Imagine you are sitting at your work desk when a new email notification appears on your screen. The subject line reads “to Stuff,” so it must be something important.


You open the message and see this:


“Hi, as you know we’re starting a new project soon and I’ll be the one in charge of it. I thought I’d share some communication rules. Never share any project-related information with third parties and try to have only one message in an email. I look forward to working with you.”


What would your first reaction to receiving this letter be?


If you are anything like me, you would have a lot of questions because this email is anything but clear. “What project are you talking about? Where exactly will the project communication take place? Do you mean that we are going to communicate via email only?”


On top of that, the subject line is too short and too vague, the body of the email is a single paragraph packed with messages, and the text lacks clarity.


People receive emails like this on a constant basis, causing an enormous amount of unnecessary stress and misunderstanding in the workplace. No wonder businesses spend at least $3.1 billion on writing training to prevent miscommunication.


In this article, we will discuss the reasons why you should try to improve your employees’ business writing skills, as well as share some useful techniques with you.

3 Reasons You Should Improve Your Employees’ Business Writing Skills


“Clarity in business writing is not a luxury.”


This quote by Sir Richard Branson beautifully expresses how important business writing skills really are.


Indeed, even though the cost to businesses of poor writing is impossible to calculate, it is safe to assume that additional costs could be in the billions when you factor in incomplete assignments, misunderstandings and missed deadlines.


That is why 73 percent of employers want candidates with strong writing skills.


Good business writing helps a company achieve its goals. A company depends on professionals carrying out certain tasks - motivating employees, increasing sales, doing accounting - and that is nearly impossible if you cannot clearly communicate those tasks.


There are at least 3 excellent reasons why your employees should have excellent business writing skills:


1. Good Writing Makes it Easier to Understand What Needs to be Done


Clear writing follows a logical path that is easy for employees to follow. They will have a better understanding of the task and need to ask fewer questions. As a result, an entire business can run more smoothly and efficiently.


2. Good Writing Helps Build Business Relationships


There are several ways to build long-lasting business relationships, and writing is one of them. Whether you are writing a message to a new colleague or an outreach email to a potential partner, the clarity and relevance of your message can be a deciding factor in relationship building. Not only does good business writing earn respect, but it also makes frequent communicate easier, helping to establish an ongoing relationship.


Just think about it: would it be easy to create a positive business relationship with someone who writes confusing messages that require additional clarification, which may be difficult to get?


3. Good Writing Helps Team-Building


It takes just one email with an unclear message to undermine the bonds of teamwork. This especially applies to remote teams, which are becoming the norm. In fact, 83 percent of U.S. businesses have already introduced a flexible workplace policy that allows their workforce to work remotely.


Since written communication is one of the ways a team manager can demonstrate appreciation for work done by employees, the tone, voice, message and word choice are particularly important. For example, if a message shared with the workforce is positive, clear and energetic, chances are that most of the recipients will respond in the same way.


While the list of reasons to improve business writing skills is not limited to the above, they alone make a compelling case. So how do you help your employees improve their writing skills?

How to Improve Your Employees’ Business Writing Skills


A strong commitment from the organization's top management is a mandatory requirement for improving your staff’s writing skills. Management should ensure that the employees are given a specific time dedicated to learning and practicing.

Step 1: Start a Bona-Fide Writing Program


This does not have to be a big program. It can be a weekly seminar or a webinar where experts from the best writing services share tips on writing specific business documents, as well as tips on clarity of writing.


Whichever program you choose, ensure that the program is approved and that participation is encouraged, if not mandatory.


Step 2: Teach Students to Avoid Jargon and Buzzwords


While some industry-specific acronyms and buzzwords may be okay in certain circumstances, using them to excess should be avoided. Not only does this create confusion, but it demonstrates cluttered and lazy thinking. If used too often, buzzwords and jargon become annoying and make the writer seem uninterested in communicating.


Bryan A. Garner, a lexicographer, has written an excellent “bizspeak blacklist” in this Harvard Business Review article. It provides a great resource for teaching your employees how to be more clear and to-the-point. Some of the phrases from his “avoid” list are:

  • “Bring your A game” (this is too vague and could be interpreted in many ways)
  • “Client-centered” (This does not indicate the actual needs of the client)
  • “Let’s take this offline” (too vague)
  • “Level the playing field” (too vague)
  • “Think outside the box” (too vague)

Garner also gives a few excellent examples of how to “translate the bizspeak” to a clearer and more concise language.

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As you can see, there are many ways to turn a long confusing sentence into something that everyone can quickly and easily understand.

Step 3: Teach the Art of Writing Business Emails


Remember the confusing email at the beginning of this article? To make sure that your employees don’t get emails like those, and don’t send them to your customers and partners, you should make email writing a priority.


Here are some themes to consider.

  • Subject line. When communicating through email, it is important to be clear. Avoid too-short subject lines that fail to describe the contents of the letter.
  • Use the opening sentence to let the recipient know your reason for writing.
  • Body text. The main part of your email should not cause confusion or disengagement, and make the recipient tired of reading. Always write concise, to-the-point, and positive texts.
  • Humor. Humor should be avoided, as it can be perceived as inappropriate, or misunderstood by the recipient.
  • Limit each email to only one subject, to minimize confusion.
  • Be sure to describe attachments, if applicable.


Step 4: Evaluate the Results of the Program


A business writing training program is incomplete until you measure the performance of the participants. In addition to reviewing formal tests and evaluations, hold a meeting with the participating employees and ask them the following:

  • What did you learn from the writing program?
  • How can you apply this new knowledge in your workplace role?
  • How can you access your skills before and after the program?
  • Is there anything in the program that you think we can improve?


Feel free to host both group evaluations and one-on-one discussions with those who need to improve their writing skills the most.


Business Writing Can Make a Difference


Employee development can be the cornerstone of a company’s success. Poorly written emails, reports that don’t make a lot of sense, spelling mistakes, industry jargon, bizspeak, rambling thoughts - there are so many mistakes that can hurt a business’s bottom line.


Offering business writing coaching and making it freely available to members of your organization can minimize the impact of those issues. When implemented properly, a writing program can represent your business in a positive way, with positive, concise and clear internal and external communications, and prevent a tremendous amount of misunderstanding.



Author’s bio. Daniela McVicker is a career coach and freelance writer. She’s also a business communication coach, helping future job applicants to write business emails to help them achieve success on their career paths.

Image Credits:
Image by Pixabay.
Screenshots taken by author.