English 4 Professionals

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The 7 Cs of communication need to be:

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1. Clear.    2.  Concise.   3.  Correct.   4.  Coherent.   5.  Complete.  6. Courteous.   7. Credible.

1. Clear

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When writing or speaking to someone, be clear about your goal or message.

 

What is your purpose in communicating with this person?

 

If you're not sure, then your audience won't be sure either.

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To be clear, try to minimize the number of ideas in each sentence.

 

Make sure that it's easy for your reader to understand your meaning.

 

People shouldn't have to "read between the lines" and make assumptions on their own to understand what you're trying to say.

 

Bad Example.

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Hi Ricardo,

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I wanted to write you a quick note about Daniel, who's working in your department. He's a great asset, and I'd like to talk to you more about him when you have time.

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Best,

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Luciano.

 

Observation.

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What the fuck is this email about? It’s difficult to know exactly. First, if there are two Daniels in John's department, Ricardo won't know which one Luciano is talking about.

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Next, what is Daniel doing, specifically, that has made him a great asset to the company? We don't know that either from this communication. It's so vague that Ricardo will definitely have to write back for more information.

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At work, few of us have time to reply to emails, especially emails that are incomplete and lack clarity.

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Secondly, why has Luciano written this email? Could he not have just called or caught Ricardo’s attention at the coffee machine or the water cooler?

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Does Luciano want to just chat about Daniel, or does he have a job offer to make that will impact on Ricardo’s team? What is the message here, what is the goal? There is no sense of clarity or direction in this message.  

 

 

Good Example.

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Hi Ricardo,

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Daniel Fulano’s advice regarding programming and requirements has been helping us a lot here in the finance department.

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We've got a tough upgrade project due to run over the next three months, and his knowledge and skills would prove invaluable. Could we please have more of his help with this work? Can he afford the time?

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Best wishes,

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Fabio.

 

 

Observation.

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This second message is much clearer because the reader has the information he needs to make a decision.

 

 

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2. Concise.

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When you're concise in your communication, you stick to the point and keep it brief. Your audience doesn't want to read six sentences when you could communicate your message in three.

 

• Are there any adjectives or "filler words" that you can delete? 

 

• Are there any unnecessary sentences?

 

• Have you repeated the point several times, in different ways?

 

Bad Example.  

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Hi Jessica,

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I wanted to touch base with you about the email marketing campaign we kind of sketched out last Friday at the meeting with Jeff and Carol. I really think that our target market is definitely going to want to see the company's philanthropic efforts. I think that could make a big impact, and it would stay in their minds longer than a sales pitch. This is something that I have learned from experience; marketing goes hand in hand with image.

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For instance, if we talk about the company's efforts to become sustainable, as well as the charity work we're doing in local schools, football clubs for poorer kids, demanding that our suppliers are also on board if they want a contract with us etc, then the public and clients that we want to attract are going to remember our name and our message for much longer. The impact will just be greater.

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What do you reckon?

 

Regards,

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Matt.

 

Observation.

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This email is too long! There's repetition, and there are plenty of “unnecessary words’ taking up space and occupying the reader’s time.

 

This isn’t a book or a short story for someone to enjoy the beauty of writing and literature. It should be a simple, clear and concise communication.

 

Good Example.

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Hi Jessica,

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Regarding our meeting on marketing and our targets. I believe we should use the great image that we have regarding our charity work and principles of sustainability to attract the public and clients we want.

 

1: Get the company name out there.

 

2: Aim to make our name synonymous with sustainability and quality.

 

3: Create an impact that ensures the public remember us.

 

 

Anything you’d like to add here?

 

Regards,

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Thiago.

 

 

 

3. Correct.

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When your communication is correct, it fits your audience. And correct communication is also error-free communication.

 

• Do the technical terms you use fit your audience's level of education or knowledge?

 

• Have you cited links, data etc. from reliable sources to back up your numbers, ideas or message?

 

• Have you checked your writing for grammatical errors? Remember, spell checkers won't catch everything. (conversation / conservation, for example.)

 

• Are all names and titles spelt correctly?

 

• Have you used any English expressions that will confuse others?

 

 

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Bad Example.

