Technical and Business Writing

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 Contents
• Understanding Technical and Business Writing
– Essentials of technical/ business writing
– Stage of Writing/ Process of Technical Writing
– Types of organizational patterns in writing
 Why are writing skills important?

Any job demands writing skills

Business writing and technical writing are the

most popular writing styles
To communicate complex ideas in an accessible
manner
These two styles use specific word choices,
concise language and a formal voice
 What is writing?

A constructive way that allows a writer to exhibit his

views, opinions and creativity to the readers

Allows an author to express his point of view in a clear

and rational manner

Dynamic process where the writer must pass through

multiple stages and at times revisit certain stages
 What is Business Writing?

Communication within and outside an organization

To disseminate information, policy initiatives or reports

To share recent events outside or inside the company

To connect to employees

To influence others to take-action

 Characteristics of Business
Writing
Business writing should be:
- clear and accessible
- tone varies depends on the target audience and
the goal of the message.
Effective business writing text contains:
- simple and clear sentences
- complete information or details for the readers
 Technical Writing
It is the practice of documenting processes, such as
software manuals or instructional materials.
Traditionally, it was limited to user manuals of some sort
Today it encompasses all documentation of complex
technical processes (reports, executive summary
statements, briefs)
The difficulty of the texts depends on the target audience
(Jargons can be used for professionals)

For general audience with no appropriate knowledge,

writer should explain the terms or should not use them
at all
 What is Technical Writing?
• The main goal is to simplify complex information
and deliver a message in an effective and neutral
tone
– Technical writing deals with different spheres such as
technology, engineering and science
– Develops user manuals, user guides, notes and other
types of technical writing documentation
• Its texts should be impersonal and easy-to-
interpret in order to effectively communicate
information
Cont……
Is technical
writing the
same as
business
writing?
 Business Writing and Tone
• Business writing differs in its tone towards
audience (internal or external to an
organization) and always need to
understand the content and its importance
• Since the audience is diverse the tone of
business writing can vary a lot
 Cont……
• For a proposal, persuasive language may
highlight the factual aspects of the bid
• For an internal memo, a direct formal voice
may be used
• For an external email to a new client, the writer
may employ a professional but warm delivery
• Each of these examples requires clear,
accessible writing, but the intended audiences
change the tone.
 Technical writing rarely changes
its tone. It has one goal, and one
The Clarity goal only: to clearly and
effectively explain something.
of The tone is competency
Technical
Writing Technical writing often
communicates a specialized topic
that is not broadly understood
(audience specific)
 Cont…..
• Think of the instruction manual for a gadget, the
Read Me First documentation of a new software
program, or the educational insert with over-the-
counter medication. These documents contain
specific instructions that are important for proper
and efficient use
• Do you need to be persuaded to learn how to use a
certain gadget? Do you need a warm tone to
understand the proper dosage of a pharmaceutical
drug?
 Difference
• Technical writing always has a neutral, competent tone
• The text should be impersonal and use language that
most effectively communicates instructions to the
intended audience
• The intended audience impacts the level of
complication allowed within the text
• An expert audience can be expected to have a certain
understanding of a topic, while a general public
audience needs all aspects addressed
• A good technical writer will assume little and explain
each concept so that it can be broadly understood
 Describe some differences between
Technical vs. Business writing
Writing for studies Writing for Work
Purpose
Audience
Content
Document Life Span
Format
Writing Style
 7 Cs of Professional
Writing

