Essentials of Technical Communication Chapter 7: E-mails, Memoranda, and Letters

Costs of Writing: $40,000 $20 $30 $2.50 $60,000 $45 $3.75 $80,000 $40 Annual Salary Hourly Wage (annual salary/2000 hrs) Hourly Cost (includes benefits and overhead) Cost to company of writing a single email message (5 min) $40,000 $20 $30 $2.50 $60,000 $45 $3.75 $80,000 $40 $60 $5.00

Costs of Reading: $40,000 $20 $30 $2.50 $60,000 $45 $3.75 $80,000 $40 Annual Salary Hourly Wage (annual salary/2000 hrs) Hourly Cost (includes benefits and overhead) Cost to company of 5 people reading a single email message (1 min) $40,000 $20 $30 $2.50 $60,000 $45 $3.75 $80,000 $40 $60 $5.00

Either can be attached to an e-mail. Memos: Short and informal; circulate within an organization, including clients. Letters: Official, often formal; written to those outside an organization. Either can be attached to an e-mail.

Quick Tips • Use clear subject line or opening sentence. • Put the most important information in the opening paragraph. • Use formatting to help readers recognize the organization, major points, and read your message rapidly. • Be concise. Keep sentences and paragraphs short. Readers should grasp meaning in one reading. • Keep to one page or screen. • Use headings if your message is more than one page or screen. • Keep a copy of every message for two years.

The Six Cs Concise Concrete Complete Correct Courteous Clear

Appropriate Tone in E-mails, Letters, and Memos Avoid phrases that suggest the reader is careless, stupid, or dishonest. wording that sounds insincere, arrogant, caustic, or sarcastic. slang and abbreviations. Adopt a conversational style. wording that is respectful of the readers and sensitive to their emotions. professional look and sound.

Guidelines for Quality Conveys emotion Reflects your organization skills Suggest lack of interest, sloppiness Show a lack of professionalism The sound of words, phrases, sentences How your message looks Spelling and grammar errors Slang or abbreviations

Guidelines for Dealing with Tone Allow more time when writing about sensitive issues. Anticipate the effects of bad news. Analyze readers carefully. Read aloud what you have written. Let your draft “cool” for a while before revising for clarity and courtesy.

10 Questions to Ask Yourself 1. How well do I know the readers? 2. How much do they know about the topic? 3. How will they respond? Can I build rapport for my organization? 4. What exactly am I trying to accomplish? 5. What is their level of knowledge? 6. What is their attitude toward me and my organization? 7. What previous dealings have we had? 8. How much and what kind of information should I include? 9. How technical can I be? 10. What strategies can I use to make my message clear?

Common Reasons for Writing E-mails, Letters, and Memos Report information Provide instructions Request information Deliver favorable/unfavorable news Urge action or approval Reply to a request or complaint

Organizing a Memo, Letter, or E-mail First Paragraph: state the purpose or the main information the reader needs. If delivering unfavorable news, use gentle and supportive opening. Middle Paragraphs: support or develop the main topic in the first paragraph. 1 paragraph = 1 idea. Final Paragraph: tell the reader what to do or what position to take. Provide appropriate ending comments.

Sample Complaint Message From http://www.consumeraction.gov/caw_problems_sample_complaint.shtml

Elizabeth Tebeaux and Sam Dragga Essentials of Technical Communication Elizabeth Tebeaux and Sam Dragga Essentials of Technical Communication Oxford University Press