough time to work out his answer and the sender can
take a written ‘No’ easily than a verbal one. In fact it works both ways for both the recipient and
the sender.
Sales Letters
Sales Correspondence is a written communication between two parties with the motive of sales. A
sales letter is a form of sale correspondence. It is a letter that tries to sell a product. Sales letters are
an effective way to communicate with clients.
It may target a specific group to grab their attention. It is like a salesman discussing the purpose but
in the form of a letter. A sales letter can be general or particular in nature.
Objectives and Advantages of Sales Letter

Objectives of Sales Letter
• A sales letter aims at reaching the reader to purchase the product.
• Introduction and marketing of new products and services.
• To reach potential customers.
• Expansion of the market.
Advantages of Sales Letter

• A sales letter is less expensive.
• Reach a client where a salesman cannot.
• Reach a number of clients all at the same time.
• Ease of understanding and availability of full details.
• More convenient, efficient, and comprehensive.
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Elements and Format of Sales Letter

Elements of Sales Letter
Headline: Here the writer wants to grab the reader’s attention toward the main purpose of the letter.
Introduction: It is the introductory paragraph. Introduction in the sales letter provides the details
of the product or the service. It also provides the reader with the cost, quality, saving and other
related information.
Body: Here the writer builds his credibility. The writers provide with the worth of the product, its
difference from other similar products, a list of satisfied customers, terms of contract etc.
Call to Action: In this section, the writer asks for the reader’s response and can express the gratitude.
It also includes various details like warranty, discount etc.
Format of Sales Letter
Writing Tips for Writing Sales Letter

• Introduce the ideas in a way that compels the reader to take a positive action.
• Introduce yourself and the product well.
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• Be clear in what you are offering.

• Choose your words as per the targeted audience.
• Always use a headline.
• Make the first sentence of each paragraph count.
• Use of font styles, font sizes, bullets, and numbering etc.
• Use relevant statement showing the credibility of the product.
• Suitable closing sentences.
• Correct use of salutation.
• Proper and complete details of the product and availability.
• Always ask for attention, build interest, desire, and call of action.
• Have a simple and convincing tone.
• Avoid creating confusion and uncertainty.
• Avoid being clever and funny.
• Include your name, signature, and other contact details.
• Do not use fancy words or slangs.
• Always revise and edit the letter.
Types of Sales Letters

A sales letter has a specific purpose to meet. The various purposes can be the introduction of a new
product or service, availing new offers, selling incentive etc. Let us discuss some of them here.
Introductory
This type of letter is written to a customer or a consumer to introduce to the company or a product.
It also explains how readers will get benefit from the product or the service. It must grab people’s
attention, build their interest and call to action.
Product Update
As the name suggests, this type of letter is to describe the benefits of new products over older ones.
Other details like a limited period to purchase and discount can also be included.
Selling Incentive
It promotes existing products among current customers. This type of letter must build some
excitement among the reader to buy the product.
Thank You
A sender writes this letter to thank the customers to be a part of the business. It shows the value of
the customer. A brief mention is given on the availability of product for the customer.
Holiday Celebration
This letter gives a chance to offer a product as a gift for customers. It also shows the discounts and
the offers limited to the holiday celebration.
Invitation
It is an invitation to the customers for any celebration. This helps the customers to feel important.
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Lost Customer
This type of letter is for the customers who have not been too active recently. It helps the organization
to bind with them and offers them good deals.
Complaints and Adjustments
Complaint Letters
A complaint letter requests some sort of compensation for defective or damaged merchandise
or for inadequate or delayed services. While many complaints can be made in person, some
circumstances require formal business letters. The complaint may be so complex that a phone call
may not effectively resolve the problem; or the writer may prefer the permanence, formality, and
seriousness of a business letter. The essential rule in writing a complaint letter is to maintain your
poise and diplomacy, no matter how justified your gripe is. Avoid making the recipient an adversary.
1. In the letter, identify early the reason you are writing to register a complaint and to ask for
some kind of compensation. Avoid leaping into the details of the problem in the first sentence.
2. State exactly what compensation you desire, either before or after the discussion of the problem
or the reasons for granting the compensation. (It may be more tactful and less antagonizing to
delay this statement in some cases).
3. Provide a fully detailed narrative or description of the problem. This is the “evidence.”
4. Explain why your request should be granted. Presenting the evidence is not enough: state the
reasons why this evidence indicates your request should be granted.
5. Suggest why it is in the recipient’s best interest to grant your request: appeal to the recipient’s
sense of fairness, desire for continued business, but don’t threaten. Find some way to view the
problem as an honest mistake. Don’t imply that the recipient deliberately committed the error
or that the company has no concern for the customer. Toward the end of the letter, express
confidence that the recipient will grant your request.
Adjustment Letters
Replies to complaint letters, often called letters of “adjustment,” must be handled carefully when
the requested compensation cannot be granted. Refusal of compensation tests your diplomacy and
tact as a writer. Here are some suggestions that may help you write either type of adjustment letter:
1. Begin with a reference to the date of the original letter of complaint and to the purpose of your
letter. If you deny the request, don’t state the refusal right away unless you can do so tactfully.
2. Express your concern over the writer’s troubles and your appreciation that he has written you.
3. If you deny the request, explain the reasons why the request cannot be granted in as cordial and
noncombative manner as possible. If you grant the request, don’t sound as if you are doing so
in a begrudging way.
4. If you deny the request, try to offer some partial or substitute compensation or offer some
friendly advice (to take the sting out of the denial).
5. Conclude the letter cordially, perhaps expressing confidence that you and the writer will
continue doing business.
Departmental Communication: Meaning, Need and Types
Meaning of Office Communication:

To commune means to make conversation. This is an ordinary function in our daily life. This is
necessary to make contacts, to explain things, to exchange ideas, to convey information, to Self Learning
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give instruction, and to remove misunderstandings. Communication is indispensable for existence.

Communication, however, has a more specific meaning in management science.
According to Prof. Allen, “It is a bridge of meaning. It consists of a systematic and continuous
telling, listening, and understanding.” It is clear that communication is complete when the
message sent by the communicator is understood by the receiver. It is a bridge of meaning, i.e.,
the meaning of a message is understood in the same sense by the communicator and the receiver.
Importance of Office Communication:

Its importance is great and is growing. The success of an organisation depends upon how
extensively and intensively communication is being carried out by it. It is described as a tool of
management. It is the last word in management. Whenever more than one person meets together,
there is communication between them.
In an office people meet and work together. Therefore, there must be communication among them.
The primary function of an office is communicating, internally and externally. An organisation
needs an office because all communication will go out from, and come into, it. Large number of
office machines is meant for communication.
Types of Office Communication:

Broadly speaking, communication can be internal and external. Internal communication takes place
among the people working inside, the office. It also means communication between employer and
employees or among the members of an association or between a company and its shareholders.
External communication is with the outsiders, like the customers, the suppliers, the debtors, the
creditors, the other organisations, the Government and its different agencies, and finally the public
at large. The secretary has a major duty to supervise and control both the types of communication.
According to methods, communication can be sub-divided into three parts—oral, written

(correspondence), and gestural.
Internal Communication:
Through communication employer-employee relationship as well as superior-subordinate
relationship can be maintained. Decisions taken at the top management level flows downward at
the execution and operating levels through the chain of superior-subordinate relationships inside an
organisation structure.
Unless the objectives and policies of the organisation are communicated to the staff, neither they
can identify themselves with the organisation nor can they do their respective functions.
Whenever any change is to be introduced in the organisation, prior communication has to be made
to the members of the staff so that they get mentally prepared. Otherwise there may be a shock.
The employees also must be able to communicate their grievances, complaints or difficulties to the
employer.
By this, better employer-employee relationship is established and misunderstandings, if any, are

removed. Communication is described as a two-way traffic. Internal communication can be oral,
written, visual, and gestural. Holding of meetings, conferences etc., having joint consultation or
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group discussion, etc., sending of reports, copies of minutes, etc. are some of the effective methods
of internal communication.
There are different machines or labour saving devices used for internal communication:
(a) Oral—Inter-com telephone system, Dictaphone, pneumatic tubes, etc.
(b) Written— Typewriter, duplicating machines, etc.
(c) Visual—Photography, micro-film, television (for remote control), etc.
(d) Signalling—Calling bells, buzzers, red lights, etc.
External Communication: External communication is essential for carrying out the activities and
for the development of any organisation, trading or non-trading. This is necessary for widening
and improving public relations and also for enhancing goodwill and prestige. Different methods of
advertisement are meant for communication. Publication of reports, journals, etc. is also another
technique. External communication can be oral, written, and visual.
Mechanical Devices:
There are different machines or labour- saving devices used for external communication:
(a) Oral—Telephone with trunk system, cables, etc.
(b) Written—Typewriter, duplicating machines, tele-printer (the telex system), etc.
(c) Visual—Photography, television, etc.
Interview Letters
The letter that invites job applicants for facing interview is known as interview letter. After
receiving job applications from the potential candidates, the employer writes interview letter to
those candidates whose applications have passed the initial screening stage. Through this letter,
the employer informs the applicants either to sit for a written test or to appear before a viva-voce.
This letter is written in the official pad of the company or in the page containing company name
and address at the top.
CONTENTS OF INTERVIEW LETTER

Every interview letter must contain the following elements:
1. Name and address: Interview letter must carry the name and full particulars of the candidate.
It should be sent to the present address of the applicant. Both inside and envelope address
should be similar. Sometimes, both present and permanent address of applicant is written at
the top of the interview letter.
2. Time of interview: Date, day and time of interview should be clearly mentioned in the
interview letter.
3. Place of interview: Interview letter should clearly indicate the place or venue where interview
will take place.
4. Documents to be produced: Sometimes the interviewee needs to produce academic
certificates, experience certificate, birth certificate, photographs, copy of publications etc.
before the interview board. Interview letter must state whether the candidates need to bring
such documents.
5. Other instructions: Interview letter should also specify whether the interviewees would be
provided with transportation allowance (TA) or any other allowance.
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Promotion Letters
A promotion letter is a reward to an employee for his excellent contribution to an organization.
When an employee performs better activities than others, he is supposed to get extra care from the
employer, which is reflected in the promotion.
Such letter usually involves the following matters

