Business Communications

(6 of 13)

MARIA ASUNCION
 Write an Email (p. 104)

—  Read “5.1 Email that Informs and

Requests: Dress Code Controversy”
—  Write an email as if you were writing to
your employees about how Sensational supports
all Canadian human rights, and that your employees
should not talk to any media if they ask them questions
—  Make sure you follow the Writing Plan for Emails from
Page 84
—  When finished, send this email to
mariakasuncion@gmail.com
 Write a Memo (p. 104)

—  Read “5.2 Memo that Informs: Change in Insurance

Premiums”
—  Write a memo using a program/website
of your choice (preferable Google Docs or
Microsoft Word) about how the company’s disability
insurance will be raised by 15%, which means your
employees will be paying more than $20 monthly
—  Make sure you follow the Writing Plan for Emails from
Page 84
—  When finished, send this email to
mariakasuncion@gmail.com
 Write a Letter (p. 105)

—  Read “5.3 Letter that Requests:

Donation for Annual Action”
—  Write a letter to dc3 Art Projects, asking
for a donation of a work by Travis McEwan;
his art will be auctioned off for charity
—  Make sure you follow the Writing Plan for Emails from
Page 84
—  When finished, send this email to
mariakasuncion@gmail.com
 Persuasive Writing Situations (p. 106)

—  In the digital age we live in, businesses have leaner

corporate hierarchies
—  This has made businesses rely on teams

—  This has also blurred the lines of authority

—  Persuasive skills are becoming ever more important

at work as teams and managers abandon the
traditional command structure and focus instead on
influencing/persuading others
 Persuasive Writing Situations (p. 106)

—  Experts say that the average person sees between

300 to 1500 ads and other persuasive appeals a day
—  Persuasion expert B. J. Fogg points out that social
media allow individuals or groups to reach virtually
limitless audiences
—  Social media also let people practice “mass
interpersonal persuasion” (people are persuading
others in large amounts)
 Persuasion in Digital Age (p. 107)

—  Persuasive messages have exploded in volume and

reach
¡  TheInternet, mobile phones, and TV blast huge
volumes of messages around the world
¡  Thesemessages can have a positive effect: trends in
pop culture, fashion, music or art
¡  Canbe through many social media platforms; e.g.,
Instagram, Facebook
¡  Can be from Eastern to Western hemisphere in an
instant
 Persuasion in Digital Age (p. 107)

—  Persuasive messages spread at warp speed

¡  So many ads on posters, flyers, website pages or even
in TV commercials use social media to engage with
people, loyal customers or fans
¡  For example, the shows The X Factors and American
Idol ask fans to vote for their favourite contestants
using social media to engage/get others involved, and
to spread news about their programs
 Persuasion in Digital Age (p. 107)

—  Organizations of all stripes are in the persuasion

business
¡  Companies, ad agencies, public relations firms, social
activists, lobbyists, marketers, etc. send out persuasive
messages
¡  Thesepersuasive messages can include advertising
products or services; promoting positive and desirable
images of celebrities, workers and businesses; and
spreading relevant news about society
¡  Forexample, some companies may spend millions, but
activists use social media for much lower costs
 Persuasion in Digital Age (p. 107)

—  Persuasive techniques are subtler and more

misleading
¡  Instead of a more straightforward and pushy “hard-
sell” approach, persuaders manipulate emotions by
using flattery, empathy, nonverbal cues and likability
appeals
¡  Persuaders are more likely to sell images and lifestyles,
instead of focusing on selling the products
¡  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdPXQLrueRg

¡  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCjPP7liZCA
 Persuasion in Digital Age (p. 107)

—  Lastly, persuasion is more complex and impersonal

¡  North Americans, in particular, are diverse and don’t
think alike (since we’re more individualistic)
¡  Inorder to reach a diverse market, marketers carefully
study various target groups and customize their
appeals
¡  Technologyhas increased the chance of distorted
information (when people misinterpret the meaning)
¡  Remember the Dove commercial?
http://time.com/4974075/dove-apology-racist-ad/
 Time-Proven Technique (p. 107-108)

—  So even though we’ve reduced use of the “hard-sell”

approach, and we’re doing more of a personalized
approach, there is still a time-tested approach to
persuading others
—  Namely, the traditional indirect persuasion strategy
is still necessary in our day-to-day relations with our
peers, coworkers, managers, people outside of the
company, and the general public
—  The indirect strategy is used when trying to persuade
a resisting audience
 Time-Proven Technique (p. 107-108)

—  There’s typically resistance from the audience

because most people are wondering what they can
get out of the advertisement
—  Will they gain

¡  Money?

