Lecture notes on business communication. Учебное пособие

71

LECTURE 5. ORAL COMMUNICATION.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1.Discuss key characteristics of public speaking

2.Analyze different types and characteristics of business meetings

3.Describe the essentials and the key principles of negotiation and state the groundwork for effective negotiation

4.Explain communication styles in negotiation

5.Determine the stages of negotiations.

6.Analyze communication skills, and identify techniques and strategies for answering business telephones and taking messages.

5.1. Public speaking

No matter what career you pursue or what level of success you would like to achieve, on some occasions you will certainly find it necessary to introduce yourself or another speaker, accept an award, serve as master of ceremonies at a meeting, or make some comment to the media. Each task requires preparation and practice, and a solid understanding of the roles and responsibilities associated with various activities connected with successful business communication in public. In this chapter we shall explore many of these activities with brief discussions to prepare you for the day when you are the one who makes presentations, or negotiations.

Public speaking is, in simple words, an oral presentation or speech delivered to a live audience. It is usually a formal or staged event and can often promote your career possibilities. For example, you can face the cases when you attend a customer meeting, but suddenly are called on to explain some procedural or technical point being discussed. Or you can be sitting in a management meeting thinking of being only an observer when you are asked to elaborate on some aspect of project or explain your recommendations to managers.

In order to be success in any prepared or unprepared speech you should follow the basic rules:

72

Be confident.

Never speak monotonously.

Practice and never read, do not memorize the information you are going to give to your listeners.

Speak in a natural voice.

Keep your speech short and brief.

Always connect with your audience. Feedback is an integral part of any speaking process.

Use vivid language. Do not forget about sound bites.

Make use of the rule of three. Repeat the key information at least three times, or structure your speech in the patterns of three.

Sound Bites and Quotables.

If you need to make presentations, or speak in public, you should know the triggers that usually catch the public attention making your speech more effective. One of the most powerful tools in this field is a sound bite. A sound bite can be defined as a short, catchy piece of video, audio, or speech chosen to give the essence of what you are saying and attract interest in the full-length source. It’s widely used in journalism, politics, and marketing as well as in academic activities to define headlines, which eventually helps people know about a product, event, or even a period in history. Sound bites help you reach the people you want to influence. They are often taken from interviews and articles, and presented apart from the context in which they were originally written or spoken. Slogans are phrases that express the goals, aims or nature of a product, service, person, or company. Quotes are memorable sayings extracted from written or verbal messages. All of them are memorable and quickly become part of our cultural literacy, expressing common perception, and reinforcing our image of speaker, business, product, or service.

Whether you are writing a document, preparing a presentation, or both, you will want to consider how others will summarize your main point. If you can provide a clear sound bite or quote, it is more likely to get

73

memorized and repeated, reinforcing the message. By preparing your sound bites, you help control the interpretation of your message. Here are four characteristics of an effective sound bite: clear and concise, having dynamic language, being easy to repeat, memorable. Your goal when writing a sound bite or quote is to make sure your idea represents all four characteristics.

It is advisable that at least some of the following elements be present in your sound bite to make it reach the aim.

1. Action Words

The public likes when bold, action-oriented words are used in the speech. Any time you attack, smash, or grab, they make action words. Look at your message points and see if you can incorporate action-oriented words into them. A good example here is the phrase “Just do it” (by Nike), and pay your attention here that this phrase is based on the rule of three as well.

2. Emotion

Any time you talk about how you feel about something, it’s going to make it more interesting and quotable to the public. If you love something, hate something, or are worried about something, say that without any doubt because it can make a great sound bite.

3. Specific Examples

Abstraction is the enemy of any speaker. It is a must to bring clarity to the viewers, or listeners, so any time you give concrete examples, it makes it more quotable. Don’t say, “I love sports,” say, “I love watching Norway in the Winter Olympics when they destroy the competition in curling.”

Specific examples will make you more quotable because people can visualize them bringing the clarity to the issue.