1. Words of congratulations
2. Mentioning new assignment post and designation
3. New benefits and allowances to be given
Promotion Letter Sample
LAND VIEW MACHINES LTD.
Registered Office Address

Address line two
Issuing date: May 5, 2012

Name of employee: Mr. XYZ
Address of employee
address line 2
Ref: Promotion as an Assistant Secretary
Dear Mr. XYZ,
I have the pleasure to inform you that you have been promoted to assistant secretary in the share
department of the company. You are required to take charge of the new assignment on 15th May
2012. Please accept my hearty congratulations on your promotion.
Your salary scale in the promoted cadre will be Tk. 16,000 and from 15th may, your basic
salary will be fixed at Tk. 12,000 in the said scale. You will be entitled to all other allowances as
applicable to the staff-II of the company. Other services conditions remain unchanged.
Please acknowledge receipt of this letter.
Yours sincerely,
Name of employer
Designation of employer
Name of the organization
Resignation Letters
• Creating and submitting a professional resignation letter can have a lasting effect on how you
are viewed by past and future colleagues and employers.
• Your resignation letter should be short and concise. Include the date of your last working day,
your offer to assist with the transition and your gratitude for the opportunity with your soon-
to-be former employer.
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• In your resignation letter, do not air your grievances or speak poorly about the company or
co-workers.
Resigning from a job, regardless of the pretenses, is a major life decision and should be taken
seriously. Crafting and submitting a professional resignation letter is a key aspect of the resignation
process and can leave a lasting impression on former and future employers.
Pat Roque, career transformation coach at Rock on Success, described a job resignation letter as
being a formal notification of your exit strategy.
“It is a required document that becomes part of your employee records,” Roque told Business News
Daily. “Think of it as the last chapter of your story at your former company.”
Your letter should have a neutral tone that informs your employer that you are leaving and on what
date, plus it should offer to assist in the transition to someone new and thank them for the time
you were part of the team. Despite your feelings about your job or your boss, being professional,
courteous, and helpful provides closure and a positive path forward.
“Always keep the door open, because you never know when you may want to return or even work
with other colleagues in a future role elsewhere,” said Roque.
James Rice, head of digital marketing at WikiJob, said that although you will likely be expected
to hand in a standard resignation letter, it is usually best to schedule a meeting with your boss to
personally give them the letter and discuss your resignation in person.
What your resignation letter should say

Although the specific contents of your job resignation letter can be tailored to your job and company,
there are a few basic elements that should always be included. Regardless of the circumstances,
keep it simple and concise.
Roque suggested including the following elements:

• Your end date. Provide your official end date, ideally at least two weeks in advance.
• Help with the transition. Express your commitment to ensuring a smooth and easy transition,
including availability to discuss your workload and status updates with your manager or
successor.
• Gratitude for the opportunity. Find something nice to say, regardless of any differences you
may have with a bossy colleague or how toxic the job may have become.
• Request for instructions (optional). If you aren’t yet aware of the exit protocol at your
company, request specific instructions about final work commitments and such. Some
companies will ask you to leave immediately, while others will have you very involved in a
transition over the two-week period, or they may ask you to work from home and see HR to
return your laptop on your last official day.
What your resignation letter shouldn’t say

Just as important as knowing what to say in a resignation letter, is knowing what not to say. Many
resigning employees make the mistake of including too many personal details and emotional
statements in their official letters.
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When you are writing an official resignation letter, omit the following details:
• Why you are leaving. Although you may feel the need to explain away your reason for leaving,
this is not necessary to include in your resignation Rice said you may believe that the new employer
has a better product, service, working environment, salary or benefits package, but these are not
things to state in your resignation letter. Keep your language professional and positive.
• What you hated about the job. A resignation letter is not the place to air your grievances or
speak poorly of your soon-to-be former company or co-workers. Roque said to let go of anger
before submitting the letter. She also suggested having someone else review your letter before
submission to ensure it is appropriately polite and succinct.
• Emotional statements. Twersky stressed the importance of keeping a calm, professional tone
in your letter. An aggressive or otherwise emotional letter will only come back to hurt you.
Twersky said that, even if you are overworked and resentful, don’t quit angry. Avoid using
phrases like “I feel” or “I think,” unless they are followed up by positive statements.
When writing your letter, try not to burn your bridges as you may need them in the future.
“Your employers may be providing you with a reference, or if you are staying in the same field,
you may still network in the same circles or want to return in the future,” said Rice. “It is always
good to keep in touch with your old colleagues and with social networks like LinkedIn, it may be
hard to avoid them.”
These are also good tips to keep in mind when you have the conversation informing your supervisor
or manager that you are leaving. Short and simple is fine; there is no reason to explain your reasons
if you don’t want to. Just stay polite, respectful and professional throughout the discussion.
Sample resignation letter

Based on advice from our experts, here is an all-purpose resignation letter template you can fill in
with your personal details. Remember, you are not required to include your reason for resigning in
your letter.
[Current date]
Dear [supervisor’s name],
Please accept this letter as my formal resignation from my role as [title]. My last day with [company]
will be [end date].
To ease the transition after my departure, I am happy to assist you with any training tasks during
my final weeks on the job. I intend to leave thorough instructions and up-to-date records for my
replacement.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for the knowledge and experience I have gained by
working here. I am very grateful for the time I have spent on our team and the professional relationships
I’ve built. It’s been a pleasure working for you, and I hope our paths will cross again in the future.
Sincerely,
[Your signature and printed name]
If you opt to provide a reason for leaving, either in your letter or during the conversation with your
employer, be clear and positive, focusing on what you are gaining from the change and not the
circumstances that caused it. Always maintain your professionalism and keep things formal.
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News Letters
A newsletter is a cost-effective medium for building relationships and maintaining regular contact
with customers and prospects. In its 2013 B2B Content Marketing Benchmarks, Budgets and
Trends study, the Content Marketing Institute found that 78 percent of respondents used newsletters.
Research firm Nielsen Norman Group asked respondents how they preferred to receive company
updates, and 90 percent cited newsletters, compared to 10 percent for social media.
Awareness
Publishing a newsletter gives you the opportunity to increase awareness and understanding of your
company and its products and services. Customers and prospects may have a limited perspective of
what your company can offer if they only view your advertisements or receive promotional email.
Newsletter content builds a broader picture. To encourage readers to find out more, include links to
more detailed information on your website.
Expertise
A newsletter can demonstrate your expertise and build confidence in your company as a potential
supplier. Marketing consultancy PR 20/20 notes that newsletter content that provides valuable
information to customers and prospects helps to establish a company as an industry leader. To
establish leadership, include articles that cover important issues in your market sector or share
information on industry research. Provide details of any conferences where your company is
making a presentation.
Promotion
You can use newsletters to promote products and services or launch new products. Including
information on special offers helps reinforce the effect of your advertising and promotional
campaigns. Running special offers exclusive to readers enhances the value to the newsletter.
You can integrate newsletter content with other elements of a new product launch by including
announcements and articles related to the product.
Contact
Issuing newsletters at regular intervals -- weekly, monthly or quarterly – helps you maintain contact
with customers and prospects between purchases or sales calls. If you face a decision-making process
that is long and complex, for example, you can use newsletters to communicate with all decision
makers throughout the process. If customers buy your products infrequently, you can maintain
contact between purchases so you build a strong relationship before the next sales opportunity.
Coverage
Newsletters can help you increase the coverage of your target audience. By placing information
about the newsletter on your website, you can capture contact details of new prospects by asking
visitors to subscribe. Issuing newsletters by email to all of your customers and prospects is a low-
cost method of communication, leaving more in your market budget for advertising or other
promotional activities.
Circulars
A circular is essentially a letter containing some important information that is distributed to a large
number of people. Say for example you have to invite an entire department for a meeting, or update
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the dress policy for the whole office – a circular will be the best mode of communication for these
purposes.
Additionally, circulars also find use as advertising tools. They can contain marketing information
and have a wide distribution range. Be it for inter-departmental communication, advertising or even
personal reasons a circular must always reach a large number of correspondents. This is one of its
main features.
Let us also take a look at some of the advantages of a circular

• It is a very simple and effective way of communication. Since it is precise and written, very
little chance of miscommunication
• It is also quite inexpensive. It is a cost-effective way of communication.
• Circulars are also a time-saving method. It reaches a large number of people in very limited
time and effort.
• They are great advertising and marketing tools as well. They can help create a new market,
educate people about the product or services and also increase consumer confidence in the
company and the product.
A Sample of a Circular
Let us see how circulars effectively communicate information in an inter-office situation. The
following is a sample circular to inform employees about the revised working hours of the company.
Circular No.
25th October 2018
Revised Working Hours
All Employees of XYZ Company,
This is to inform all employees there will be a change in the working hours of the organization
effective immediately. As you know we now do not function on any Saturdays since last month. So
we only have 5 working days in a week, a revision in the working hours was necessary to ensure
the quality of work does not suffer. Hence one hour will be added to the previous 9 hour work days.
The revised working hour will be as follows:
• Working Days: Monday to Friday (except holidays)
• Working Hours: 8:30 am to 6:30 pm (These hours will include the one-hour lunch break)
All employees are requested to note these new and revised timings. The timings are effective
immediately from 26 October 2018. Punctuality and adherence to the new timings are requested.
Repeated defaulters will face action. Please contact the HR department or your managers for any
queries you may have.
ABC,
CEO of XYZ Company.
Agenda
Agenda means things to be done. It is usually sent along with the notice of the meeting. It is a list
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Sometimes the agenda is prepared after the circulation of the notice in order to include the member’s
opinion. If the subject matter of the meeting is secret, the agenda may not be circulated. Some
definitions of agenda are as follows:
So, agenda is an items or issues prepared by the secretary and which are to be discussed or transacted
in a forthcoming meeting.
FEATURES OR CHARACTERISTICS OF AGENDA

The features of agenda can be stated as follows:
1. Generally, agenda is sent along with the notice of the meeting.
2. It is written at the end but before or after the signature of the convener of the meeting.
3. It is arranged according to the importance of the end.
4. Controversial topics should be written at the end.
5. The topics are determined by the secretary with consulting the higher authority or the convener
of the meeting.
6. It is written in brief but explicit manner.
IMPORTANCE OR NECESSITIES OF AGENDA

Agenda is the explicit topics to be discussed in a meeting the members. No one can ignore the
importance of an agenda. The necessity or importance’s of an agenda are as follows:
1. As it is circulated in advance, the members of the committee or meeting can take preparation
to discuss the topics accurately.
2. It helps to take a prompt decision.
3. Since it has a set of order, it helps the chairperson to conduct the meeting smoothly.
4. It can ensure covering all the topics that will be discussed in a meeting.
5. It helps to control the unnecessary talking in the meeting.
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6. It helps to write the minutes and resolution of the meeting.

