The Nature of communication :Communication is giving, receiving or exchanging ideas, information, signals or messages through appropriate media, enabling

individuals or groups to persuade, to seek information, to give information or to express emotions. Communication is the intercourse by words, letters or messages- Fred G. Meyer. characteristics of communication: Two-way process: Communication can take place only when there are at least two persons. One person has to convey some message and another has to receive it. The receiver, however, need not necessarily be an individual. Information may be conveyed to a group of persons at a time. For example, in classroom, the teacher conveys information to a group of students. If the receiver needs any clarification, he can ask the sender of message immediately in the case of face to face of telephonic conversation. Communication may also be sent by means of letters, circulars etc. If a letter is sent, the receiver may respond to it either by way of a reply letter or as per the mode desired by him or by the sender. Knowledge of language: For communication to be successful, the receiver should first of all understand the message. For this, the sender must speak in a language that is known to the receiver. For example, if the receiver cannot understand English and the sender of message conveys his ideas in English, the communication will be a failure. Meeting of minds necessary: The receiver must understand the message in the way the sender wants him to understand. For this consensus is required. Consensus is nothing but identity of minds. If weekly target announced by a supervisor is misunderstood by a worker as monthly target, there is lack of consensus. Inattention, poor vocabulary, faulty pronunciation etc., may result in lack of consensus. The message must have substance: The message has substance only if the receiver shows interest in the subject matter. In other words, the sender of message must have something really worthwhile for the receiver. For example, If certain botanical names are explained to a student learning commerce, he may not show any interest.

Communication may be made through gestures as well: Communication need not necessarily be made orally or in writing. Certain gestures or actions may also convey ones willingness or understanding of a given problem. Nodding of heads, rolling of eyes, movement of lips etc., are some of the gestures normally used to convey certain ideas. Communication is all-pervasive: Communication is Omni=present. It is found in all levels of management. The top management conveys information to the middles management and vice versa. Similarly, the middle management conveys information to the supervisory staff and vice versa. There is flow of communication in all directions in a workplace.

Communication is a continuous process: In any workplace someone will be conveying or receiving some information or the other always. Sharing or exchanging information is an on going activity. As long as there is work personal, official or unofficial, there will be communication. Communication may be formal or informal: Formal communication follows the hierarchy the official channel established. For example, if a worker wants to convey any information to the production manager, he can do only through the foreman. He cannot bypass the foreman and have direct contact with the production manager. Informal communication does not follow the official channel. It allows any individual to convey information to anybody else freely without having to bother about the hierarchy. Business Communication: Communication used to promote a product, service, or organization; relay information within the business; or deal with legal and similar issues. It is also a means of relying between a supply chain, for example the consumer and manufacturer. We all understand and appreciate the importance of communication in our day to day lives. A breakdown in communication between two people can result in some tumultuous times for them. This is the reason why communication is all the more necessary for conducting business in an efficient manner, because it involves not just two, but numerous people who may be located anywhere on the globe. Read on to find more about the importance of business communication. The Best way to Communicate Good communication means that the message that you wish to send is received by the intended recipients without being distorted in any manner. This is the reason why verbal communication is supposedly the best form of communication there can be. This is because there is very low possibility of distortions and there is instant feedback to be received. But in the context of business this is not always possible chiefly because of the 'one to many' nature of business communication. How Business Communication works So most business communication is of a non-verbal type and can be anything from e-mails, letters, circulars, notices or memos.

The use of these methods lays even more emphasis on the importance of business communication. This is because there are no spoken words or feedback and body language to fall back on. So if the message lacks clarity then it may result in various incorrect assumptions being made by the recipients. This requires all written communication to be concise and accurately worded. The sentences need to be examined for any unintended double entrendes. You must remember that a confusing

message may result in an unfavorable response from your intended audience. But the modern tools of business communication can also work in your favor. They can be a universal mode of non-personalized communication that you can look to use throughout your business set-up. They can help maintain an impersonal and formal tone and thus promote the concepts of equality and uniformity in your organization. Cross-cultural Communication The importance of business communication cannot be ignored in today's global business environment. Technological advances have made the world a smaller place and turned crosscultural communication into an important dimension of any business. So it's best to learn something about the different ethnic groups that you may want to communicate with. This is because nuances can make a big difference to the way that people perceive your message.