¡  Time?

¡  Goods?
 Time-Proven Technique (p. 107-108)

—  Turn to Page 108; we’ll be reading Figure 6.1

—  Since we’ll be met with resistance from the audience,
we need to be able to reduce or counter their
resistance, before we ask for what we want
—  For example, let’s say you’ve been working for a long
time in a company, and have worked very hard
—  BUT your vacation time has never expanded
—  How do you come up to your manager about this
situation? How do you make this request?
 Time-Proven Technique (p. 107-108)

—  Using the indirect strategy will help

“Ken, I’ve got some ideas the other territory managers
can use to emulate my reps’ success in growing
business in these tough times. Can we talk about the
ideas over lunch this week? When we meet, I’d also
like to make a formal request for two extra days of
vacation time going forward. After eight years with the
company and a lot of success in my job, I feel this is an
appropriate time for me to see a small bump in my
vacation time. Let me know a time that works for you.”
 AIRA Technique (p. 108)

—  The example we just read followed this technique

—  A: Gain Attention
¡  Usually what is done first is to gain the attention of the
reader by describing a problem, making an unexpected
statement, mentioning a reader benefit, paying the reader
a compliment, or posting a stimulating question
¡  For example: First 1000 customers get a collectible item!

—  I: Build Interest (does not matter which order)

¡  Next, it should be shown that the request is reasonable
¡  For example: The grand opening of our store needs your
support, so come join us and grab a free item
 AIRA Technique (p. 108)

—  R: Reduce Resistance (does not matter which order)

¡  After,ask yourself what problems may arise for the
audience when they read your request
¡  Show empathy and understanding, and spin it positively

¡  For example: If you can’t make it on our grand opening,

we’d love to have you over anytime!
—  A: Motivate Action
¡  Finally,what is typically last is to tell the audience what
she or he should want, and when she or he wants it
¡  The point is NOT to be pushy, but to motivate the
audience to say “yes”
 AIRA Technique (p. 108-109)

—  Let’s read the example for the textbook

All of our returning subscribers will be able to take
advantage of special access to our subscribers’ lounge and
attend after-show talks by members of the cast and creative
team!
We rely on our subscribers to join us year after year
because your subscription helps generate the largest part of
our revenue. Government grants and donations currently
make up only 30 percent of our revenue. This is why we
need subscribers to keep coming back…
 AIRA Technique (p. 108-109)

Even though we understand you have competing priorities for

your hard-earned money, we also know that supporting the
arts is good for our city and good for our health. An evening
at the theatre is a surefire way to leave the pressures and
worries of everyday life behind for a few hours.
[The voicemail for this persuasive message can be:]
I’m sorry I missed you tonight, but I’ll try you again
tomorrow after dinnertime. In the meantime, feel free to give
me a call at 416-922-0018 and ask for Helen if you’d like to
re-subscribe immediately. I can offer you the special access to
the subscribers’ lounge and after-show talks until March 15.
 Asking for Help (p. 109)

—  Requests for large favours generally require

persuasive strategies
—  People are more likely to grant requests if they see
direct or indirect benefits to themselves
—  Asking for small favours can be straightforward and
direct, but asking for bigger requests may be
challenging
—  In Figure 6.2, we’ll be looking at how Michelle
Moreno, representing her research firm, tries to
persuade other companies to complete a survey
 Asking for Help (p. 111)

—  Because salary information is very private

information, how does Michelle try to persuade
people to submit that sort of information?

—  Writing Plan for a Persuasive Request

¡  Gain attention in the opening
¡  Build interest in the body

¡  Reduce resistance in the body

¡  Motivate action in the closing

 Claims & Complaints (p. 111)

—  Persuasive claim and complain messages make

reasonable requests backed by solid evidence
—  Use persuasion when you must change attitudes or
produce action
—  The most successful appeals are to a company’s
PRIDE (delight and satisfaction) in its products and
services it provides for the public
—  Claim messages should avoid negative and emotional
words, and should not attempt to fix blame (passive)
—  Let’s read Figure 6.3
 Claims & Complaints (p. 112)

—  Writing Plan for a Claim or Complaint

¡  Gain attention in the opening by paying the
receiver a compliment (of course, be honest)
¡  Build interest in the body by explaining and
justifying the claim or complaint with convincing
reasons and without anger
¡  Reduce resistance in the body by subtly
suggesting the responsibility of the receiver. Appeal
to the receiver/audience’s sense of fairness or desire
for customer satisfaction
¡  Motivate action in the closing by explaining what
action you want taken and when
 Persuading Coworkers (p. 112)

