Bad business writing costs a company time, trust, and money. A vague memo unsettles staff, a sloppy proposal drives investors away, and an unclear email wastes everyone's working hours. Clear, complete, and correct writing avoids all three.
Paperless or not, business still involves plenty of reading and writing, and it will stay that way. The bad news is that poorly written business communication can seriously hurt your company's performance.
Bad business writing in action
Imagine a company going through a major restructuring. A change like this makes employees feel insecure, and a vague memo telling everyone to keep calm and carry on does not help at all.
Losing job security is hard and leaves employees stressed and anxious. Performance slumps when everyone is worried about whether they can keep their job.
A better solution is for management to show everyone the numbers: how many staff will stay and how many will lose their jobs. The more specific, the better. This allows the people affected to finish their work while they update their resumes and get ready to find a new job. That is much better than pretending everything is fine and then handing hundreds of people a two-week notice.
More examples of bad business writing
Bad writing also does damage in day-to-day business. Sloppy, incomplete business proposals put off investors and venture capitalists. Nobody wants to put money into a business that does not pay attention to detail.
Another example is a vague email that asks employees to do work without saying clearly what it is. Everyone has to check what the email means before they can start anything. Lost time and confused employees are things every good business should avoid.
Need more? Think of company mission statements that are full of bad grammar, unfocused, detached from reality, and that do not say what the company does.
Saying in your mission statement that your business wants to inspire the world sounds nice. But it is better to tell the world how you are going to do it. The post on what makes a good mission statement shows how.
How to avoid bad business writing
To avoid the damage bad business writing does, make sure you do the following:
- Write a clear and convincing description of your product or service.
- Give complete and clear instructions in all internal communication, such as memos and emails.
- Show respect. You are writing to equals, so steer clear of condescending words and phrases.
- Avoid sloppy grammar and spelling. The Spell Checker finds the mistakes your eyes missed.
- Stay away from jargon, and give concrete examples and directions.
Vague communication is bad for business, because it shows that the writer does not know what is going on in the company. Always aim for clear, professional writing: your company deserves it. For more pitfalls, see these common business writing mistakes.