7. As it is served earlier, the members of the meeting can exchange their thought and ideas
informally before holding the meeting.
Notice
A notice is a written or an oral statement that contains the particulars of holding a meeting. When a
circular is served among the members of the meeting to attend the meeting, it is called a notice. It
is letter of invitation that carries the request to the members to attend a meeting. A notice includes
time, place, date and agenda of a meeting. The notice should be sent by the proper authority in due
time so that the members can attend the meeting in time.
So, notice is formal written or formal information, notification or warning about a fact or an
invitation to the concerned person for attending the meeting.
The essentials or elements or factors of a valid nonce are given below:

1. Signature: The notice must be signed by the proper authority. Only the legal authority should
serve the notice.
2. Proper time: The notice must be served in proper time. It should be circulated according to the
rules and regulations of the company or the organization.
3. Time date and place: The time, date and place of the meeting must be stated in the notice.
4. Unconditional: There must be no condition or complexity in the notice about attending
meeting. Always a notice is unconditional.
5. Agenda: Agenda means topics to be discussed in a meeting. A valid notice should contain the
agenda of the meeting.
6. Conciseness: The notice must be short in size. It should be clear, simple and easy.
7. Proper persons: Notice should be served to the proper persons who are entitled to attend the
meeting.
8. Enclosure: An explanatory statement should be sent with the notice.
SPECIMEN OF NOTICE:
NOTICE OF STATUTORY MEETING OF A COMPANY
Eastern Jute Mails Ltd.

102, New York C/A
New York-1000
Date: March 20, 2013
NOTICE FOR STATUTORY MEETING

Notice is hereby given that the statutory meeting of the company will be held on March 30, 2012 at
12 p.m. in the registered office of the company according to the section ...................... of company
Act. 1994.
Concerned shareholders are requested to attend the meeting.

Mr. John
Secretary
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Of directors.
Notice of the meeting of the board of directors
Supto and Co. Ltd.

12 KDA- New York
New York- 9002
Date: March 10, 2013
NOTICE OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTOR’S MEETING
Dear Sir,
Being authorized I am informing you that the second meeting of the Board of Directors will be held
at the head office of the company on March 20, 2013 at 10 a.m.
You are duly requested to attend the meeting.
Sincerely yours
John
Secretary
Agenda:
1. ……………………………
2…………………………….
3……………………………
Office Memorandums
Memorandum is popularly known as memo. The literal meaning of the word memorandum is a
note to assist the memory. Memos are the written internal communication means for exchanging
information relating to day-to-day functions within the organizations.
According to Lesikar and pettit, “Memorandum is a form of letters written inside the business”.
According to Stewart and Clark, “Memos are used to communicate with other employees,
regardless of where the employees may be located in the same organization.”
According to S. Taylor, “Memo is a written communication form one person to another (or a
group of people) within the same organization.”
So, memorandum or memos are an internal short note or letter in which information exchanged
among superiors and subordinates or same potion of employees in the organizational structure.
ADVANTAGES OF OFFICE MEMO

We know memorandum serves various purposes. it is a common means of writer, communication
within the organization. The main advantages of memos are discussed below:
1. Time saving: We can see that may organizations use printed memo. As it is usually printed, it
takes less time to draft it.
2. Less formality: No formality is necessary in drafting a memo, usually inside address, salutation
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3. Maintenance good relationship: It can help to maintain the good relationship among the boss
and subordinates, because the bossing attitude is absent here.
4. Low cost: The cost of communication through a memo is less than those of others.
5. References: Memo is a written document. So, it can be used for future references.
6. Inform the decisions and actions: The main objective of memo is to inform the decisions and
actions. For this purpose, it should be written by the higher authority.
7. Request the decisions and actions: The objective of memo is to request the decisions and
actions. For this objective, it may be drafted by the sub-ordinate.
8. Provide information: Another important objective of the memo is to provide information
form one level to another within the business.
9. Remain someone of action: Memo is also written to remind someone of action, if requires.
10. Others: Issuing orders and instructions, providing response, providing suggestions, presenting
informal report, solving problems.
DISADVANTAGES OF OFFICE MEMO

There are few limitations or Disadvantages of memos they are:
1. Limited application: It is not widely used means of communication. Memorandum is mainly
used in business firms. It maintains communication only among the employees of the same
firm regardless of distance.
2. Time consuming: It takes time to be sent to a distant branch or office.
3. Expensive: As usually a memo is a per-printed form, it is expensive than other means.
Sometimes huge printed memos remain unused.
4. Lack of formality: It provides only informal communication.
5. Lack of explanation: Memo is written in a short form. So the meaning of it may not be cleared
to the reader.
6. Less important to the reader: As it is an informal means of communication, it can be less
important to the reader.
7. Not suitable for illiterate people: Office memo is a one kind of written communication. So,
illiterate people are not able to read and understand it.
Office Orders
Office order is a means of internal communication within an organization. The term ‘order’
generally means telling subordinates to do or refrain from doing a specific job. But’ by passing an
order high level executives want their subordinates to carry out the order. When a message is
conveyed as an order, it means that it carries a stamp of authority with it and has to be accepted.
The high level executives circulate office order to the employees. Order is generally issued for
posting of employees, promotion, suspension, transfer, and discharge from job, sanction or
recession of yearly increment, imposing rules and regulations, enforcing certain rules or course of
action etc.
An office order descends from the top of the organizational structure down to the employees for
execution. Since office ‘order is a formal course of action, it should preferably be written.
Office order is a sensible part of communication. Its subject matter should be well thought,
organized, meaningful and attached with reasonable interpretation so that no unpleasant situation
grows in the enterprise. It should be relevant, concise, easy to understand and issued with proper
authority and interpretation.
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Press Release
A press release is a short, compelling news story written by a public relations professional and sent
to targeted members of the media. The goal of a press release is to pique the interest of a journalist
or publication. The press release should contain all the essential information (who? what? where?
when? how? and most importantly why?) for the journalist to easily produce his own story.
The standard press release begins with contact information, mostly likely the name, phone number
and e-mail address of the person who wrote the release. Then comes the headline, arguably the most
important four or five words in the whole press release. The headline will be what the journalist
reads first. If it’s not intriguing, newsworthy and unique, he’ll read no further.
Below the headline often comes a brief, one-line summary of the press release. Like the headline,
the summary should draw the reader in quickly and motivate them to learn more.
Since a press release is supposed to look and feel like a story in a newspaper, it’s important to
include a location and date stamp at the beginning of the first paragraph. Something like, “Palo Alto,
CA - February 5, 2007.” Like a standard news story, the first sentence, or lede, should summarize
the main news of the press release in 25 words or less.
The rest of the body of the press release should answer all of the questions a journalist might have
about the product, service or event that you’re announcing. Although a press release is a public
relations tool, it should not read as overly promotional.
If it sounds too much like a sales pitch, it will lose credibility in the eyes of the journalist.
Summary
A business letter is a correspondence used for the purpose of carrying out a business or it can
be called an activity related to writing letters in the business world. Heading or letterhead is
usually printed on the letterhead at the tap in the centre of the page two spaces below the margin.
Complimentary close is followed by the signature block, which includes the signature, full name,
designation and address of the sender. The body of the letter carries its message or content. It is
generally divided into three or four paragraphs, each having its own function. A business letter is
supposed to have a lay-out that impresses. It is physical appearance, that includes the quality of the
paper, the arrangement of the typed/printed, the way it is folded and kept in envelop, envelop itself
with the addressee‘s name and address, stamping.
Keywords
Business Letter:
It is a correspondence used for the purpose of carrying out a business.
Complimentary Close:
It is a customary, polite way of ending a letter.
Heading:
It contains information about the organization‘s name, full address with various other details.
Inside Address: It contains the name and address of the organization. Salutation: It is a little, polite
complimentary greeting.
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Self Assessment
1. A good letter is...............
(a) specific and accurate
(b) simple and direct
(c) to the point
(d) All of these.
2. Postscripts serve two purposes.............

(a) to reemphasize a key point
(b) to be informal and personal
(c) Both (a) and (b)
(d) None of these.
3. ………….contains information about the organization‘s name, full address with various other
details.
(a) Heading
(b) Inside address
(d) None of these.
4. .............was given to ensure that the letter reaches the particular person or the title or the
department in an organization.
(a) Attention line
(b) Inside address
(c) Heading
(d) None of these.
5. If your letter is addressed to an organization of only women or only men, use.........

(a) Dear Sirs:
(b) Dear Mesdames:
(d) None of these.
6. ............ is backed by specialized knowledge or at least sufficient information the product

offered and the needs of the consumer.
(a) Letter
(b) Sales letter
(c) Production letter
(d) Business letter
7. An effective sales letter is not generally written in a highly conversational style.

(a) True
(b) False
8. Notice is not a form of internal business communication.

(a) True
(b) False
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9. ..............is generally used to convey a policy decision, to issue an instruction, to provide

information or to record an agreement.
(a) Sales letter
(b) Notice
(c) Memo
(d) Circular
10. Information letters are...............

