Businesspeople Sitting In A Conference Room Looking At Screen
Did you know that miscommunication can cost small businesses with 100 employees an average of $420,000 per year? And it increases exorbitantly for bigger businesses, costing $37 billion for enterprises with 100,000 employees or more.
That’s why it’s so important to focus on and build better business communications skills. Keep reading to learn 5 valuable business communication tips that’ll help you avoid wasting hundreds of thousands of dollars every year.
1. Use Shorter Words Rather Than Longer
Even though it’s become quite common to use technical phrases and jargon in business communication, that doesn’t mean that it leads to better or more effective communication. It could even lead to misunderstandings because the other party might have no idea what you’re talking about, especially if they’re from another industry.
Why not keep jargon to a minimum and use short easy-to-understand words when communicating in a business setting?
2. A Quick Face-To-Face Meeting Is Better Than Email
Email is the most convenient way to communicate nowadays. It takes a minute and you can send out half a dozen emails, with questions and agenda items clarified.
But what happens when business folks get inundated by so many emails that communication starts falling apart?
Sometimes, it’s just better to get up off your seat and go over to the person you wish to talk to, rather than send an email. If you have VOIP dealership systems (voice over internet protocol) set up in your business, you could even pick up the phone and ask the question that way.
3. Have an Agenda for Every Meeting
There are too many unproductive meaningless meetings happening in businesses. It’s causing professionals to tear out their hair in frustration when they have to waste yet another hour or two in a useless meeting that could have been an email.
You can prevent this by having a strict agenda for every meeting, and not letting the meeting meander off course into uncharted territories.
4. Watch Your Non-verbal Communication
Do you always look like you’re in a bad mood, even though you’re having a jolly old day? Do people shiver in fear when you come around to their desks?
You already know that a majority of communication is non-verbal. So why not brush up on your non-verbal communication by watching yourself in a mirror when talking about important issues?
5. Anticipate What Questions Your Audience Might Have
When you’re in a meeting or any other communication format, you need to anticipate what questions the audience might have, and then have those answers ready to go. This way you don’t waste time searching for the answer mid-meeting or leave them unsatisfied with a perfunctory answer.
Effective Business Communications Is an Art Form
The more you practice business communications daily, the better you’ll get at it.
But remember that you don’t need to follow the business communication strategies laid out above too strictly. It’s also a lot about feeling along with the audience and meeting them where they stand.
Please take some time to browse through our other business-related articles.
Leave a Reply