—  Internal persuasive messages present honest

arguments detailing specific reader or company
benefits
—  Sometimes if instructions or directives (or orders)
need to be given at the same level as you or
downward, only a little persuasion is required
—  It is very seldom that superiors have to address
sensitive information, or supervisors might need to
make changes to routine work, so being persuasive in
an indirect manner might help
 Persuading Managers (p. 114)

—  When selling an idea to management, writers often

are successful if they make a strong case for saving or
earning money
—  It’s best if you use conditional and noncommittal
¡  Suggest

¡  Recommend

¡  It
might be a good idea if…
¡  We might think about doing…

—  These terms show that it is up to the higher-ranked

employees to make a decision; you’re not threatening
their authority (let’s read Figure 6.4)
 Sales Messages (p. 116)

—  Sales letters are part of a package that may contain a

brochure, price list, illustrations/pictures,
testimonials and other persuasive appeals
—  Traditional direct-mail marketing uses snail mail or
flyering; new media marketing uses email, social
media and digital media
—  Learning to write sales letters helps you sell yourself
and your ideas as well as become a smarter
consumer
—  The AIRA pattern (attention, interest, resistance and
action) is used in selling because it is highly effective
 Sales Messages (p. 116)

—  Writing Plan for a Sales Message

¡  Opening: gain attention in the opening by
offering something valuable; promising a benefit;
asking a question; adding a quote, fact or product
feature, testimonial, startling statement or
personalized action setting
¡  Body: build interest and reduce resistance in
the body by describing main selling points and
making rational or emotional appeals; using
testimonials, money-back guarantees, free samples,
performance tests or other techniques
 Sales Messages (p. 116)

¡  Closing: motivate action in the closing by

offering a gift; promising an incentive; limiting the
offer; setting a deadline; or guaranteeing satisfaction

¡  Let’s
take a look at Page 120, Figure 6.5 to see if these
steps in the Writing Plan are followed
 Gain Attention (p. 117)

—  Offer: A free trip to Hawaii is just the beginning!

—  Benefit: Now you can raise your sales income by 50
person or even more with the proven techniques in…
—  Open-ended suggestive question: Do you want
your family to be safe?
—  Quotation or proverb: Necessity is the mother of
invention.
—  Compliment: Life is full of milestones. You have
reached one. You deserve…
—  Fact: A recent Maclean’s poll says that 3/4s of
Canadians are not happy with the quality of financial
advice they’re receiving
 Gain Attention (p. 117)

—  Product feature: Electronic stability control, ABS

(a type of plastic), and other active and passive safety
features explain why the ultra-compact new Smart
Fortwo has achieved a 4-star crash rating in Quebec
—  Testimonial: The most recent J.D. Power survey of
“initial quality” shows that BMW ranks at the top of
brands with the fewest defects and malfunctions,
ahead of Chrysler, Hyundai, Lexus, Porsche, and
Toyota.
 Gain Attention (p. 117)

—  Startling statements: Let the poor and hungry

feed themselves! For jus $100 they can.
—  Personalized action setting: It’s 6:30PM and you
are working overtime to meet a pressing deadline.
Suddenly your copier breaks down. The production
of your colour-laser brochures screeches to a halt.
How you wish you had purchased the Worry-Free-
Anytime service contract from Canon.
 Built Interest and Desire (p. 117)

—  Build interest by describing the BENEFITS a product

of service offers and by making rational or emotional
appeals
—  Rational appeals focus on making or saving money,
increasing efficiency, or making good use of
resources
—  For example:
Cheery Maids is a one-stop solution: for one low
monthly charge, you will receive biweekly visits from a
team of our professional, fully-bonded cleaning staff
who will clean your house from top to bottom…
 Built Interest and Desire (p. 117)

…Enjoy both peace of mind and your time away from

work without having to do your own cleaning.
—  Emotional appeals focus on status, ego, and sensual
feelings (pleasing)
—  For example: Tired of 9 to 5? Tired of commutes that
seem to stretch longer and longer each day? Tired of
getting home only to find you need to cook and clean
the house because it’s such a mess? Let Cheery
Maids take part of the “tired” out of your life by
providing you with cheerful, competitively priced
home-cleaning services.
 Built Interest and Desire (p. 117)

—  Dual appeal (both rational and emotional)

—  For example:

By signing up today with Cheery Maids, you’ll receive 2

free cleanings in the next calendar year. Not only will
you be able to leave the “dirty work” to our trained
professionals, you’ll have money left over to enjoy a
couple of relaxing nights out at dinner and a movie
with the family—on us!
 Built Interest and Desire (p. 117)

—  Lastly, it’s important that “hard”, boring facts should

be displayed in a warm way that shows clear benefits
—  For example:

Nature’s hand helpers—including soothing aloe and

cocoa extracts, and firming Vitamin A—form invisible
gloves that protect your sensitive skin against the
hardships of work, harsh detergents, and constant
environmental assaults.
 Reduce Resistance (p. 118)

—  Testimonials: I always receive friendly and on-time

service when I take my car to a Canadian Tire mechanic
for servicing. I just wouldn’t go anywhere else! – Vince
McRae, Edmundston, NB. (This overcomes the resistance
that this is just a marketing campaign with no truth
behind it; it provides proof)
—  Names of satisfied users (with permission, of
course): See the bottom of this messages to learn about
some of the IT professionals who are already taking
advantage of our conference webinar subscription
service and are 100% satisfied with the experience. (This
overcomes skepticism of success)
 Reduce Resistance (p. 118)

—  Money-back guarantee/warranty:

Not only do we offer free shipping on all online orders

over $25, we [also] guarantee everything we sell. If
you’re not happy, simply use the enclosed postage
coupon to return your purchase to use free of charge
and receive a full refund.

(This overcomes skepticism over the product or

service’s price)
 Reduce Resistance (p. 118)

—  Free trial/sample:
Welcome to the wine store. Would you care for a
sample of a wonderful new white wine? Go ahead and
enjoy a piece of cheddar and a cracker—they paid
nicely with the minerally quality of this Riesling… I
have a coupon for $1 off per bottle if you’d like to take
some home…
(This overcomes the resistance that the customer has
never tried this product or service)
 Reduce Resistance (p. 118)

—  Performance tests, polls, or awards:

At Luce this week, Chef Ferretti, who has just
returned from Washington, D.C., where he won the
prestigious North American Chef Competition for best
innovative dish, is offering a 3-course tasting menu
including one-course wine pairing for $89.

(This overcomes the resistance that a customer would

rather keep doing what they do, and stick with that
they know)
 Reduce Resistance (p. 118)

—  If the price might be an issue, try

¡  Delaying the mention of the price until after you have
created a desire for the product
¡  Showing the price in small units, such as price per month
or per ten downloads of a magazine subscription
magazine
¡  Demonstrating how the reader saves money by
subscribing for two or three years (long term) or for
buying 20 magazine (bulk)
¡  Comparing your prices with those of a competitor

¡  Or lastly, offering advantageous financing terms

 Motivate Action (p. 119)

—  Offer a gift: You will receive a free iPad with the

purchase of any new car.
—  Promise an incentive: With every new, paid
subscription, we will plant a tree in one of Canada’s
pollution-busting boreal (northern, colder) forests
—  Limit the offer: Only the first 100 customers
receive free cheques.
—  Set a deadline: You must act before June 1 to get
these low prices.
—  Guarantee satisfaction: We will return your full
payment if you are not entirely satisfied—no
question asked.
 Promotional Messages (p. 121)

—  In order to save money and time, and to reach many

people at once, many businesses are turning to the
Internet and to digital marketing campaigns in
particular
—  Digital marketing attracts new customers, keep loyal
customers, encourage future sales, cross-sell (selling
to a regular customer) and cut costs
—  Email is the primary channel for digital marketing
 Promotional Messages (p. 121)

—  77% of consumers prefer permission-based

marketing through email
—  Email-only marketing perform 95 times better than
direct mail in return on investment (ROI)
—  Selling by email:
¡  It’simportant that you get the permission from
consumers; otherwise, uninterested people will not even
open the email
¡  When you make an account online, they usually ask for
an email and permission to subscribe to their email list
 Promotional Messages (p. 121)

—  Similar to traditional sales messages, digital

marketing is usually shorter and with a lot of
colourful graphics and the occasional sound/video
—  Guidelines for an effective online sales message:
¡  Catchy a subject line
¡  Frontloading

¡  Make the message short, conversational and focused

¡  Convey urgency (give a deadline)

¡  Sprinkle testimonials throughout the copy

¡  Provide a means for opting out

 Social Media (p. 122)

—  Facebook:
¡  Nike’s“Write the Future” launched on FB
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSggaxXUS8k
¡  Nike doubled their fans from 1.6 mil to 3.1 mil

