Chapter 4 Preparing Spoken and Written Messages Business Communication, 14e Lehman and DuFrene

Planning and Preparing Messages Chapter 4 Planning and Preparing Messages Step 4 Organize the message Step 5 Prepare the first draft Step 6 Revise and proofread for accuracy and desired impact Craft powerful sentences Use correct sentence structure Rely on active voice Emphasize important ideas Develop coherent paragraphs Develop deductive and inductive paragraphs consistently Link ideas to achieve coherence Keep paragraphs unified Vary sentence and paragraph length

Planning and Preparing Messages Chapter 4 Planning and Preparing Messages Step 4 Organize the message Step 5 Prepare the first draft Step 6 Revise and proofread for accuracy and desired impact Improve readability Assess reading level to adjust to receiver’s needs Use grammar checkers to calculate readability, locate grammatical errors, and improve writing style Apply visual enhancements to design appealing documents that are easy to read Revise and proofread using systematic procedures Slightly revised

Factors Affecting Readability Chapter 4 Factors Affecting Readability Difficulty of words Sentence length Desirable readability index for business writing 8–11 grade

Procedures for Proofreading Chapter 4 Procedures for Proofreading Use spell check to locate keying errors and repeated words Print a draft of the document Proofread several times 1st for content, organization, and style 2nd for mechanical errors 3rd if document is non-routine or complex Edit for format and layout Print on high-quality paper