(a) good news letter
(b) bad news letter
(c) complaint letter
(d) All of these.
Review Questions
1. What is a Business letter?
2. What are the qualities of a good business letter?
3. Discuss the structure of a business letter.
4. Discuss the guidelines to write an effective business letter.
5. Write a letter to customers, expressing the bad news that the price of a particular product has
been increased. Use the appropriate format to present reasons and offer compensation.
6. What is the sales letter with example?
7. Describe the persuasive letters.
8. What is the difference between reference and attention line?
9. Explain a writing letters.
10. Describe is letter styles of business letter.
Answers for Self Assessment Questions

1 (d) 2 (c) 3 (a) 4 (a) 5 (c) 6 (b) 7 (b) 8 (b) 9 (c) 10 (d)
Further Reading
Recommended Books :
1. Communication by C.S. Rayudu, Himalaya Publishing House.
2. Communication Today - Understanding Creative Skill by Reuben Ray, Himalaya Publishing
House.
3. Successful Communication by Malra Treece.
4. Business Communication Today by Bovee & Thill, McGraw Hill.
5. Principles of Business Communication by Murphy and Hilderbrandth.
6. Effective Communication Skiils by O. N. Kaul & K. K. Sharma, Creative Publishers
7. Chicago Manual of style PHI.
8. Essentials of Business Communication by Rajendra Pal & J. S. Korlahalli, Sultan Chand &
Sons.
9. Business Communication by K. K. Sinh
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Unit IV
Business Etiquettes and Public Speaking
• Objectives
• Introduction
• Business Manners
• Body Language Gestures
• Email and Net Etiquettes
• Etiquette of the Written Word
• Etiquettes on the Telephone
• Handling Business Meetings
• Model Speeches
• Role Play on Selected Topics with Case Analysis and Real Life Experiences
• Summary
• Keywords
• Self Assessment
• Review Question
• Further Reading
Objectives
The objective of this unit is to understand the various business etiquettes and how to use these
etiquettes while doing public speaking, talking on phone, conducting meeting and doing email and
when writing. This unit will explain us about business manners.
Introduction
No matter where you go, people expect you to behave in a certain way in society. There could be
slight variations of customs and traditions that you have to respect. However, majority of these
expectations will be common. For example, smiling is a universally recognized signal of an amiable
person. On the other hand, frowning and being rude while interacting is considered impolite.
In “Business Etiquette” we will discuss what etiquettes, the business / corporate world expects from
their employees and what you should do to meet their expectations. It helps in building a good,
positive network of business people.
We will also discuss business etiquette with respect to the established conventions of business-
dealing and the various cultural expectations.
In some parts of the world, starting the meeting with a straightforward discussion on business is
Self considered rude, and there are certain places where discussing business while dining is considered
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inappropriate. Thanks to globalization, we cannot afford to be ignorant of the different cultures we

live with.
Business Manners
The basis of business etiquette is about building strong relationships in your field by fostering better
communication. This can only happen when those you work with feel secure and comfortable.
Although basic business etiquette may vary from country to country, some principles stand the test
of time and geography.
Arrive on Time
In the business world, it is best to observe the old rule, “Five minutes early is late.” Allow yourself
enough time to arrive promptly, take off your coat, and settle in a bit. Arriving at a meeting exactly
at the appointed time can make you feel rushed, and you will look it. Time is a commodity; by being
punctual, you show you respect others.
Dress Appropriately for Work

While appropriate dress certainly varies from field to field and climate to climate, some things
remain the same. Clean, pressed clothing without any loose threads or tags and relatively polished,
closed-toe shoes are a must. Look at the people around you for ideas on what sort of clothing is
standard.
The adage, “Dress for the job you want, not the job you have,” is a good rule to follow. When in
doubt, ask human resources personnel when you get the job or discreetly ask someone you work
with.
Speak Kindly of Others

Taking care to greet your co-workers and remembering to say “please” and “thank you” make a
tremendous difference in the way they perceive you. Your good manners show that you acknowledge
those around you and are considerate of their presence. Avoid discussing political or religious
matters.
Keep the conversation focused on noncontroversial topics, so your co-workers find you easy to talk
to. That sort of diplomacy is the basic idea of business etiquette.
Avoid Gossip or Eavesdropping

Gossip and eavesdropping are childish behaviors that have no place in the workplace. If you hear a
rumor about someone in the workplace, do not pass it on. People don’t always know or remember
who starts a rumor, but they always remember who spreads it. If you walk into an area, and it seems
your co-workers don’t know you are there, make sure to greet them politely to remove any chance
that you accidentally eavesdrop on their conversation.
Show Interest in Others

Showing interest goes beyond business etiquette into general politeness, but it bears repeating:
When speaking with someone, show you are truly engaged. Do not play on your phone or computer,
and if you have to answer a communication say, “Excuse me one moment; I’m so sorry.”
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Maintain friendly eye contact. Listen. People will remember how you make them feel, and nobody
wants to feel as if they are ignored.
Watch Your Body Language

In the Western world, a handshake is still the typical greeting. Say hello with a firm but quick
handshake. This handshake is the extent of how much you should ever touch a co-worker – when it
doubt, just don’t touch. Hugs or other types of affection that you share with friends and family are
out of place in the workplace.
Introduce Yourself and Others

Sometimes you can tell people do not remember your name or position. Introduce or reintroduce
yourself quickly if that seems to be the case. If you are with a co-worker who is new, take the time
to introduce him to others. It helps to have a friendly person make you feel comfortable in the office.
Don’t Interrupt Others

When you have a great idea or suddenly remember something important, it can be tempting to blurt
it out. Do not do this. Interrupting the person who is speaking sends the message that what she is
saying isn’t as important as what you have to say. Demonstrating you are an attentive listener is the
backbone of diplomacy.
Mind Your Mouth

Using vulgar language is a surefire way to become unpopular in your workplace. Vulgar language
includes swear words and judgmental language. Business etiquette requires being constantly
mindful that you are in a diverse environment with people you do not know on a personal level.
Speak as though someone from human resources is always listening.
Consume Food and Drink Correctly

If you attend an after-hours work event, do not drink too much alcohol. When at work, take care not
to bring particularly malodorous foods that everyone in the office can’t help but smell. Don’t make
noises during or after you eat; no one wants to hear that.
At the heart of these 10 basics of business etiquette is diplomacy. Taking care to treat everyone
as the valuable people they are says a lot about who you are as a person. That is the kind of care
people notice and want to be around. Embrace the basics of business etiquette to become a lasting
employee or to advance through the corporate ranks.
Body Language Gestures

Whether it’s a business or personal interaction, multiple studies show that as much as 50-90% of
the communication is nonverbal. That means that people who are addicted to text messaging and
email may be sending only half the message, and receivers often misinterpret even that half.
Yet the use of text messaging for business purposes continues to grow, in concert with more of
Gen-Y entering the workplace, and a continuing increase in the global rate of texting by everyone.
This total rate now exceeds 7 billion texts sent per day, according to a new mobile marketing
website (more than one per day for every person on earth).
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But are these text messages an efficient and appropriate business tool? Where body language is
part of the message, it definitely is not. Let’s look at the most commonly recognized forms of body
language, and see how they apply to business:
• Eye contact. The eyes are the most powerful part of our body language, and can express
everything from happiness, annoyance, interest, to pain. Frequent eye contact is interpreted
as honesty and forthrightness. Staring is interpreted as too aggressive. These are obvious in
person, but lost in a text message.
• Posture. If you are trying to appear dominant or authoritative, stand erect with shoulders back.
A slumped position usually indicates insecurity, guilt, or weakness. A dominant sounding text
message, on the other hand, generates anger rather than acceptance.
• Mirroring. Most people feel more comfortable and open with people in a similar position to
themselves. An example would be sitting down to meet with a key vendor, rather than standing
to deliver demands. Good managers practice this one for personnel issues.
• Handshake. This, of course, comes into play to signal openness or goodwill at the beginning
of an interaction, and agreement at the end. Palm-to-palm contact is important for sincerity.
This cultural icon is totally missing from text messages and emails.
• Hand-to-face. Even when the words sound good, hand-to-face movements such as holding
the chin or scratching the face shows concern or lack of conviction. If a person is covering his
mouth while telling you something, he may be lying.
• Facial expression. A critical message delivered with a smiling face will have a totally different
impact than one delivered with an angry face. ‹Smiley face emoticons› were invented to
simulate this in text messages, but they don’t always work, because the sincerity is lost.
• Arms and legs position. Folded arms or crossed legs, perhaps turning away slightly, indicates
a lack of interest and detachment. Later uncrossed arms and legs may be a sign of acceptance
of your position or terms. An extrovert will have toes pointed out, introvert will keep them
pointed in. None of these come through in texting.
• Space occupied. Some people stand up and move around to be more dominant, maybe even
threatening. Even sitting, you can stretch your legs to occupy more space. Standing while
talking on the phone will make your voice sound more urgent. Maybe all CAPS will satisfy
this one.
Sure, there are many cases where a 10-word text message, or 140 character tweet will communicate
a simple message more efficiently than a face-to-face discussion. But most business processes, like
negotiating a contract, closing a sale, customer support, or managing employees, are much more
complicated than just words.
Email and Net Etiquettes

Etiquette helps individuals behave in a socially responsible way. In simpler words, etiquette
transforms a man into a gentle man.
Remember employees need to behave sensibly and appropriately to make their position secure at
the workplace. No organization likes to have someone who lacks etiquette. Respect the place where
you earn a living for yourself.
Communication plays a pivotal role in getting things done in the right way. Employees should
pass on information in its desired form across all related departments. Playing with information is
considered strictly unethical. Prefer written modes of communication over verbal communication.
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Email is considered a reliable mode of communication as there is written record of transaction for
future reference.
What is Netiquette (Network + Etiquette)?