4. Attack

Attacking is one of the easiest sound bites you can ever get because the listeners like controversy. If you attack someone, you say someone is bad, or does not satisfy you, you will be quoted. But it is not necessary at the same time to go around attacking everyone. Remember that a sound bite is only good if it’s hundred percent relevant to your message points. You can also attack something more controversial than people, such as crimes. You

74

can say you want to stamp out and destroy drug addiction. That’s attacking drug addiction. That’s not particularly controversial and can be positively used on messages.

5. Absolutes

There is absolutely no easier way to get quoted than to use a phrase like absolute, must, never, etc. People tend to love absolutes. They’re trying to bring clarity to an issue. Absoluteness brings urgency to your message and makes it more interesting, compelling, and quotable.

6. Clichés

You surely don’t want to use clichés when giving a speech because people will think you are unoriginal. But sometimes it makes the point, especially when a cliché is not your whole speech, story, or article. It’s just a little piece of the entire story; it’s like a little bit of spice. If you put a great amount of spice in a stew, it’s going to taste awful, but a little bit can make it better. People use clichés because they’re more memorable than straightforward statements. It can be a great way to visualize your cliché, and relate to it.

7. Humor

All public are human beings who like a good laugh. So, if you use humor, you will be quoted. However, you have to be very careful with humor. What might seem fun when you’re talking to a friend of yours can make you look cruel, or aggressive in front of the public that knows nothing about you.

Humor is fine if you’re making fun of yourself, if it’s gentle, appropriate, and one hundred percent on your message. But as with all the other sound bite elements, plan it and get rid of it if you’re not completely comfortable with it.

8. Rhetorical Questions

Asking a rhetorical question rather than a straightforward statement also can benefit for a good sound bite. It is more quotable, more interesting, and more memorable. It’s easy to come up with a rhetorical question. All you have to do is restate your message, put a question mark at the end of it, and that’s it.

75

9. Analogies

Using an analogy dramatically increases your chances of being quoted. The public likes analogies because they are trying to make an idea more understandable, memorable, and relatable to viewers, or listeners. When you provide an analogy, it makes it easier for everyone to see it, face it, taste it, and touch it.

10. Pop Culture

If you can tie something you’re doing into a well-known sports team, athlete, celebrity, or movie star, that’s going to make it more interesting and appealing to the public. However, you have to be careful about forcing something that seems artificial or contrived. If it looks authentic and good to you, you can use that. For example, if you love football, then use a football analogy. If you love movies, use a movie analogy. If there’s a singer with some connection to what you’re talking about, use that.

You can't and shouldn't use all of these tools in one sound bite. The best sound bites will flow naturally from the speaker and show his or her personality, as well as convey a point. The reward of mastering the art of the sound bite comes from the connection you make with your public. If you are a success with it, your listeners will truly understand what you have to say, and want to hear more from you in the future.

5.2. Business Meetings and Presentations

Most people are anxious about standing in front of an audience to deliver a talk. One survey found that giving a speech is the greatest fear people possess; they fear it even more than dying (Rasberry and Lemoine, 1986). A survey in the United Kingdom found that 76 percent of people in business believe that public presentations are ‘the most daunting task they have to do in the world of commerce’.

A business meeting is a group communication in action around a defined agenda, at a set time, for an established duration. Meetings can be effective, ineffective, or a complete waste of time. Meetings can take place face-to-face, but increasingly business and industry are turning to tele and

76

videoconferencing options, as the cost of travel including time is considered.

Both presentations and meetings are often criticized for being poorly organized or badly planned. This part of the lecture concentrates on the principles and techniques which can overcome these criticisms. The most reasonable of them, in our opinion, follow seven principles listed further.

1. The orchestra principle.

This principle emphasizes the high degree of cooperation necessary to complete the task, as you need with the performance of a symphony orchestra. The role of chair is analogous to the role of the conductor: making sure that everyone delivers their best performance, and making sure that everything fits together.

2. The three characters principle.

The three characters principle is based on the idea that you can do only three things in a meeting:

announce something;

decide something;

discuss something.

The meeting should be organized so that members clearly know which question under discussion is which. These questions should be dealt with in the following strict order:

First you run through all the announcements.

