BUSINESS COMMUNICATION Lecture 4 Strategies for Successful Informative

BUSINESS COMMUNICATION Lecture 4 Strategies for Successful Informative and Persuasive Speaking

• Oral communication is our most used mode of communication. It means speaking within a meeting, conversing in a hall, speaking to 100 people or whispering. Oral communication has two purposes; a general or macro purpose (to inform) and a specific or micro purpose (precise objective to be communicated). • But to be effective in the business world requires knowing something about informative and persuasive speaking. • Informative Speaking: Focuses on making an idea clear to the audience. • Persuasive Speaking: Focuses on gaining willing acceptance for your proposal.

• For both Informative and Persuasive we need to know: – Purposes of informative and persuasive speaking – Kinds of informative and persuasive speaking – Audience analysis for informative and persuasive speaking – Organization for informative and persuasive speaking – Support (evidence, data) for informative and persuasive speaking

Purposes of Informative Speaking • Making an idea clear is central to the purpose of informative speaking. • Informative Specific Purposes – Vague Specific Purpose • Internet – Better Specific Purpose • To understand how internet is accessed • Search for unity between the title and the specific purpose of your talk. – Title: Tribalism; A hurdle in Development – General Purpose: To inform – Specific Purpose: tribalism thatproblems of the explain To act as barriers for development

Purposes of Informative Speaking (cont’d …) • Process as Purpose – Process is knowing the systematic steps needed to bring about a desired result, for example, you might speak about how a computer works, how to drive a car or how to write a good report. – Chronological Organization: • Chronological, from beginning to an ending. • For example; – Title: – General Purpose: – Specific Purpose: – Main Points: I. III. CAD for Textile Firms To inform To suggest the procedures for installing and using CAD for better designing in Textile Firms Contact the textile firms Visit the textile firms Speak about the procedures and uses of CAD for the betterment of textile firms

Purposes of Informative Speaking (cont’d …) – Topical Organization: • Topical organization lets you determine the major heading for your speech. • If process is complex and does not fit into a chronological pattern, you may wish to select headings that give only the main points of that process. For example, explaining a topic of self-learning exercises for software programs. – Title: Learning Microsoft Word – General Purpose: To inform – Specific Purpose: To introduce users to the basic process of learning Microsoft Word – Main Points: I. Word disc II. Microsoft Word Manual III. Word Pocket Guide IV. Fast Results: A Sampler V. Quick Help

Purposes of Informative Speaking (cont’d …) • Policy as Purpose – As topics can describe a process, similarly, topics can explain policies. For example: – Title: Tree plantation in Quetta City – General Purpose: To inform – Specific Purpose: To suggest where to plant trees in Quetta City and how to plant trees – Main Points: I. Define Tree Plantation II. Explaining the policies and distributing the tasks III. Implementation and monitoring IV. Evaluation and Feed back

Purposes of Persuasive Speaking • Gaining willing acceptance of your central thesis is the core purpose of persuasive speaking. – Vague Specific Purpose • Internet – Better Specific Purpose • To argue that internet has more advantages than its disadvantages

Purposes of Persuasive Speaking (cont’d …) • Persuasion is difficult but the more thoughtful you are and the more time you take in preparing carefully – the better chance for later success. • The general purpose reminds you of the overall goal; and the specific purpose, in an infinitive phrase, is exact. For example: – Title: – General Purpose: – Specific Purpose: Increasing Petroleum Prices To persuade To convince listeners that an increase in petroleum prices will bring prosperity to the nation

Kinds of Informative Speaking • 4 basic kinds in Business Communication: – Reports • Oral informative statements often build on written material, for example: – Periodic department reports – Reports on manufacturing problems in the plant – Monthly personnel reports – Goodwill • Only the better speakers are selected to represent the company to the public. • Before you are a top level executive, you may be asked to welcome visitors, offer a tour and explanation of the company, introduce speakers or host a retirement party.

Kinds of Informative Speaking (cont’d …) – Briefings • Short problem solving sessions in the military are called briefings. The term has a similar meaning in the business world. • Usually, speakers offer background information, current situation, options to meet the situation, pros and cons of an argument – all presented to management so that they can make an informed decision. • For example, an increase in the prices of electricity will require several staff and high level meetings in order to decide which strategy to follow.

Kinds of Informative Speaking (cont’d …) – Instruction • When informing, you are often acting as a teacher. • You give instructions to your younger employees when you have been working for a long time period in a firm. • Speaking in such situations as reporting, community goodwill and briefings gives you less freedom than when instructing. Here you have more room for individual creativity: choice of subtopics, arrangement of material, structure of the classroom.

Kinds of Persuasive Speaking • 4 types of Persuasive Speaking: – Policy • Policy refers to a course of action to be taken or not to be taken, for example, what is the University’s policy regarding video conferencing with foreign educational institutions? – Procedure • Series of steps to be followed to achieve an objective, for example, how to implement policies?

Kinds of Persuasive Speaking (cont’d …) • Value – Persuasive speaking for sharing your values with others and discussing their importance. • Fact (Past, Present, Future) – Persuasive speaking based on facts, for example, your department has the highest production in the last quarter.

Audience Analysis for Informative and Persuasive Speaking • Knowing as much about your audience as you can decreases your chances of making errors. • Informative Speaking: – Degrees of Interest and Attitudes • How much do my listeners know about the topic?

Audience Analysis for Informative and Persuasive Speaking (cont’d …) • Persuasive Speaking – Degrees of Interest and Attitudes – Search for Common Ground • For a hostile audience begin with familiar, commonly accepted topics before moving to areas of disagreement, for example, be polite – even poke fun at yourself. – Compare Agreements and Disagreements • Use facts and value judgments. – Occasion • Most of your speaking will occur inside your company but is difficult when speaking to persons inside the company rather than outside the company. • “Good luck on entering the lion’s den” – Location • Basements, large auditoriums, small conference rooms and even in local restaurants.

