Past posts have identified the surprising costs of miscommunication within businesses large and small.
Taking a more specific view of this reality, Mary Cullen, founder of Instructional Solutions, published a thought-provoking article that identifies why the written word is so important in business, along with good examples of how costly poor business writing can be.
“Writing is fundamental to business operations,” Cullen said. “While networking and negotiations set the foundations of corporate engagement, nearly all final agreements are written. The word craft is essential to defining the scope of work and the nature of relationships between companies and clients. Due to its critical nature, writing produced for business purposes must be excellent. And, if the writing falls short, the consequences can be costly.”
The article goes on to explain that when a “reader” is uncertain about written information the doubt can result in inaction, an inadvertently incorrect action, or a disagreement.
“All of these outcomes can incur major costs,” she explained. “Which can reach millions or billions of dollars!”
For specific examples and suggestions for better business writing, you can review the full article on the Instructional Solutions web site.