Then you cover all the items where you need decisions.

And then you cover the items which need to be discussed but where you do not have to reach a decision.

3.The role principle

The person in the chair should act as a role model to encourage the other members of the group to contribute openly and positively.

4. No new business

77

The meeting should cover only the items which have been placed on the agenda and which the members have had some chance to think about. Otherwise, members will not be prepared for the discussion and this will inevitably lead to time being wasted in a fruitless argument.

5. No more reports

Members are never asked simply to ‘give a report from their department’, as this can often lead to individuals concentrating on topics which show them up in the best light and failing to identify important issues.

6. The imperative of proactivity

Meetings should always include some items which deal with future plans or problems, so that issues are discussed before it is too late. Early discussion can enable members to have an impact on future events.

7. High-quality decisions

Not only are decisions made, but those decisions must show their enough quality. Not only are all the important views be discussed, but the meeting should be able to construct a decision that advances the interests of all of the stakeholders.

The following types of meetings can be named:

1.Management Committee Meetings

2.Management Sub-Committee Meetings

3.General Meetings

4.Annual General Meetings

5.Formal meetings

6.Informal meetings

7.Celebrations

8.Rituals/Services

9.Information Days

10.Workshops or Training

If you wish the meeting to run smoothly there are a number of things that need to be planned and organized before the day when meeting starts.

1. The Agenda:

78

An agenda is a list of the things that will be discussed at the meeting. It shows who will speak and sometimes even how long it may take to talk about each item. People who will attend the meeting need to have the agenda before so that they know what issues will be discussed. At the beginning of the meeting each agenda item should be referred to and some explanation given if necessary.

Invitations or notice of the meeting should be sent to all people who are going to attend the meeting. The invitation should include agenda.

2.Practical things and questions such as:

•Will everyone at the meeting be able to see each other?

•Are there enough chairs?

•Will a circle or square be the best arrangement?

•Water, tea, coffee and/or biscuits available during the meeting.

•Make sure that all necessary information papers are available for people at the meeting.

•Are there pens and paper if they are needed during the meeting?

•Make sure there is adequate heat and ventilation.

A common part of a business professional’s life is making presentations. Some presentations are informative, whereas others are persuasive. Some are face-to-face, others are virtual. Some are performed before big audiences, whereas others are given to smaller groups. Some presentations are elaborate; others are simple. Oral presentations are vitally important and necessary in order the meeting reaches its aims effectively. One advantage of presentations is that doing them can speed up the decision-making process. A disadvantage is that a poor presentation might not do justice to the ideas that are being presented.

Before you make a business presentation, always consider the proverb:

“Tell me, I forget. Show me, I remember. Involve me, I understand.” Your goals as a speaker are to make listeners understand, remember, and act on your ideas. As in any type of communication, a key element is analyzing your audience, anticipating its reactions, and adjusting to its needs if necessary.

79

Audiences may fall into four categories, as summarized in Table 1. By anticipating your audience, you have a better idea of how to organize your presentation.

80

audience.

Hostile

Table 1. Four audience types.

After determining your purpose and analyzing the audience, you are ready to collect information and organize it logically. Good organization and intentional repetition are the two most powerful keys to audience comprehension and retention. In fact, many speech experts recommend the following admittedly repetitious, but effective, plan:

Step 1: Introduction. Tell them what you are going to tell them. Step 2: The body of the speech. Tell them the main points.

Step 3: Conclusion. Tell them once more what you have told them. Although it may sometimes seem redundant, this strategy works well

because most people retain information best when they hear it repeatedly. In order your presentation to be successful you may use some of the following techniques:

A promise. Begin with a realistic promise that keeps the audience expectant (E.g, “By the end of this presentation, you will know how you can increase your sales by 50 percent!”).

Drama. Open by telling an emotionally moving story or by describing a serious problem that involves the audience. Throughout your talk include other dramatic elements, such as a long pause after a key statement. Change your vocal tone or pitch. Professional speakers use high-intensity emotions such as anger, joy, sadness, and excitement.