¡  Coca-Cola has 12 million fans on FB

—  Blogs:
¡  Hewlett-Packard (HP) allows guest bloggers to write to
its site to help people figure out the solutions to their
computer problems
¡  This allows HP to generate goodwill and develop a brand
image, while also allowing internal communication
 Social Media (p. 122)

—  Twitter:
¡  Successfully advertises both large and small companies
¡  In fact, independent artists use Twitter to show their
drawings and other art that they sell (e.g., small
keychains, stickers, etc.)
¡  But also big companies use Twitter to advertise or reach
their customers or potential customers
¡  Businesses also use Twitter to increase sales and to
perform other functions, such as raising impact (building
their brand) and managing crises (such as Dove’s racist
scandal, and the way they handled the aftermath [what
happened next])
 After the break…

—  Please use this time to work on any work

that you need to finish. (I am still missing
a few of the first set of short summaries)
—  Make sure that by the end of this week, you’ll
have submitted the writing practice activities from pages
104 to 105
—  After lunch today, we will be looking at the Interim
Assignment, which is
¡  Open book
¡  In class

¡  Take home (due next Monday, August 27)

 Page 125 – 6.1 Favour Request

Because you’re a local Nanaimo author, we thought it

might not be too much trouble for you to speak at our
Canadian Association of Independent Management
banquet May 5. Some of us business students here at
Glenbow Valley College admired your book Beyond
Race and Gender, which appeared last spring and
became such a hit across the country. One of our
instructors said you were now the country’s
management guru. What exactly did you mean when
you said that Canada is the “Mulligan stew” (homeless
people make this stew) of the Americas?
 Page 125 – 6.1 Favour Request

Because we have no funds for honoraria (payment for

work, like a salary or stipend), we have to rely on local
speakers. Dr. Lester Pierfont and Deputy Mayor Shirley
Slye were speakers in the past. Our banquets usually begin
at 6:30 with a social hour, followed by dinner at 7:30, and
the speaker from 8:30 until 9:00 or 9:15. We can arrange
transportation for you and your wife if you need it.

We realize that you must be very busy, but we hope you’ll

agree. Please let our adviser, Duncan Rankin, have the
favour of an early response.
 Page 125 – 6.1 Favour Request Revised

Dear Dr. Schulz,

We will be holding our banquet for the Canadian

Association of Independent Management on May 5th.
Our association would like to extend an invitation to
not only attend our banquet, but to also kindly speak
at the event.

We’d be honoured to have you as our guest speaker, as

we are all admirers of your written work, especially
how you compared Canada to “Mulligan stew”,
capturing our multiculturalism and humility.
 Page 125 – 6.1 Favour Request Revised

The following is information on the banquet’s schedule:

6:30 – banquet begins
7:30 – dinner
8:30 to 9:15 – guest speaker’s speech

Also, the Association would be more than willing to provide

transportation and other needs for you and your plus one
to the event, should you choose to accept our invitation.
Thank you, and please RSVP to us at your convenience.

Sincerely,
 Page 126 - 6.7 Tuition Help

Mark Hollett and I, along with other Riverfront

employees, have been eager to return to college, but we
can’t afford the costs of tuition and books.
Many of us were forced to go to work before we could
complete out university degrees. We know that the
continuing education divisions of some universities
provide good courses that we could take at night. Mark
and I—and we think many other employees as well—
would like to enroll in these courses. Would Riverfront
be interested in helping us with a tuition
reimbursement program?
 Page 126 - 6.7 Tuition Help
We’ve heard about other local companies (Worldwide
Trust, Dominion Securities, Mid Mountain Group, and
others) that offer reimbursement for fees and books
when employees complete approved courses with a C
or higher. Mark and I have collected information,
including a newspaper clipping that we’re enclosing.
Surveys show that tuition-reimbursement programs
help improve employee morale and loyalty. They also
result in higher productivity because employees
develop improved skills.
We’d like a chance to talk over this worthwhile
employee program with you at your convenience.
 Page 126 - 6.7 Tuition Help Revised
Dear Jeanette:
Many of us at Riverfront have been grateful for the work experience
and endless opportunities to expand our knowledge and enrich our
lives and others’. However, many of us also had to choose work over
further education, but we are now more confident to handle both.

On behalf of the Riverfront employees, I would like to make a request

about tuition fees for universities. Since higher education can assist us
greatly on our knowledge on customer service and management, we’d
like to ask for perhaps reimbursement for our fees to enroll and
continue taking classes once more.

When you have the time, we’d love to have a chat over lunch about a
possible employee program that would immensely help the future of
all of us and this great company.

Thank you,