Writing is probably not the first thing that crosses your mind when someone mentions critical business skills. However, the truth is that business correspondence makes a substantial difference between top-performing professionals and their less successful colleagues.

How you say something is just as important as what you say. A well-designed business message will have the desired effect and convince the recipient to act according to your plan. But how exactly can you improve your business writing prowess?

It is impossible to answer this question briefly, so keep reading to learn six ways to boost your skills in business correspondence.

Create a Plan of Writing
If you want to send a powerful message, you have to make a proper plan before writing it. There are two particular questions that you ought to answer correctly here:

- What do I want to say?
- Who am I saying it to?

Answering the first question will help you to focus on the main point of your email or business report, which means that the readers will figure out your message instantly. Besides that, you need to understand the traits of your audience and write in a way that’s easy for them to understand the message.

With such a well-planned outline at your disposal, you can move on to the actual writing.

Keep It Straightforward
The second tip is to make your message straightforward. Business communication is rarely ever about long descriptions and extensive reporting because the ultimate objective is to drive action. In such circumstances, your message should be clear and concise and avoid redundant details.

According to the review on Dissertation Today, business messages are meant to be short, brief, and up to the point. You should write directly and make sure that everyone understands what you are trying to say.

After all, you definitely want to avoid confusion, misconceptions, and misunderstandings. The only way to achieve the goal is to keep your business correspondence straightforward and write clear messages every time.

Use an Actionable Tone
As we already mentioned, the purpose of business communication is to drive engagement. This is where your style of writing plays a major role as you must make it appealing and actionable. How come?

First of all, use simple words and phrases that require no further explanation. Avoid industry jargon and buzzwords that could interfere with the message you’re sending.

Secondly, do not use passive voice unless you really have to. Passive phrases look boring and kill the rhythm of the message. Let’s check out an example:

You need to sell a thousand units this month.
A thousand units need to be sold by you this month.

The second statement sounds awkward and it will probably make the recipient feel passive and unwilling to react.

Support Statements with Evidence
Business correspondence is not that straightforward on some occasions as it forces you to explain your viewpoints and convince colleagues that your ideas are trustworthy. This is a challenging task since people tend to stick to their opinions and protect their positions.

The only thing you can do in this situation is to support your statements with evidence. We are talking about real-life data that make your emails or presentations look more convincing and impenetrable. For instance, you could use the latest industry stats, sales reports, and other documents showing that your opinion is credible and correct.

Don’t Forget to Edit and Proofread Messages
This one goes without saying, but a responsible business professional cannot allow herself to send messages before editing and proofreading. It is a critical mistake that could totally change the meaning of your message or even make you look silly or unprofessional.

Most people proofread documents manually, but you can also take advantage of digital platforms and speed up the process. For example, you can consult with writing services. Another solution is to use an app such as Grammarly or Hemingway.

In each case, the only thing that matters is to craft a flawless message that will not jeopardize your business reputation.

Add a Call to Action
The last tip on our list is to always add a call to action (CTA) to your business emails. What does it mean? The point is simple – a CTA will give your readers a clear idea of how to behave and when to get their jobs done.

For instance, you can say that you expect your subordinates to send you sales reports by the end of the week. This makes it easy for employees to understand the task and there can be no misinterpretations whatsoever.

Up to You
A well-developed set of business writing skills will help you become a more efficient professional, but it takes time to embrace a new mindset and begin writing more successfully. In this post, we showed you six ways to boost your skills in business correspondence. Now it’s up to you to exercise and take your business writing prowess to the next level!