• Applying the 7 C’s of professional

communication will result in
writing that is
– Clear
– Coherent
– Concise
– Concrete
– Correct
– Complete
– Courteous
 7 Cs of Professional Writing
• CLARITY- involves knowing what you want to say and
conveying the purpose of the document immediately to the
reader
• COHERENCE- ensures that one idea should lead logically into
the next. Writing that lacks coherence often sounds “choppy”
and ideas seem disconnected or incomplete
• CONCISE WRITING- uses the least words possible to convey
the most meaning while still maintaining clarity. Think of your
word count like a budget
• CONCRETE WRITING- involves using specific, precise language
so that readers can easily understand your ideas. If you have
to explain an abstract concept or idea, try using examples,
analogies, and precise language for illustrating it
 7 Cs of Professional Writing
• CORRECT WRITING- uses standard punctuation, sentence
structure, and grammar. Being correct also means providing
accurate information, as well as using the right format
• COMPLETE WRITING- includes all requested information and
answers all relevant questions
• COURTEOUS- entails designing a reader-friendly, easy-to-read
document; using tactful language and appropriate modes of
addressing the audience; and avoiding potentially offensive
terminology, usage, and tone
Essentials of effective communication
 Activity- Sample email message
• Read the following email, then explain in your own
words what you think is wrong with it.
Subject: Tomorrow
As you know, tomorrow afternoon we’ll be meeting to
discuss the status of our current projects. donuts will be
provided. Be sure to arrive on time and bring along the
materials you have been working on this week- bring
enough copies for everyone. Some of these material might
include your calendars, reports, and any important emails
you have sent. Also, I wanted to remind you that your
parking permit requests are due later this week; you should
turn those in to Mr. Smith, and if he is not at his desk when
you stop by, you can email them to him.
 Revision practice
• The following paragraph on The Effects of Energy Drinks does
not conform to the 7Cs and contains far too many “to be”
verbs.
• Revise this paragraph so that it has a clear topic sentence,
coherent transitions, correct syntax, and concise phrasing. Try
to eliminate all “to be” verbs (am, is, are, was, were, being,
been, be), and rephrase using strong, descriptive, active verbs.
• The first 7 “to be” verbs are highlighted for you. Try to cut the
word count (260 words) in half.
 Passage
• Energy Drinks are able to be consumed in many varied and different ways by
people all over the world. Moreover, drinking these energy drinks is able to
provide people in today’s society with the helpful benefits of increased
awareness and energy. Besides, even though there are enhancements that
may be present from drinking an energy drink, the negative side
effects are posing more of a threat to a person than the energy boost
that is able to be achieved. In a survey that was taken in the United States at
an American university, it was reported that fifty one percent of participants
were consuming greater than three energy drinks each month in the semester
[1]. Looking at this statistic, it can be seen that a majority of students in
university are drinking energy a large amount of drinks on a very regular basis.
Which can be the cause of some health problems experienced by students. In
the same study, it was also shown that energy drinks are capable of helping to
increase energy and athletic endurance; for those who drank it. Despite the
fact that there are some benefits to be had from drinking energy drinks, there
is the problem of the negative side affects that are caused by the drinking of
these energy drinks. However, the side affects that were commonly reported
in the study are: headaches, and “energy crashes” (Smith 5). Being a
potentially more severe problem than the minor problems of headaches and
“crashes;” there is definitely the possibility of people which are becoming
addicted to caffeine.
 What is The Writing
Process?
• Writing has been a part of our lives
for centuries
• As humans, we can communicate
with each other effectively through
verbal speech and written text
• Delivering such information to our
audience, we must consider
various steps that guide us towards
writing an effective document,
known as the writing process
 Writing Processes
• Before you begin to write consider the
following questions:
– What is the purpose of the document?
– What are the specific requirements?
– Who will read it and why?
– How much planning is needed?
– Will you need to do research? Do you
need to search a topic or focus, or has
one been assigned to you?
– How complicated will the document
be?
– Will it have several sections?
Graphics?
– How much revision will be needed to
perfect your document?
Stages
of
writing
 Stages of Writing

Prewriting
• generating ideas, understanding the ideas of others,
and collecting information (note taking, brainstorming)

Planning
• organizing and focusing ideas (mind mapping,
clustering, listing, and creating outlines)

Structuring/ Organizing
• All points should be arranged in a sequence during the
time of the rough drafting
 Stages of Writing
Drafting
• In the drafting stage you are writing initial drafts of a text
(development, organization, and elaboration of ideas)
Revision
• developing and clarifying ideas and the structure of the
text
Editing/ Proofreading
• Grammatical rules are checked thoroughly (or a peer
review)
Final Draft and Publishing
- Finalize the draft (content and format) and send for
publishing
Writing is a repetitive process
Stages of
writing
process

Summary
 8 Major Types of Organizational Patterns

• People seek out patterns to help make sense of

information. When the reader is not able to find a
pattern that makes sense, chaos and confusion
abound. Effective communication, then, begins with
a clearly organized set of ideas following a logical,
consistent pattern
• Chronological Patterns- arranges information
according to a progression of time, either forward or
backward
 Cont………
• Sequential Patterns- is similar to a chronological
pattern, but arranges information according to a step
by-step sequence that describes a particular process
• Spatial Patterns- arranges information according to
how things fit together in physical space; i.e., where
one thing exists in relation to another
• Compare-Contrast Patterns- arranges information
according to how two or more things are similar to or
different from one another (or both)
 Cont……….
• Advantages-Disadvantages Pattern- organizes
information about a topic by dividing it up into its
"good" and "bad" parts, or pros and cons
• Cause-Effect Patterns- used to show the different
causes and effects of various conditions. There
are two major variations to this pattern:
– (a) dividing the outline into two major sections
comprised of causes and effects;
– (b) dividing the outline according to the different
causes, with the effects of each cause contained
within the larger "causes" section
 Cont………
• Problem-Solution Patterns- divides information into
two main sections, one that describes a problem and
one that describes a solution
• Topical Pattern (Classification Pattern)- arranges
information according to different sub-topics within a
larger topic, or the "types" of things that fall within a
larger category. Using this pattern, each "type"
represents a main section of information
 Assignment-1
• Consider an upcoming writing assignment or task you must
complete. To avoid putting it off until the last minute (and possibly
doing a poor job), try planning a writing process for this task, and
build in milestones. Anticipate how long various sub-tasks and
stages might take. Make sure to include time for “task and
audience analysis” to fully understand what’s involved before you
start. Consider the following:
– What is the purpose of the document? What are the specific
requirements? Who will read it and why?
– How much planning is needed? Will you need to do research?
Do you need to come up with a topic or focus, or has one been
assigned to you?
– How complicated will the document be? Will it have several
sections? Graphics? How much revision will be needed to
perfect your document? Will you have time for a peer/tutor
review?