 

Hi Svetlana,

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Thank you so much for meeting me in lunch today! I enjoyed our conservation, and I'm so happy to hear that the project will not get put on the backburner.  I'm sure that the two-weak deadline won't be an issue.

 

Thanks again, and I'll speak for you soon!

 

Best,

 

Tamara.

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Observation.

 

If you read that example fast, then you might not have noticed any errors. But there are 4. Can you see them?

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Also, the term backburner is not known to many people who aren’t native English speakers.  

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Double-check everything. Use Grammarly, too.

 

 

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4. Coherent.

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When your communication is coherent, it's logical. All points are connected and relevant to the main topic, and the tone and flow of the text is consistent.

 

Bad Example.

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Traci,

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I wanted to write you a quick note about the launch report Peter finished last week. I gave it to Tony to proof-read, and he also wanted to make sure you knew about the department event we're having this weekend. We'll be launching a new e-sports product.

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Thanks,

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Michelle.

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Observation.

 

As you can see, this email communicates one or two points, but not perfectly. Other points are totally incoherent.

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1: Where is Michelle's feedback on Peter’s report?

 

2: What report has Peter finished?

 

3: Where is the event?

 

4: Then, during the part about proof-reading Michelle changed topics to that of an event. 

 

 

 

Good Example.

 

Dear Traci,

 

Peter finished the “Eat the Pizza” game launch report last week, so I have given it Tony to proof-read

 

Tony confirmed that there will be the launch of the new e-sports product next Saturday, 16th October, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Hyde Park.  

 

Regards,

 

Michelle.

 

 

 

5. Complete.

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In a complete message, the audience, client etc. have everything they need to be informed of and, if applicable, take action.

 

• Does your message include a "call to action," so that your audience clearly knows what you want them to do?

 

• Have you included all relevant information – contact names, dates, times, locations, and so on?

 

Bad Example.

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Hi everyone,

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I just wanted to send you all a reminder about the meeting we're having tomorrow!

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See you then,

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Chris.

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Observation.

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This message is not complete, for obvious reasons. What meeting? When is it? Where? Chris has left his team without the necessary information.

 

Good Example.

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Hi everyone,

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I just wanted to remind you about tomorrow's meeting on the new telecommunication policies. The meeting will be at 10:00 a.m. in the second-level conference room. Please let me know if you can't attend.

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See you then,

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Andreia.

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6. Courteous.

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Courteous communication is friendly, open, and honest. There are no hidden insults or passive-aggressive tones. You keep your reader's point of view or culture in mind, and you're empathetic to their needs.

 

Bad Example.

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Doria,

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I wanted to let you know that I don't appreciate how your team always monopolizes the discussion at our weekly meetings and then turns the subject to areas that have nothing to do with us. It wastes our time, like we have nothing better to do.

 

We all have a lot of projects, and I really need time to get my team's progress discussed as well. So far, thanks to your department, I haven't been able to do that. Can you make sure that they stick to the question at hand and give my team a chance to talk about what is important to our department?

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Jair.

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Observation.

 

Well, it’s aggressive and rude. It's perfect if you have to deal with an ignorant imbecile like Trump, but it isn’t exactly going to get Doria to cooperate and the content will reach the eyes and ears of Doria’s team, causing unnecessary conflict between the two departments!

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Messages like this can potentially start office-wide fights. And this email does nothing but create bad feelings, and it lowers productivity and morale.

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A little bit of courtesy and diplomacy, even in difficult situations, can go a long way.

 

Good Example.

 

Hi Doria,

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During our weekly meetings, your team does an excellent job of highlighting their progress. However, sometimes it uses up some of the time available for my team to highlight theirs, which I think would be helpful for your guys, too.

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I'd really appreciate it if we could find a way to give my team a little extra time each week to fully cover their progress reports and see how we can help each other more.

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Let’s discuss it over lunch? My shout!  

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Warm regards,

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Henrique.

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Observation.

 

What a difference! This email is courteous, friendly, and there is the added motivation of a paid lunch to get the talk started.

 

 

7. Credibility.

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1) Does your message improve or highlight your credibility?

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• This is especially important when communicating with an audience that doesn't know much about you.

 

2) Do you really have the background to support your message? Have you got genuine experience, or is everything theory from your college courses?

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