Communicating Negative Messages

1. The five main goals in delivering bad news are to convey the bad news, to gain acceptance for it, to maintain as much goodwill as possible with your audience, to maintain a good image for your organization and to reduce or eliminate the need for future correspondence on the matter.

2. The questions you should ask yourself before when choosing between the direct and indirect approaches are: Will the bad news come as a shock? Does the reader prefer short messages that get right to the point? How important is this news to the reader? Do you need to maintain a close working relationship with the reader? Do you need to get the reader's attention? What is your organization's preferred style?

3. The sequence of elements in a negative message organized using an indirect approach are opening with a buffer, providing reasons and additional information, continuing with a clear statement of the bad news, and closing on a positive note.

4. A buffer is a neutral, noncontroversial statement that is closely related to the point of the message. Some people consider is unethical if they are insincere and deceptive.

5. When using the indirect approach to announce a negative decision, it is important to present your reasons before explaining the decision itself because you help maintain focus on the issues at hand and defuse the emotions that always accompany significantly bad news.

Routine and Positive Messages

Question #2 page 160
At a local business supply store, I recently purchased your "Negotiator Pro" for my computer. After viewing you ad in Macworld magazine, I bought the CD because it appeared that it would be an effective tool to use in my corporate seminar on negotiation.
Unfortunately, the CD did not work in my computer. The store refused my return because I had already opened the sealed package. The store clerk told me to contact you in order to receive a version that would work with my computer.
Please send me the new disk, or refund my money for the cost of the program. Thank you for your help.

Question #9 page 163
5493 Beechwood Drive
Trenton, NJ 08608
April 12, 2009

Florida Resort Bureau
1555 Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard
West Palm Beach, FL 33401

Dear Sir:

My wife, two teenage children, and I are planning a vacation for late September. I enjoy the beach and the golf course, but we also want to be near night entertainment that is suitable for the entire family. We are particularly interested in resort areas that have public transportation because some family members may want to participate in activities away from the resort. Please send us any information on resorts with the criteria within the next two weeks so that I can plan my vacation days at work accordingly.

In addition to brochures, will you please label the resorts that are near large cities and the resorts that can be reached by public transportation and have attractions for teenagers. Also, do off-season rates include all of the amenities? How is the weather during September in Florida? Who should we call for concert schedules during our vacation?

Your advertisement in the April 2009 issue of Smithsonian magazine compelled me to contact you about a Florida vacation.

Sincerely,

Frank C. Atlas
Frank C. Atlas

E-Mail Assignment

E-mail

To: sarah@work.net
CC: jim@work.net
From: bill@work.net
Subject: Money for Training Trip

Sarah,

How do I receive reimbursement for a training trip? Do you know who I should ask?

Please reply at your convenience.

Sincerely,
Bill


Netiquette Activity
Rules for Email Etiquette:

Value of Email:
1. Be Cordial to your Audience
Refrain from pointing out their mistakes. If you disagree with his or her ideas then say so in a polite and friendly manner. Use the Golden Rule when conducting your emails. Do not say something to other people that you would not like them saying to you. Your email must contain valuable information that addresses a concern, facilitates your audience to act, or notifies the audience of important upcoming events. Never send a pointless email. That wastes your time and the time of your reader.

Use of capitals and lowercase letters:
2. Refrain from using all caps. It makes the reader perceive you are screaming at them. If something must be emphasized, then italicize or bold those few words. Remember to always use spell checker to avoid grammatical errors. Be sure to capitalize proper nouns at all times.

Use of confidential, sensitive, and private information:
3. As a general rule, do not post anything in an email that you would not want published in the newspaper. Remember that email is sent unencrypted and may be easily read by more than the intended receiver. If private information must be shared then contact that person by telephone or arrange a meeting where the two of you can discuss the issue one-on-one. If information is confidential, perhaps sending it by email is not the best choice because email poses many privacy concerns.

References

http://www.yourhtmlsource.com/starthere/netiquette.html

http://www.albion.com/netiquette/corerules.html

http://www.fau.edu/irm/about/netiquette.php

Routine Letter Assignment

Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io

Save File: sdeloach_routineComm.pdf

Metro Power Memorandum

Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io