Netiquette also called Internet Etiquette refers to a set of rules an individual needs to follow while
communicating through mails, writing blogs, sharing views on online portals or any other online
forum.
Let us go through some Internet Etiquette:

• Make sure emails are self explanatory. The other person should understand your views and
ideas.
• Don’t use capital letters in emails unless and until it is the first alphabet of a word. Turn off the
CAPS lock key. Emails written in all capitals are considered rude and loud.
• Be crisp. Lengthy emails are seldom read. Never ever deviate from the actual topic.
• The subject line ought to be meaningful and relevant. Through subject line employees can
quickly know what is written in the email.
• Start your mail with formal greetings.
• Format your emails correctly. Justify your text. Break the complete message into short
paragraphs with equal spaces in between. Use bullets -points wherever required.
• Keep all related members in loop. Do mark a blind copy to your reporting boss for him to know
what you are up to?
• All official emails must have signatures at the bottom. Your signature should include your
name, your company’s name, your designation and contact details. Make sure your signatures
do not have incorrect information.
• Avoid writing offensive emails to anyone. It worsens the situation. It is always better to sit with
the other person and discuss issues face to face.
• Take care of your font style and size. Official emails should ideally be written in Arial style
with a font size of twelve. Emails written in various colours and designer styles are considered
unprofessional and childish.
• Make sure you reply to all your mails. Don’t add members just for the sake of it. Don’t send
mails to individuals who have nothing to do with your information. It is a sheer waste of yours
as well as their time.
• Don’t write anything in your mail which might fall back on you. Read your mail twice before
hitting the send button.
• Employees should not open illegal or porn sites at workplace. Read carefully the terms and
conditions before opening any website. Do not open any site which might harm your office
computer.
• Take care of spelling errors, punctuation marks and grammar. Wrong spellings irritate the
readers. Be polite and soft in your communication.
• Avoid using short forms or abbreviations in official mails.
• It is important to respect other’s privacy. Don’t check anyone’s mails in his absence.
• The mail meant for a particular individual should be marked only to him. Do not mark anyone
else in bcc. Communicate with him in private.
• Use words like “regards”, “thanks”, “yours sincerely” to close your mails.
• Avoid attaching heavy files to your mail.
• Do not upload objectionable photographs in any networking site.
• Respect the other person’s views while sharing information on various online forums.
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Etiquette of the Written Word

Once you have identified the audience for your writing, try to anticipate the information that your
reader might think necessary and include it in your document as you write. It can be done by asking
yourself the “WH-questions”.
• Answer the WH questions − Answering “Who? What? Why? Where? When? Whom? How?”
will give you a headstart on the content of the writing.
• Determine the Start and Finish − After collecting all possible ideas that you have on the
topic, you could go through them and reject a few that won’t make sense in this write-up.
After that, find out the idea that will leave the maximum impact on reading it, and put that at
the start of the article. The end should have the idea that summarizes all the ideas in a clear
and crisp manner.
• Get a Second-Person Opinion − always get your written text checked by somebody before
submitting it. This lends an objective, second-person perspective to the review and stops your
emotions and indulgence from getting in the way. Do not do this if the content is confidential
and not to be shared.
• Discuss Suggestions and Include Improvements − Once your friends have suggested some
changes, implement the ones you think are relevant.
Developing Flow
Many people have very interesting ideas and even manage to put them on paper. Unfortunately, their
readership does not extend beyond a particular stage. This is because, though their writing is good
and the thoughts were properly mentioned, there may not have been a proper selection of words, or
maybe a proverb like − “nipping it in the bud” was used, which readers may not understand.
Let us discuss 15 things to remember while proof-reading and revising your writing −
Clarity
• Your writing must be understood at the first reading. Avoid technical jargon, unfamiliar words
or formal language.
Formal Vs. Modern

• Payment has been duly noted vs. we received your check.
• Attached hereto vs. please find Attached
Avoid Ambiguity
• Words with double meaning or sentences that confuse readers should be avoided
• Having eaten the fish, Kiran talked to Karan. (Who had the fish?)
Avoid Colloquialisms
• In a nutshell vs. in short
• In this day and age vs. today, presently
Avoid using many Words

• Prior to the event vs. before
• At this point in time vs. now
Avoid unnecessary Repetition

• Absolutely essential
• Combine together
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Include only relevant information

• Omit unnecessary background information.
• Keep sentences short and simple – 17 words or less.
Completeness
Check that all the information the reader will need is included −
• Who? What? Where? When? Why? How?
Correctness
Check accuracy of grammar and spelling of names of people and places.

• He done it vs. he did it.
• It’s color has faded vs. its color has faded.
Don’t Rely on Spell Check

• Typing ‘no/on’, ‘then/than’, ‘quite/quiet’, ‘lose/loose’ will not show errors.
Concreteness
Give specific details.

• Your investment plan will earn high interest.
• Your investment plan will earn 8% interest.
Convincing
Use language that is believable. Avoid exaggeration and superlatives.

• Always vs. Usually
• Never vs. Rarely
Courtesy
Display good manners in your writing. Use passive voice when communicating bad news to avoid
negative overtones. For example,
• We cannot agree to the terms and conditions outlined in the contract.
• Some discussions regarding the terms and conditions need to be done.
Write with the reader in mind

• Sexist - Chairman, businessman
• Condescension - ‘Of course’, ‘Obviously’
Using Bullet Points

• Communicates your message in an easy and clear manner.
• Highlights the most important information.
Etiquettes on the Telephone

When you’re working in customer support, you know that answering phone calls becomes the bread
and butter of your position. A frontline worker typically is hired for their strong communication
skills.
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While it may seem obvious — just pick up the phone and say “Hello?” — answering professional
calls are very different from answer personal calls. It’s easy to slip up and accidentally speak to
your customer the way you would to your best friend or mother.
1. Answer the call within three rings.
2. Immediately introduce yourself.
3. Speak clearly.
4. Only use speakerphone when necessary.
5. Actively listen and take notes.
6. Use proper language.
7. Remain cheerful.
8. Ask before putting someone on hold or transferring a call.
9. Be honest if you don’t know the answer.
10. Be mindful of your volume.
11. Check for and respond to voicemails.
1. Answer a call within three rings.

If your position entails always being available to callers, you should actually be available. That
means staying focused and answering calls immediately. The last thing you want to do is keep a
customer waiting after a string of endless ringing or send them to voicemail when you should’ve
been able and ready to reply.
As long as you’re alert and at your phone at all times — excluding breaks — this rule should
be fairly simple to follow. However, we recommend responding within three rings in order give
yourself enough time to get in the zone and prepare for the call. Picking up the phone right away
might leave you flustered.
2. Immediately introduce yourself.

Upon picking up the phone, you should confirm with the person whom they have called. In personal
calls, it’s sufficient to begin with a “Hello?” and let the caller introduce themselves first. However,
you want to allow the caller to know if they’ve hit a wrong number, as well as whom they are
speaking with.
Practice answer the phone with, “Hi, this is [Your first name] from [Your company]. How can I
help you?” Your customer will be met with warmth, which will encourage a positive start to your
call. And, if it ends up being an exasperated college student trying to order pizza, they’ll at least
appreciate your friendliness.
3. Speak clearly.
Phone calls, while a great option for those who detest in-person interaction, do require very strong
communication skills. For one, the person on the other end of the line can only judge you based
on your voice, since they don’t get to identify your body language and — hopefully — kind smile.
You always want to speak as clearly as possible. Project your voice without shouting. You want to
be heard and avoid having to repeat yourself. A strong, confident voice can make a customer trust
you and your support more. In case of bad cell service or any inability to hear or be heard,
immediately ask to hang up and call back.
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4. Only use speakerphone when necessary.

We all know the trials of speakerphone. It’s easier for you because you can use your hands to
multitask. However, for the other caller, it’s like trying to hear one voice through a honking crowd
of taxis in Manhattan — impossible and frustrating.
Give your customers your full attention, and avoid speakerphone. This will make it easier for both
parties to be heard, and it will ensure that you’re actually paying attention to them. You may need
to use speakerphone at rare occasions, such as when it’s a conference call or when you’re trying
to troubleshoot on the phone. While speakerphone may be appropriate at these times, it’s always
better to use a headset to remain hands-free.
5. Actively listen, and take notes.

Speaking of paying attention to your customers, it’s essential that you’re actively listening to them
throughout the conversation. Actively listening means hearing everything they have to say and
basing your response off of their comments, rather than using a prescribed script. This proves to
your customers that you’re present and are empathetic to their inconveniences.
It’s helpful to take notes during support calls. You’ll want to file a record post-conversation, and
notes will be immensely helpful. It also ensures that, during long-winded explanations from
customers, you can jot down the main points and jump into problem-solving without requiring
them to repeat.
6. Use proper language.

A key difference between professional and personal phone calls is obvious — the language. It
might be acceptable to use slang and swears when talking on the phone with your friends, but this
kind of language can cause you to lose a customer for life.
Always be mindful and respectful when on the phone. You never know what customers might be
offended by something you say, so it’s best to use formal language. It’s okay to throw in humor if
appropriate, but never crack a joke that could upset a customer.
7. Remain cheerful.
You never know when a customer is having a bad day. When someone is rude to you on the phone,
your immediate reaction may be to put them in your place. First, though, take a moment to step into
their shoes and recognize why they’re so upset.
The point is to always remain positive and friendly, especially in the face of negativity. Your
optimistic outlook may be enough to turn a failing phone call right around. Remind yourself that
the last thing your customer probably wanted was to spend their afternoon on the phone with
customer support. So, make that call the best it can be, and it may create a loyal, lifetime customer.
8. Ask before putting someone on hold or transferring a call.

There’s often nothing more infuriating than being put on hold. After waiting on hold for ten or
fifteen minutes to speak with a real-life human being, you finally get to explain your problem. Then,
you’re immediately put back on hold and then transferred to someone else to whom you must re-
explain the whole problem. Talk about exhausting.
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However, if you must put a customer on hold or transfer their call, always ask for their permission
first. Explain why it’s necessary to do so, and reassure them that you — or another employee —
are going to get their problem solved swiftly. By keeping your customer in the loop, they’ll be less
inclined to complain about a long wait time.
9. Be honest if you don’t know the answer.

You might need to put a customer on hold or transfer their call if the dreaded occurs — you don’t
know the solution. Perhaps you’ve tried everything you can or simply have no idea what they’re
talking about. Don’t panic; customer support representatives are humans, too, and it’s okay not to
be the omniscient voice of reason.
It’s best to admit when you don’t know something, rather than making excuses or giving false
solutions. However, tell them that you’re going to do everything you can to find an answer and
get back to them momentarily, or find a co-worker who does know the answer. Customers don’t
typically expect you to have all the solutions at hand, but they will expect you to be transparent.
10. Be mindful of your volume.

