Business Writing Skills

How to write meeting minutes

The written minutes of a meeting are a meeting report that is sent after the meeting, and include a report of what was said and decided during the meeting. The minutes contain the date of the meeting, as well as the initials and names of the people who attended. You can write the term "apologies for absence were received from..." to say which people didn't come to the meeting.

Effective business writing

Writing effectively means your message is unambiguous and your reader knows what to do next. Effective business writing is clear, concise and courteous.

Business writing skills

Use these business writing tips to make sure you write accurately and clearly, and minimise the chance of misunderstandings.

Writing a business letter

There are some situations in which writing a letter is more appropriate than writing an email. If you need a permanent record of what you are writing, or if you are writing in a formal situation, a letter is a better choice. For example, you would probably write a letter of resignation and a covering letter with your CV.

How to write an email

Emails are generally shorter than letters. As they are often written quickly, in response to a request or question, they may contain only a few lines. Informal English, abbreviations, and absence of standard salutations are common when you write emails.

Writing thank you letters

Everyone likes to receive thanks for their help and support, and colleagues also appreciate being thanked in writing. You might want to thank someone for helping you with a project, donating their time or for sharing their expertise.

Writing dates and holidays

If you write to people around the world, it's easy to forget that not everyone knows the dates of your national holidays. You can avoid making your reader scratch his or her head in confusion by writing the exact date.

Clear writing

Being able to write clearly so that your reader understands you immediately is a difficult writing skill to acquire. There are some things that can help you get your message across easily: planning what you want to say before you write means you can avoid unnecessary repetition of ideas; and eliminating technical words and jargon (unless you are writing to someone who is familiar with them) is also a good idea.

Formal writing

A journalist on the Boston Globe was recently criticised for using non-standard English in an article. According to the critic, the column in which the article appeared qualified as "formal written English" and so shouldn't include non-standard English.