Business communication can be defined as the dissemination of information that is required to promote the products or services of an organization, with the end goal of making a sale. It also involves the sharing of information between the employees of an organization. For business communication to be effective, it should include elements such as a sender, message, encoding, communication medium, decoding, receiver and feedback. Business reports, user manuals, customer feedback and memos are some popular examples of effective business communication.

Effective business communication is important because it helps in the exchange of opinions and ideas, creates useful documents containing proposals, helps in forming agreements and implementing decisions and allows sales to be conducted.

There are several types of business communication, such as:

  • Oral communication: Oral communication can be formal or informal in nature and consists of face-to-face meetings, video conferencing and telephoning. This form of direct communication puts the person receiving the message at ease, yet drawbacks may include language, social and cultural barriers.
  • Written communication: Written communication is considered to be concise, explanatory and formal in nature, consisting of formal letters, office memos, flyers and posters.
  • Electronic or online communication: In today’s technological age, electronic communication is regarded as the standard form of communication. In this type of communication, the information sent is accurate, secure and fast. This usually comprises of email, text messaging, social networking and web conferencing.

Effective business communication can help organizations to:

Prepare and execute policies

Effective business communication helps organizations to prepare relevant policies. The preparation of these policies requires precise information, which is collected by the managers in the organization. Once these policies are prepared, they need to be implemented and business communication is then used to distribute information throughout the organization.

  • Improve employee efficiency
  • Solve problems
  • Take decisions
  • Improve industrial relations
  • Increase employee satisfaction
  • Improves employee loyalty
  • Promote goods and services
  • Elements necessary for effective business communication
  • Structure

How your audience grasp your message, relies heavily on how you structure your communication. Proper structuring in communication consists of three aspects, which include the introduction, body and conclusion. The introduction outlines what your message is about and it should be concise and easy to understand. The body contains the key information that is to be communicated and the conclusion should reinforce or summarise the key points.

  • Three C’s
  • Relevance

University Canada West offers a BA in Business Communication, which is an interdisciplinary program that will hone your knowledge in the domains of cultural studies, media and business. Additionally, it will equip you with practical and theoretical skills and a variety of communication methods that will help you obtain careers in the fields of communications, journalism, public relations, professional writing and advertising.