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Effective Business Writing

Goals:

• Understand and practice the Seven Effective Writing Guidelines

Skills:

• Utilize the Seven Effective Writing Guidelines

Overview:

The majority of classroom writing assignments involve documenting the student's research, analysis, and/or critiques/conclusions. Sometimes a student is assigned a creative writing project such as writing a poem or short story. However, rarely is a student required to write in a manner that is intended to illicit action. In the world of business, virtually all writing is intended to illicit action. The action may range from buying a product, to accepting employment with a company, to supporting a company policy.

As with all art forms, business writing requires understanding and mastery of key rudimentary concepts that, when utilized effectively, result in the desired response. This chapter introduces Seven Effective Writing Guidelines that have been developed over years of working with hundreds of professionals in the business community. The Guidelines are simple, but require constant attention and practice.