You may be so focused on your phone call with a customer that you’re barely paying attention to
your present setting. When working in a call center, things can get pretty loud. You always want to
be mindful of your volume and ensure that you’re not disrupting the ability of your co-workers to
speak to customers and get their work done.
If you are on a call that requires you to speak louder due to a bad connection or a hard-of-hearing
customer, simply step out of the room and speak with them separately. Your customers are always
your main concern, but you don’t want to inhibit the work ethic of others in your workplace.
11. Check for and respond to voicemails.

It’s quite possible that a customer might reach out to you when you’re on a break or after you’ve left
work for the day. If it’s possible for you to receive voicemails, make sure you’re always checking
for them. It’s easy for a voicemail to slip under the radar, but the customer won’t easily forget.
Start and end each day by checking your voicemail. It takes just a few minutes and can avoid a lost
customer support request. Your customers will appreciate your prompt response, and you can get
on to doing what you do best — providing knowledgeable and friendly support.
These tips should provide you and your team with basic guidelines for phone etiquette and, if
executed properly, your company should see significant improvement in customer experience.
However, there will be some interactions where these actions may not be enough to defuse the
situation. Some customer interactions will require your team to take special measures to ensure
you’re meeting the customer’s immediate and long-term needs. In the next section, we’ll break
down a few of these scenarios and what you can do to resolve them.
Handling Business Meetings

Meetings can consume the better part of your day and leave you wondering, “What did I accomplish
by attending one meeting after the next?” Before you schedule or attend another meeting, consider
the goals and objectives of the meeting first.
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1. Is it for informational purposes only? If so, can you obtain the necessary information from
someone else?
2. Is it because you have something to contribute? If so, do you need to stay for the entire meeting?
3. Are you scheduling the meeting? If so, what steps will you take to ensure that it produces the
results you need – without the attendees feeling as though you’ve wasted their time?
Here are 20 techniques you can implement to ensure you are scheduling, managing and participating
in productive meetings.
1. Start meetings on time. This shows you respect everyone’s time. If you always start meetings
late, you are setting an expectation and people will arrive late. Be in your chair a few minutes
before the start time.
2. Show up on time. When you show up late, you are telling everyone else that your time is more
valuable than theirs — combined.
3. Use an agenda. Meetings that last more than 20 minutes need an agenda to ensure the group
remains focused and the appropriate items are covered.
4. Distribute the agenda prior to the meeting. This allows for prep time that may be necessary,
rather than catching attendees off guard or risking those who will attend unprepared.
5. Keep it short. A shorter meeting can accomplish just as much as one that is twice as long.
6. Schedule a 45-minute meeting instead of an hour. Meetings have a way of filling the time
scheduled — don’t allow this to happen. Use the extra 15 minutes to accomplish another
task, such as: filing meeting notes, inputting tasks as the result of the meeting into your task
management system, check voicemail and return a call, grab a snack or take a break!
7. Don’t allow scope creep. Discussing an unrelated topic is one of the easiest ways to derail
a meeting and will frustrate others. This is another reason an agenda is necessary. If a topic
comes up that isn’t on the agenda, put it on the parking lot and return to it at a later date, or
address it at the end if there is time.
8. Acknowledge the elephant in the room. If there is something standing in the way of making
forward progress, acknowledge it up front and move on.
9. Choose an effective moderator or facilitator. If this is not your strength, enlist someone to
help. Someone must be responsible for keeping the meeting on topic and moving forward.
10. Conduct meetings while standing. Can you accomplish just as much in a short meeting where
you stand than in a longer meeting where you get comfortable in a chair?
11. Listen. Show respect to the person speaking because you’ll want the same respect when it’s
your turn.
12. Stop multitasking. Establish a policy of no e-mail, texting, or web surfing during meetings. If
the meeting is short enough this should not be problematic.
13. Be prepared. Don’t be caught off guard if someone asks for your opinion or advice. No one
appreciates the person that doesn’t participate; what’s the point of attending?
14. Don’t speak just to be heard. Speak only if you have something meaningful to add. People
stop listening to those who speak all the time but never really say anything.
15. Follow up. Most meetings are likely to create action items. Though everyone should be
responsible for their own to-do’s, people get busy. They might forget what they were asked to
do or fail to communicate the completion. Designate someone to record action items and post
them to a shared document. Someone will still need to remind others of their commitment.
16. Cancel a meeting. If you are the meeting organizer and you realize that you aren’t prepared
for it, do everyone a favor and reschedule it.
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17. Can the meeting be replaced by a phone call? Ensure that every meeting you attend or
schedule can’t be replaced by a phone call. If a meeting is needed later as a result of the call;
schedule it at that time.
18. End the meeting on time; if not early. Never assume that you can continue a meeting after
the scheduled end time; you may not be aware of what attendees have scheduled next.
19. Use the calendar scheduling feature in Microsoft Outlook to schedule meetings. You will
save time using this feature when scheduling a meeting with those in your company where you
can view their calendars. You can also use this to schedule meetings outside your company;
you just won’t be able to see when someone is available.
20. Use Doodle. Doodle did a study in September 2010 that determined that professionals spend
4.75 hours a week to arrange 8.9 meetings. That amount of wasted time translates into a Friday
afternoon off each week! Wouldn’t that be more fun?
Productive meetings are possible when you implement these techniques. What can you do
immediately to ensure that you’re scheduling and managing a productive and efficient meeting?
Introduction Characteristic
1) QUALITY OF VOICE: speaker’s speech is considered to be normal and good when it posses
good quality of voice, means pleasant and intelligible. Number of harmonics noise ratio should
be 15.
2) PITCH: Pitch is the psychological co-relate of frequency. Speaker should use his optimum
pitch where output is maximum with less vocal efforts. That means he should not deviate from
his optimum speech. Pitch should not be too high, too low or monotonous or stereotype.
3) LOUDNESS: the speaker’s loudness should be normal i.e. in range of 40-80 dB. Loudness
should not be micro phonic or macro phonic.
4) INTONATION: Intonation means variation of pitch or fluctuation of pitch during delivery of
speech. Speech is considered having good characteristics when there is proper use of intonation
or inflexion (tone). This means speaker should not have limited pitch in his speech or should
not be monotonous. Normal adult person should have pitch range one and a half octave in
males or 2 in females.
5) RATE OF SPEECH: It refers to the number of words or syllables uttered in a particular time
period. Speakers rate of speech should be 140 words/minute & 300 syllables/minute or 2.5
words/second & 7syllables/second. Being too fast may result in omission of syllable and
articulation may not be similar.
6) RHYTHM: It refers to easy and smooth flow of speech or continuity of speech. A good
speaker’s easy flow of speech can be observed during his delivery of speech that means he
should not have any struggle or effortful speech neither he repeats, hesitates, pauses nor stops
in syllables. Stuttering can’t maintain rhythm.
7) STRESS: It refers to extra pressure given on particular syllable during speech. Speaker is
considered to have good speech if he doesn’t lay stress on making us clear his speech.
8) ARTICULATION: The process of production of single speech sound is called Articulation.
Speaker should have proper utterances of speech sound. Intelligibility of speech depends on
proper articulation.
9) INTELLIGIBILITY OF SPEECH: High intelligibility posses’ good speech.
10) FLEXIBILITY: It is one of the most important characteristic of speech. Speech should be
flexible depending on situations. Flexibility of speech depends on the manner how it is said.
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11) POSITIVE FEEDBACK: Speaker should have positive feedback from the listeners like
clapping. Then the speech is considered to have good characteristics of speech.
12) ADEQUATE PROJECTION: The voice should be loud enough to reach the listeners. Speaker’s
voice becomes more louder when there is no noise in the room. Hearing impaired children
speak with soft voice because they can’t perceive their own voice in the environment.
13) CORRECT PRONUNCIATION: Speaker should have correct pronunciation in normal speech.
If the articulation is not proper as per the phoneme of that word then it is not called correct
pronunciation.
14) SEMANTIC SOUNDNESS: The appropriate words are selected and arranged in proper
manner to convey the meaning of what speaker speaks. According to the context, speaker
puts all the words together to express idea for listeners. While expressing, speaker follows the
linguistic rules to frame sentences in correct manner to make the listeners understand.
15) ANIMATION: When an individual speaks, he represents some kinds of body language with
gestures to convey meaning. Like instead of saying ‘NO’ people shake their head.
16) CONTEXT: Individual should speak to the topic i.e. related to subject. He should not deviate
from his topic.
17) SYNTAX: Individual should use syntactic rules of language while speaking.
Model Speeches
Every individual is familiar with the idea of a business speech that what is business speech, its
purpose and importance. When a person stands among a great number of people and starts
delivering any kind of information, which may be or may not be useful for the audience, but mostly
it is valuable, is called a speech. A speech which is delivered in business for some specific purpose
is known as business speech. This is also a one way of Business Communication and audience
has to sit on a chair for a few hours while the speech is being delivered.
The audience knows it very well that the speech must contain anything that will beneficial for them.
The main purpose of the business speech is to inform the audience about any specific topic. It really
possesses great value in the field of business. Generally, the entrepreneur has to deal with public or
private speeches on regular basis. So for a passionate business candidate, it is necessary to know
the basic purpose and types of business speech.
Types of Business Speech

The following are three main types of business speech.
1. Informative Speech/Speaking
2. Persuasive Speech/Speaking
3. Special Occasion Speech/Speaking
Let’s discuss them all below in detail.
Informative Business Speech

Informative business speech or speaking is such a speech that delivers any information to the
audience that they don’t know before. In short, such speech, which comprises purpose to deliver
useful information to audience is called informative speech. It can either be called as informative
speaking. Suppose that there is a professor in a class whose topic for the current day is to discuss the
theory of relativity given by Albert Einstein. It seems confusing and hard to understand for a few
students, but the fact is that the professor is delivering something informative. Simply, conveying
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the information which is unknown to the audience is called informative speaking or speech. The
following are known kinds of informative speech.
Speeches about Objects

Speeches about the objects are those speeches that are about things that grab attention of the senses
of the audience, such as touch, taste, smell, see or feel. Its main purpose is to speak about the
sensory objects or the things that have physical shape. It can be about how various wildlife animals
look, what is the smell of a medicine or any favorite song.
Speeches about Events

Those speeches that inform the audience about historical incidents or current occasions are called
speeches about the event. For example, a new president of any country is delivering a speech on
the oath taking ceremony about the future planning or events to be arranged, is a speech about the
events.
Speeches about Processes