This is true for both verbal and non verbal forms of communication. So you should look to avoid stereotyping and be open to new ideas on how best to communicate with various groups of people. Barriers to Communication The final aspect of business communication that needs a bit of discussion is the barriers that may arise in communication. Sometimes you may find out that despite your best efforts, you just can get the message across! While the content of your message may be perfect, some barriers may be at work here. They can be anything from barriers of language, perception, gender, familiarity or even emotions. You may need to find a way around them in order to be successful in sharing your idea. All said and done, you may have realized the importance of business communication and some of its dimensions by now. Just remember to keep it simple and your business communication will speak for itself!

ommunication in business contexts is essentially persuasive Consequently, persuasion is at the heart of business communication. Report writing, letter writing, formal oral presentations, networking, giving feedback: in all these, the main objective is to find out how to communicate persuasively. ommunication that is persuasive must be effective too However, we must strive to be effectively persuasive. We can think of persuasive and effective as two sides of the same coin. To sell a

product, for example, we must use strategies that we think are effective in convincing the customer to buy the product. But only when the customer buys it can we say that we have been truly effective. In other words, to make sure that persuasion becomes effective, the role of the audience (e.g., the customer, the ones in the receiving end of communication) is very important. Thus, business communication that is persuasive is a careful attempt at understanding how best we can deliver our message so that people will respond to it -- or act on it -- positively. Therefore, the implication is that we need to know our audience as much as possible. We also need to engage the audience in a manner that will not make them resist you or your message. In other words, you must package your message based on how well you know your audience. For example, what cultural values do they have in terms of receiving bad news messages? Are they comfortable being told off directly? What kind of social relationship do you have with them? Business communication is essentially persuasive communication. To be persuasive in the business contexts, the message must be delivered effectively through an audience-centred approach. This can be accomplished by making sure that the following communicative principles are adhered to: CONTENT What is the message you want to deliver to your specific audience? o Message and/or purpose of communication is clear. o Content is relevant. o Information is correct and complete DELIVERY OF CONTENT How will you deliver your content to your specific audience? o Organization is clear and appropriate o Language use is clear, concise and correct o Style and tone are appropriate o Packaging (e.g., formatting, use of non-verbal communication) is purposive and appropriate

2. Audience-centred critical thinking, intercultural and interpersonal, and listening skills are helpful skills in accomplishing persuasive business communication. Critical thinking skills How can critical thinking skills help you determine relevant information and organize it? o Discriminating between relevant and irrelevant information o Organizing information o Ask probing questions about ideas, arguments and information Intercultural and interpersonal communication skills How can intercultural and interpersonal communication be appropriately deployed to deliver the message effectively? o Appreciating cultural differences o Deploying different types of interpersonal skills across cultures o Recognizing and avoiding stereotypes in communication exchanges Listening skills How can good listening skills convince your listener that you are sincere and serious about they say? o Listening genuinely to other peoples concerns and argument o Identifying and clarifying a persons main point or argument in a conversation or discussion The specific contexts of learning persuasive business communication in the course are the following: Reports (with executive summary) Letter writing Mini-lectures

 Oral presentations Feedback sessions Networking with people Scop Of Business Communication Scope of effective business communication: Business Communication is an extensive sphere and in a business, communication is optimized to share and extend information and deal, after efficiently using the same medium to promote the business products and services. In an organization, there is consistent movement of information, legal and otherwise. Business Communication has a wide scope covering everything within branding, marketing, advertising, customer relations, research, reputation management and even employee engagement. The bigger the set up, the more extensive is the sharing and the level of business communication. Today, many businessmen use the techniques of effective communication to handle complex corporate interactions, community engagements, event management and global online communication. Scope for business communication, within and beyond: Business communication can either take place within an organization or outside of it. Within the organization, the communciation takes place among the management and employees. Internal business communication involves effective communication of strategies and plans and emphasis on the corporate culture and shared values. Guiding principles to the new and existing staff are also taken care of via internal communication. Within the organization, the communication ensures the establishment of avenues for employee motivation and ideas. On the outside, the communication takes place between the organization and another one that is affiliated or related to the operations in some way or the other. External business communication involves the establishment of company branding and marketing ideas and strategies. Effective advertising and after sales customer and media relations with external links and individual parties are also dependent on communication. Probably, the most important area where business communication helps a lot is negotiating business transactions.