Communication is the sharing of information, feelings, and ideas. Business communication is the sharing of information between people within and outside an organisation for the latter’s benefit. To put another way, business communication is the relaying of information within a business by its people.
Elements of Effective Business Communication
Structure: the structure of your communication is important because it dictates how it is absorbed and understood by your target market. A good communication is characterised by three structural elements: an opening, a body, and a close. Whether it is a phone call, a memo, or a voice call, the three structural elements have to be applied to any form of communication.
Clarity: when communicating, make sure that your message is clear. An unclear message is bound to leave your audience confused and they will ignore your message.
Consistency: consistency is important when relaying your message to your audience. Consistency creates trust and makes your message effective. Ensure that your tenses are the same, that your point of view does not wander between the first and third person and that your general message does not change.
Medium: you can deliver your message through different media. However, ensure that you the right one. In other words, relay your message with utmost accuracy and clarity while spending as little money and time as possible.
Relevance: “the psychological reality is that unless a person is interested in the subject of the message, they are highly unlikely to pay any attention.” Ergo, ensure that your message is relevant to your target audience for them to pay attention.
Recency/primacy: a business communication is remembered by the power and memorability of its opening and its close.
The Psychological Rule of 7±2: the human brain has a finite capacity to retain information in the working/short-term memory. Additionally, the brain is structured to hold information in groups of items. These groups average at seven items plus or minus two. That means that your audience can only retain between five and nine pieces of information at any one time.
Adopted from www.inukasme.co.ke; An online a web portal by Kenya Bankers Association that provides free expertise that small business owners require for their business in areas such as marketing, value chain and operations, financial modeling, human resource and more.
