What rules should you follow creating effective business documents?

What should you avoid?

When creating an effective business document, some rules a writer should follow include knowing the purpose and scope of the document in order to communicate the message clearly and effectively, identifying the target audience and writing to that audience, understanding the needs of the reader and addressing those needs, organizing the document effectively, be concise, use formal writing, substantiate any claims made, and proof reading.

Checklist

1. Clearly Identify the Purpose
2. Identify the Target Audience
3. Create the Message for that Audience (Be concise)
4. Be sure the document is organized
5. Use formal writing avoid idioms and informal references
6. Proof reading and Edit.

The writer should avoid being sloppy, incoherent and unprofessional with incomplete communication because this can detract from the message you are trying to make as well as detract from your professional image, prevent you from being hired or promoted, or cost you in sales and investments depending on who the target audience is.

One of the worst pitfalls in writing today, is the problem with using informal language. People often write the way they would text a message. This is completely inappropriate for professional business documents. This problem has been the result of email and texting technologies and schools not being able to keep up with the problem. The writer should always avoid using abbreviations and slang expressions in business documents not just because it sounds terrible but because it also can create confusion for the reader.