The main purpose of the speeches about processes is to inform the audience about anything which
is currently happening. The best example of the speech about the process is a cooking class where
the audience is informed about how to cook the specific dish by following a process.
Speeches about Concepts

Speeches that inform the audience about any concept such as the peace of the world, freedom of
rights, or love, are called speeches about the concept. Through this kind of speech, the audience
gets aware of the primary concept of any topic.
Persuasive Business Speech

The speech which is being delivered with the intention of convincing the audience to accept the
particular opinion, viewpoint or fact and create influence on the audience to do anyhow, is called
the persuasive business speech or persuasive speaking. Suppose that the four friends are having a
debate about global warming, each friend is trying to persuade others for following the given point
of view; this can be called as a persuasive speech. Same as informative speech, it can be said as
persuasive speaking. In short, the speech which influences the listeners to follow a certain idea is
called a persuasive speech. The persuasive speech comprises three kinds, which are defined briefly
below.
Factual Persuasive Speech

The Factual Persuasive Speech is such a speech that is behind concrete proof about the certainty of
anything that had happened. The main purpose of this speech is to persuade the listeners whether
the certain thing happened or not, exists or doesn’t exist. Suppose that a student is giving a speech
about the first man, who landed on the surface of the moon. Nobody knows whether it did happen
or not, yet it possesses concrete proofs.
Value Persuasive Speech

A Value Persuasive Speech is such a speech that tells the audience about anything, whether it is
wrong or right. Its basic purpose is to challenge the ethical or moral aspect of the certain issue. For
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example, anyone is giving a speech about capital punishment, whether it is moral or immoral, right
or wrong, done or prevented; this speech is a value persuasive speech.
Policy Persuasive Speech

The speech, which is given to persuade the audience for either following a policy or rejecting it, is
known as a Policy Persuasive Speech. Not just a policy, but speech about accepting or rejecting a
rule or a candidate is also a policy persuasive speech. Suppose that the president of a country is not
satisfied with the present foreign policy and wants to change it. The president goes to give a speech
to higher authorities for convincing them to change the current foreign policy and support the new
policy; this speech is a policy persuasive speech.
Special Occasion Business Speech

Everyone intentionally or unintentionally, knowingly or unknowingly becomes part of at least one
special occasion business speech in the whole life span. When a person is asked to say a few words
on the best friend’s wedding, parent’s anniversary, boss’s promotion or funeral of any relative, this
is called the special occasion speaking or special occasion speech. Usually, this kind of speech is
delivered to show respect and kindness for a person or special event. A range of entertaining
speeches also comes under the category of special occasion speech. The basic purpose of the
speech is to point out the importance of a specific person/event. Most of special occasion speeches
are delivered in the common occasions such as gathering in bar, award ceremonies, political event,
wedding and so on. Sometimes, the special speech happens suddenly when the speaker is asked to
say a few words about the event/person.
There are hundreds of events that are a part of a person’s daily life. Every special occasion requires
at least one person to deliver the speech. To make it very convenient, special occasion speech is
divided into to four parts.
Ceremonial Speech
Ceremonial Speeches are those speeches that are given during any ceremony or ritual. These
ceremonies possess special importance and require a specific person for delivering an effective
speech. Making it to the point and easy to understand for everyone, ceremonial speech is divided
into eight parts that include introductions, acceptances, presentations, dedications, roasts, toasts,
farewell and eulogies. Below, each part is defined briefly.
Speech of Introduction
Speech of Introduction is the most common and very first part of ceremonial speech. The primary
purpose of the speaker in these speeches is to introduce himself/herself or another speaker in a
ceremony. Generally, it is also termed as mini speech, because it takes only a few minutes to
introduce anyone. Suppose that a person stands up in a gathering and informs the audience that
Mr. Smith is going to deliver a speech about Global Warming. In such a case, there will not be any
impact of introduction on the audience, because the introduction only contains name and topic,
nothing else. The proper introduction speech covers a few factors such as the introduction, body
and eventually the conclusion.
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Speech of Presentation
Speech of presentation is given to accompany any award or honor. This is the second type of
ceremonial speech. Presentation speeches can be as simple as giving a short introduction of a person
as “This is Mr. Smith, who have won the Effective Public Speaker Award”. Before delivering a
presentation speech, it is necessary to decide how long time it should take.
Speech of Acceptance
Actually, the speech of acceptance is a complement to the speech of presentation. It is delivered
by the person who has won a prize or honor. These speeches also require a few sentences to define
the primary purpose as “Mr. Smith is happy to receive the Effective Public Speaker Award and
would like to thank the company”. While on the other hand, these speeches can also be delivered
at the beginning of specific presentation or video as many singers give a speech at the beginning
of a song.
Speech of Dedication
Speech of dedication is delivered at the inauguration ceremony of anything such as the opening of
a new store, naming a building after someone, placing of a memorial on the wall, completion of
a new library and so on. The basic purpose of delivering the speech of dedication is to highlight
the importance of any project, or dedicate it after any important person. Suppose that uncle of Mr.
Smith has passed away and contributed a massive amount to a school, so the school decides to
dedicate one of the living or educational areas after the name of Smith’s uncle and Mr. Smith is
asked to give a dedication speech.
Toasts
Everyone is asked to deliver a toast at least once in the life. A toast is a speech which is delivered with
the purpose of appreciating or congratulating or remembering someone’s achievements. Usually for
congratulating someone about getting a new job or giving an honor or celebrating a marriage, the
toast is delivered. While on the other hand, toasts can also be delivered for appreciating someone’s
achievements. Finally, a toast is delivered for remembering someone’s accomplishments.
Roasts
The roast speeches are very exciting as well as peculiar because their primary purpose is to either
praise a person who is being honored or insult in a good-natured manner. Mostly, a roast is given in
the final moment of a dinner party arranged in the honor of someone’s achievements.
Eulogies
Before defining the purpose of delivering eulogy speeches, there should be a little of what a eulogy
is. The speech which is given in the honor of a person who has died is called the eulogy. Eulogy
does not mean elegy, which is a song of mourning. No one is allowed to deliver eulogies in the
entire life span, unless he is a priest, minister, imam, rabbi or other religious position of leadership.
Speech of Farewell
A speech of farewell is delivered to simply say good-bye to one part of the life when moving to the
next part. Mostly, speech of farewell is delivered at the farewell party of a person. When leaving
the current job and getting a new job or moving ahead from graduate to the next level; this is the
perfect time for a speech of farewell.
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Inspirational Speech
Inspirational speeches are those speeches that provoke the emotions of the audience. At some
point, an inspirational speech can also be a ceremonial speech. There are two types of inspirational
speeches, i.e. goodwill speech and the speech of commencements.
Goodwill Speeches
Goodwill Speeches are delivered to change the perception of the audience in the favor of an
organization or a person. In short, it is an attempt to create the view of the audience more
favorable for a person/company. Goodwill Speech can be both informative and persuasive by nature,
because it delivers the information and make the audience to approve one’s opinion. The fact is that
a goodwill speech is delivered on a specific event or gathering. The following are three main kinds
of Goodwill Speeches i.e. Public Relations Speech, Justification Speech, and an Apology Speech.
Public Relations Speech

The main purpose of delivering public relation speech is to enhance the reputation of an organization
or a person. The speaker tries to convince the audience to accept what is being heard.
Justification Speech
The speech of justification is given when someone tries to defend about what made a person to take
such critical actions. Mostly, the speaker is already in worse behavior when delivering a justification
speech and tells the audience the reason of obtaining such behavior.
Apology Speech
Every individual is familiar with the idea of Apology Speech. When any actor, singer, politician,
musician, professional athlete, or celebrity gets caught doing something inappropriate, then he/she
decides to apologize for making such a mess. This is called an Apology Speech.
Speech of Commencements
Speech of Commencement happens when celebrating a unique achievement of any person. Mostly,
this type of business speech is delivered when a person gets graduation from a school. At some
point in the life, every individual has gone through a speech of commencement.
Role Play on Selected Topics with Case Analysis and Real Life Experiences
Perhaps you needed to convince a prospective client to do business with your organization. Or
maybe you had to present to executive board members, and you knew that they would be peppering
you with questions about your proposal.
Whatever the situation, chances are that you were nervous about the meeting; and practicing in front
of a mirror may not have helped you overcome your anxiety, especially with respect to answering
difficult questions.
This is where role-playing can be useful. In this article, we’ll look at what it is, and we’ll see
how you and your team can use this technique to prepare for a variety of challenging and difficult
situations.
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Uses and Benefits

Role-playing takes place between two or more people, who act out roles to explore a particular
scenario.
It’s most useful to help you or your team prepare for unfamiliar or difficult situations. For example,
you can use it to practice sales meetings, interviews, presentations, or emotionally difficult
conversations, such as when you’re resolving conflict.
By acting scenarios like these out, you can explore how other people are likely to respond to
different approaches; and you can get a feel for approaches that are likely to work, and for those that
might be counter-productive. You can also get a sense of what other people are likely to be thinking
and feeling in the situation.
Also, by preparing for a situation using role-play, you build up experience and self-confidence with
handling the situation in real life, and you can develop quick and instinctively correct reactions to
situations. This means that you’ll react effectively as situations evolve, rather than making mistakes
or becoming overwhelmed by events.
You can also use role-play to spark brainstorming sessions, to improve communication between
team members, and to see problems or situations from different perspectives.
How to Use Role Play

It is easy to set up and run a role-playing session. It will help to follow the five steps below.
Step 1: Identify the Situation

To start the process, gather people together, introduce the problem, and encourage an open discussion
to uncover all of the relevant issues. This will help people to start thinking about the problem before
the role-play begins.
If you’re in a group and people are unfamiliar with each other, consider doing some icebreaker
exercises beforehand.
Step 2: Add Details

Next, set up a scenario in enough detail for it to feel “real.” Make sure that everyone is clear about
the problem that you’re trying to work through, and that they know what you want to achieve by
the end of the session.
Step 3: Assign Roles