Suggestions for Approaching a Hostile Group • Offer a greeting to gain goodwill – “We have differences in philosophy, yet I bring you greetings from many friends of yours whom I have met during this past year. ” • Make use of the fairness concept – This group is known for its many representatives of fairness; I trust you’ll consider my remarks fair. ” • Appeal to a sense of human weakness – “Well, I’ve made mistakes in my days; may I tell you about one I made in my first appearance before this group. ” • Quote from a supporter of the audience’s views – “Your newsletter has this heading; ‘Unity as based on truth. ’ I like that, and believe I can pass that test. ”

Organization for Information and Persuasive Speaking • You have determined whether you will inform or persuade; you have stated your specific purpose and analyzed your audience. You also have begun collecting data, now its time to organize the data into a logical pattern, such as the structure suggested since ancient times: – Introduction – Body or Discussion – Summary or Conclusion

Organization for Information and Persuasive Speaking (cont’d …) • The Introduction – Give effort to the introduction; here you set the tone and pattern for the rest of your talk. – The PORCH (P) • This is the opening statement, the beginning, through using five different approaches. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Tell an anecdote, appropriate joke, or good-natured story related to your subject. Use a quotation that gives some background or inspiration to your speech. Greet your audience sincerely. Make a startling statement. Ask questions that make audiences start to think.

Organization for Information and Persuasive Speaking (cont’d …) – The AIM (A) • The aim is simply stating, clearly and precisely, the purpose of your presentation. For example, “One reason brings me here today; to tell you that your today’s lecture is very long. ” – The LAYOUT (L) • In layout, we give an overview, setting the agenda, laying out the roadmap of where the speech will proceed. According to an old quotation, “It’s tellin’ ‘em what ur gonna cove. ”

Organization for Information and Persuasive Speaking (cont’d …) • The Body or Discussion – The body or discussion or your topic is where your ideas are developed in detail. – Informative Speaking • This part of your speech supports your aim or purpose. • In informative speaking you can choose from several ways to make your ideas clear: 1. By Topical Organization: This means to organize topics into natural divisions or into some kind of general classification. 2. By Chronological Organization: Some listeners like to follow material according to the order in which events or happening take place: past, present and future. Having a beginning and an ending. 3. By Cause to Effect: Explain what were the reasons that triggered a particular activity.

Organization for Information and Persuasive Speaking (cont’d …) • By Cause to Effect – 3 aspects are noteworthy in considering casual reasoning: a. Avoid assuming that a single cause produces a precise result. Effect Low earnings per share Questionable Cause are not solely the result of decreased shares b. Avoid assuming a false connection, that is, presuming that because one event occurred after another, the two are linked. Effect Unemployment is up, False Linking Causes and stocks are down c. Realize there may be multiple causes, some major, some minor. Not all causes are of equal value.

Organization for Information and Persuasive Speaking (cont’d …) – Persuasive Speaking • Now use the body of speech to persuade, to get the audience to accept your position, to believe your evidence. What you are doing is gaining acceptance to your aim, often expressed as a claim, thesis, proposition, resolution or even a formal legal statement. • Persuasive speaking may use the same kinds of organization discussed earlier (topical or chronological) but most persuasive business speaking uses the problem-solution format, proposing a change from the status quo or recommending that things remain as they are.

Organization for Information and Persuasive Speaking (cont’d …) 1. Problem-Solution – For Change The Problem: Central to your thinking is the idea that something is wrong; there is dissatisfaction and that there is a need for change. For example, there is a need to improve the communication skills of the teachers. The Solution: Politely state your solution and then give your reasons as several questions may run through listeners minds: – – • • Do we really need to change from what we are? Having answered what debaters call these “”stock issues. ” you are ready to amplify your solution. – Recommendations for improving the communication skills of teachers. (Give recommendations)

Organization for Information and Persuasive Speaking (cont’d …) – The disadvantages of not accepting the solution: Do not hesitate to show the negative consequences if your proposal will not be accepted. 2. Problem-Solution- For No Change – The Problem: If you feel the current situation is acceptable as is, you are in favor of the status quo. There is no problem, things are fine. But some may disagree with you, they might need a change. – The Solution: Debaters on the negative side of an issue, those opposed to change and in favor of the status quo, would argue that no new solution is needed, things are currently acceptable.

Organization for Information and Persuasive Speaking (cont’d …) • Summary or Conclusion – Summaries reiterate what was conclusions are inferences from data. covered; – After the introduction and body, come summary and conclusion to end the organization of the speech.

Supports for Informative and Persuasive Speaking • Since the time of Aristotle and Quintilian, writers on oral communication in the ancient world, speakers have been told that good oral communication rests upon three bases; ethos, pathos and logos. These Greek terms are perhaps not part of your vocabulary, yet you have used what they mean n your writing and will do so in your speaking. – Ethos: Concerns your credibility as a speaker, what you do suggests good sense or a high moral character. You give your listeners the impression that you are a trustworthy person. – Pathos: Is using emotions to support your ideas. Few of us would admit, especially in the business world, that we are moved to action on the basis of our emotions. Our advertising and marketing friends have been capitalizing on emotions for years. – Logos: The third part of ancient rhetorical principles, that receives major emphasis in both written and oral presentation. Logos involves using evidence and reasoning, organizing supports into logical patterns of argument.

Supports for Informative and Persuasive Speaking (cont’d …) • 6 forms of support (evidence, data) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Examples Illustrations (elongated examples) Statistics Quotations, Testimony Comparisons (Analogies) Definitions