Lecture 1

UNIT 1
INTRODUCTION TO
EFFECTIVE WRITING
EFFECTIVE WRITING

In your opinion, what is

effective writing?
Dear sir,
We are in receipt of your letter of 8 March
2006.
We are extremely distressed to learn that an
error was made pertaining to your esteemed
order. Please be informed that the cause of
your complaint has been investigated and it
actually appears that the error occurred in
our packing section and it was not discerned
before this order was dispatched to your
goodself.
Arrangements have been made for a repeat order to be
dispatched to you immediately and this should leave our
warehouse later today. It is our sincere hope that you
will have no cause for further complaint with this
replacement order.

Once again we offer our humblest apologies for the

unnecessary inconvenience that you have been caused
in this instance.
Please find enclosed herewith a copy of our new
catalogue for your reference and perusal.
Kindly contact the undersigned should you require any
further clarifications.

Very truly yours,

Donald Kee
EFFECTIVE WRITING
Effective writing avoids
 Old-fashioned expressions

 Long-winded expressions

 Jargons

 Big words / Unfamiliar

words
EFFECTIVE WRITING

The secret of effective writing

is to use plain English, a
reader-friendly writing style –
to write in a natural style as if
you were having a
conversation.
Hi Rammy

ORDER NUMBER TH2457

Thanks for your letter of 8 March.

I’m so sorry about the problem with your

order. I’ve checked it out and found that the
mistake happened in the packing section. But
too bad, it wasn’t discovered before the
goods were sent to you.
I’ve arranged to send you a replacement
today, so I hope this time things will be OK.
Once again, so sorry for the inconvenience
caused.
I also send a copy of our new catalogue to
you. Have a look at it and may you find it
interesting.
Alright, just give me a call on 2358272 if you
have any questions.

Yours sincerely
Mariah Carey
 GOOD BUSINESS
WRITING
 Use plain English
 gets message across easily and
quickly
 Adopt natural/conversational
style
 conversational but professional
Dear Mr Rammy

YOUR ORDER NUMBER TH2457

Thank you for your letter of 8 March.
I am very sorry to hear about the mistake
made with your order. I have looked into this
and found that the mistake happened in the
packing section. Unfortunately it was not
discovered before the goods were sent to
you.
I have arranged for a repeat order to be sent to you
today, and I hope this meets your requirements.

Once again, please accept my apologies for the

inconvenience caused.

I enclose a copy of our new catalogue and I hope

you find it interesting.

Please give me a call soon on 2358272 if you have

any questions.

Yours sincerely
Lady Gaga
 Areas to consider

 Method of communication
 Document (Content)
 What to & what not to include
 How to organize details
 Presentation
 Format, material used, typed…
 Tone
7 C’s OF EFFECTIVE
COMMUNICATION

 Clear
 Complete

 Courteous
 Concise

 Considerate

 Concrete

 Correct
 CLEAR

 Readable
 presentation
 Coherent
 paragraphing – relevant content &
logically organized
 Unambiguous
 word choice / sentence structure
 Examples:

(a) The manager will call an emergency

meeting soon. It is an important
meeting. All staff are encouraged to
attend.

(b) …We were served by a waiter 15

minutes later. My friend asked for a
menu but he was very rude to us. He
was not happy with him, and we
decided to leave the restaurant…
Use plain, simple English

e.g.:
 In reference to the situation
in France, there have been
certain setbacks.
 The situation in France is bad.
 A cliché is an idea or phrase
used too often that it is no
longer interesting. It also lacks
clarity.

e.g.: bread winner

dog eat dog
hit the nail on the head
 COMPLETE

e.g.:
We organize many activities for the
camp.
Many programs are planned for the
English camp. The activities include
language games, public speaking
competition, debate, talent time and
a barbeque dinner.
e.g.:
Do you deliver by air freight?
Yes, we sometimes deliver by air
freight.
We usually send our goods by ship.
At customer’s request, we deliver
by air freight. Delivery takes 5 to 7
days. However, logistic cost would
be 10 to 15 percent higher.
 CONCISE

 Having no more detail than is

necessary
 Only relevant material
 No unnecessary repetition

 No wordy expression
 Examples

 It is an honour and a privilege to

be one of the speakers at the 7th
META International Conference.

 Mr. Jason can be in a position to

make the final decision.
 COURTEOUS

Being tactful & sensitive

e.g.:
This notice is regarding your failure
to remit payment on our invoice.
Did you receive our bill recently?
Perhaps you have overlooked the
payment due to your busy schedule.
e.g.:
The quality of the slides I
received from you this morning is
totally unacceptable.
The quality of the slides I
received from you this morning is
not up to your usual fine
standards. However, I know you
can fix it easily.
 Every lawyer has ten minutes for his
summation.
 All lawyers have ten minutes for their
summations.
 Lawyers have ten minutes for
summations.
 Every lawyer has ten minutes for a
summation.
 Every lawyer has ten minutes for his /
her summation.
 CONSIDERATE

Being aware of the receiver

 Put yourself in the reader’s shoes

 Make reader see how message

affects and benefits them.
 Give receiver something
 Solve receiver’s problem

 Save receiver’s money, etc

 Examples

Our warranty becomes effective only

when we receive an owner’s
registration.
Your warranty becomes effective only
when we receive an owner’s
registration.
 Examples

We cannot do anything about

your problem.
Unfortunately, your problem
cannot be resolved here.
However, we could arrange for an
immediate replacement at a
discounted rate.
 CONCRETE

 Not abstract / not too general

 Be specific (date, time, venue,
amount, numbers, etc)
e.g.:
The computers and printers you
ordered are on the way. / will arrive
soon.
 Examples

Our IT consultant will be there

on Monday.
Our IT consultant will be in
Ipoh Branch on Monday, 5th
June.
 CORRECT

 Ensure accuracy and correctness

of
 facts, figures
 language – grammar, punctuation,
spelling
 document layout - details