Once you’ve set the scene, identify the various fictional characters involved in the scenario. Some
of these may be people who have to deal with the situation when it actually happens (for example,
salespeople). Others will represent people who are supportive or hostile, depending on the scenario
(for example, an angry client).
Once you’ve identified these roles, allocate them to the people involved in your exercise; they should
use their imagination to put themselves inside the minds of the people that they’re representing.
This involves trying to understand their perspectives, goals, motivations, and feelings when they
enter the situation. (You may find the Perceptual Positions technique useful here.)
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Step 4: Act Out the Scenario

Each person can then assume their role, and act out the situation, trying different approaches where
necessary.
It can be useful if the scenarios build up in intensity. For instance, if the aim of your role-play is to
practice a sales meeting, the person playing the role of the potential client could start as an ideal
client, and, through a series of scenarios, could become increasingly hostile and difficult. You could
then test and practice different approaches for handling situations, so that you can give participants
experience in handling them.
Step 5: Discuss What You Have Learned

When you finish the role-play, discuss what you’ve learned, so that you or the people involved can
learn from the experience.
For example, if you’re using it as part of a training exercise, you could lead a discussion on the
scenarios you have explored, and ask for written summaries of observations and conclusions from
everyone who was involved.
Further Tips
Some people feel threatened or nervous when asked to role-play, because it involves acting. This
can make them feel silly, or that they’ve been put on the spot.
To make role-playing less threatening, start with a demonstration. Hand two “actors” a prepared
script, give them a few minutes to prepare, and have them act out the role-play in front of the rest of
the group. This approach is more likely to succeed if you choose two outgoing people, or if you’re
one of the actors in the demonstration.
Another technique for helping people feel more comfortable is to allow them to coach you during
the demonstration. For instance, if you’re playing the role of a customer service representative
who’s dealing with an angry customer, people could suggest what you should do to make things
right.
Role-Play Example
In an effort to improve customer support, John, Customer Service Manager for Mythco Technologies,
sets up a team role-playing session. Acting as the leader/trainer, John brings together a group of
software developers and customer support representatives.
He divides the 12 people into two groups: Group A represents the customer support representatives;
Group B represents the customer.
John tells Group A that the customer in this situation is one of Mythco’s longest-standing customers.
This customer accounts for nearly 15 percent of the company’s overall annual revenue. In short, the
company cannot afford to lose her business!
John tells Group B that the customer has recently received a software product that did not live up
to expectations. While the customer has a long-standing relationship with Mythco, this time she’s
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growing weary because Mythco has previously sold her faulty software on two separate occasions.
Clearly, her relationship with Mythco is in jeopardy.
John now allows the groups to brainstorm for a few minutes.

Next – with this particular approach to role-play – each group sends forth an “actor” to take part in
the role-play. The actor receives support and coaching from members of the team throughout the
role-playing process. Each team is able to take time-outs and regroup quickly as needed.
John runs through the scenario several times, starting with the “customer” behaving gently and
ending with the customer behaving aggressively. Each time, a best solution is found. Of course,
John can always ask for additional role-playing and suggestions if he feels that the process needs to
continue, or that the team has yet to uncover the very best solutions.
Once it’s clear that they cannot identify any more solutions, John brings the two groups together
and discusses the session. During this, they discuss the strategies and the solutions that the actors
implemented, and how they could apply them to a real-life situation.
John also asks each team to write a short summary of what they learned from the exercise. He then
combines the summaries and provides a copy of everything learned to all participants.
Key Points
Role-playing happens when two or more people act out roles in a particular scenario. It’s most
useful for helping you prepare for unfamiliar or difficult situations.
You can also use it to spark brainstorming sessions, improve communication between team
members, and see problems or situations from different perspectives.
To role-play:
Identify the situation.
Add details.
Assign roles.
Act out the scenario.
Discuss what you have learned.
Summary
If you worry that public speaking has nothing to offer you, or simply isn’t worth the stress, then
check out this brief review of the benefits of public speaking:
• Overcome fears
• Boost self-esteem
• Share your views with others
• Improve critical thinking skills
• Analyze communication habits
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• Improve communication skills

• Make new social connections
Keywords
• Networking: The act of meeting new people in a business or social context.
• Publicity: Advertising or other activities designed to rouse public interest in something.
• Critical thinking: The application of logical principles, rigorous standards of evidence, and
careful reasoning to the analysis and discussion of claims, beliefs, and issues
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Self assessment
1. Public speaking is addressing a gathering.
a) True
b) False
2. Public speaking is only verbal activity.

a) True
b) False
3. Which of these should be avoided for an effective speech?

a) Determination of the purpose
b) Selection of message
c) Lack of interest
d) Selection of theme
4. Which of these factors is not required to determine the purpose of speech?

a) Providing information
b) Discouragement
c) Accepting ideas
d) Entertainment
5. Which of these ingredients is not required for selection of theme?

a) Planning
b) Disorganisation
c) Preparation
d) Organisation
6. Which of these should be avoided for an effective speech?

a) Planning of speech
b) Preparation of speech
c) Long sentences
d) Organisation
7. Which of these should be avoided during the delivery of a speech?

a) Confidence
b) Clarity
c) Pauses
d) Rudeness
8. Which of these is not a type of public speech?

a) Short speech
b) Informal speech
c) Written speech
d) Professional speech
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9. What is the maximum time for a short speech?

a) Ten minutes
b) Thirty minutes
c) Forty- five minutes
d) One hour
10. Which of these does not come under short speech?

a) Introducing dignitaries
b) Presenting reports
c) Giving a briefing
d) Presenting an award
Review Question
• What is business etiquette?
• Explain telephone etiquettes.
• Explain effective meeting handling.
Answer to Self assessment

1) A 2) B 3) C 4) B 5) B 6) C 7) D 8) C 9) A 10) B
Further Reading
Recommended Books :
1. Communication by C.S. Rayudu, Himalaya Publishing House.
2. Communication Today - Understanding Creative Skill by Reuben Ray, Himalaya Publishing
House.
3. Successful Communication by Malra Treece.
4. Business Communication Today by Bovee & Thill, McGraw Hill.
5. Principles of Business Communication by Murphy and Hilderbrandth.
6. Effective Communication Skiils by O. N. Kaul & K. K. Sharma, Creative Publishers
7. Chicago Manual of style PHI.
8. Essentials of Business Communication by Rajendra Pal & J. S. Korlahalli, Sultan Chand &
Sons.
9. Business Communication by K. K. Sinh
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Sample test paper-1

Time: 3 Hrs. Max.Marks:70
There are seven questions in this paper. Each question is of 10 marks each.
1. Define Communication. Write Essentials of Good Communication.
2. Explain Face-to-Face Communication with its merits and limitation.
3. What do you mean by Business Letters ? Explain layout of Business Letters.
4. (A) As a Sales Manager draft a Sales Letter for Promoting sale of Tata Motors Pvt. Ltd.,
Pune.
(B) Draft a circular letter announcing the establishment of a new branch of HDFC Finance
Ltd., Mumbai.
5. What is Listening ? Explain the principles of Good Listening.
6. Define Oral Communication. Explain Media of Oral Communication.
7. What are role plays? What are its benefits?
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Business Communication 97
NOTES
Sample test paper-2

Time: 3 Hrs. Max.Marks:70
There are seven questions in this paper. Each question is of 10 marks each.
1. Define Communication. What are the barriers of business communication?
2. What is internal and external communication?
3. What do you mean by Business Letters What are the features of a circular letter?.
4. (A) As a Sales Manager draft a Sales Letter for Promoting sale of TCS Gurgaon
(B) Draft an Interview letter announcing the post of Branch manager of a new branch of
HDFC Finance Ltd., Gurgaon.
5. What precautions should a speaker take while delivering a speech?
6. How is body language used as a means of communication?
7. What are advantages and disadvantages of office memos?
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Communication Skills-I 99 Self Learning Material
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COMMUNICATION SKILLS - 1

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Communication Skills-I

Self Learning Material

Sample test paper-1 97

Sample test paper-2 98

The five key principles

1. Expand your vocabulary

2. Master English spelling

4. Improve your grammar

Improving spoken English

Parallelism – Structure Errors

Parallelism – Incorrect Prepositions

Now let’s see if punctuating it makes a difference!

PUNCTUATION RULES IN ENGLISH

Vocabulary Building to Encourage the Individual to Communicate Effectively

Four basic steps to a better vocabulary

4. Study and Review Regularly

Common Errors in Business Writing

1. Typos, poor punctuation and grammatical errors

2. Management speak and buzz words

3. Forgetting the reader

4. Long words and elaborate phrases

7. Failing to make an impression

8. Too much text

10. Being vague

Sentence: a group of words that expresses a complete thought.

Self Assessment Questions

2. A group of words with a subject and a predicate.

6. Put … ........................ between two complete independent clauses separated by a coordinating

8. Nouns perform the function of naming.

Answers for Self Assessment

Communication can be Internal, External, Upward, Downward, Formal, Informal, Lateral,

Formal communication generally follows a well-defined hierarchical pattern and periodicity.

Principles of Effective Business Communication

Seven C‘s of Effective Communication:

Communication is thus a process by which meaning is assigned and conveyed in an attempt to

Advantages of Oral Communication

• Oral communication is essential for teamwork and group energy.

Disadvantages/Limitations of Oral Communication

ADVANTAGES OF FACE-TO-FACE CONVERSATION:

DISADVANTAGES OF FACE-TO-FACE CONVERSATION

Introduction to Visual Communication

Visual communication forms:

Advantages of Visual Communication:

Type 1. Video Teleconferencing

Type2. Audio Teleconferencing

Type 3. Audiographics Teleconferencing

Type 4. Web Teleconferencing;

Media of nonverbal communication

Types of Nonverbal Communication

Smiling is a powerful cue that transmits:

Posture and body orientation

Space and Distance

Appearance indicates the degree of importance or interest a person conveys to an occasion. By

For example, a red octagon may be a symbol for “stop”.

Importance of Nonverbal Communication

Well Expression of the Speaker’s Attitude

Providing Information Regarding the Sender of the Written Message

Expressing the Attitude of the Listener and Receiver

Gaining Knowledge about a Class of People

Gaining Knowledge about the Status of a Person

Communicating Common Message to All People

Communicating with the Handicapped People

Conveying Message to the Illiterate People

Quick Expression of Message