Evaluating Written Communication

Numerous frameworks have been developed to improve the effectiveness of written communication. One of these, the 7 Cs of Communication, was created with the professional context in mind.

📺 Watch this video to learn more about the 7Cs of communication.

Summary of the 7Cs of Communication

  • Clarity: Keep it simple

  • Conciseness: Get to the point

  • Concreteness: Be specific

  • Correctness: Be accurate and error-free

  • Coherence: Make it logical

  • Completeness: Include all necessary information

  • Courtesy: See things from the audience's point of view

Check Your Understanding

❓ Take this quiz to see how well you understand the 7Cs of Communication. There are 7 questions, so each of the 7 Cs will only be used once. If you think two of the Cs apply to a given description, select the one that you think is a more accurate fit.

Using the 7Cs

One of the best ways to improve your writing skills is to objectively evaluate your writing and the writing of others. In this section, you are going to use a checklist to assess some written communications.

Written Communication Evaluation Checklist

Below is a checklist for using the 7Cs of Communication to evaluate the quality of written professional communication.

Clarity 
- Uses simple language, and avoids terminology that is not likely to be known to the reader
- Says exactly what it means without any room for ambiguity
- Individual sentences contain at most 1 or 2 thoughts
Conciseness 
- Free from unnecessary words or paragraphs that do not add to the intended purpose of the message
- Conclusions and most important parts of the message are easy to identify
Concreteness 
- Avoids the use of vague or ambiguous words (e.g. "several", "very", "quickly", "usually")?
Correctness 
- Free from typographical and spelling mistakes
- Contains factually accurate information
Coherence 
- Uses an appropriate organizing structure 
- Leads with the most important points
- Follows a logical order, and uses transitions effectively
Completeness 
- All arguments or claims are supported with appropriate evidence
- Includes all relevant information that the receiver would need to perform the intended action
Courtesy 
- Acknowledges the reader by considering what the reader knows, what matters to them, and if they will understand the content and context of the message

Check Your Understanding

Written Communication Examples

Example 1

To know how to deliver messages clearly so as to stop the room for misunderstanding or alteration of messages, to learn how to solve the situation in a respectful manner, to know how to bridge the gap between individuals and groups through the flow of information and understanding between them and to learn how to provide good recommendations and suggestions especially when making decisions.

And hope to gain communications skills such as writing, listening, speaking and sign languages skills, create better relationships between individuals and groups and how to deliver messages clearly, also I hope to gain how to chair meetings in communication for success

Example 2

I am an accounting graduate and throughout my studies l never focused on communication skills assuming that all my communication will be through balance sheets etc. However to be a great accountant you need to be able to write reports that clearly explain what your financial reports mean to non accountants so opportunities are always offered to those with some communication skill as they are better able to produce quality reports. With this course l hope to first revamp my CV and present myself in the best light, improve my overal communication skills and be more marketable on the job market.

Example 3

Communication is essential in our living and daily activities, and must be prioritized.

Am applying because communication is part of human race and needs to be done well and in a right way, what I stand to gain is the required knowledge and skills in communication and impact generations, and promote businesses since it is fundamental in business world.

Example 4

As rightly said by James Humes, "The art of communication is the language of leadership", I strongly believe that, for me to make a difference in today's world as an upcoming Data Scientist, I need to learn how to communicate my findings, insights and thought appropriately. I believe, Communication For Success has all the required tools and resources to train to become a good communicator.

Again, Communication For Success presents a structured environment where I can consistently improve on my communication skills.

I hope to build my knowledge and skills in communicating appropriately as I improve to lead people in the Tech space.

Post your evaluation in this Slack thread. Include the example you are evaluating, e.g., "Example 3",the criterion you are using, e.g., "Coherence," and a brief evaluation of the example against that criterion.

Check Your Understanding

Now that you have evaluated some paragraphs, let’s practice evaluating writing at the sentence level.

❓Complete the quiz below. Each question of the quiz will ask you to select which version of a sentence you think is better. This will test how well you are able to evaluate some of the 7Cs, especially Clarity, Conciseness, Concreteness, and Correctness.

Improving Your Writing With the 7Cs

When you produce a piece of professional writing, use the criteria above to evaluate your own writing, and improve its effectiveness.

References

Romih, Tea. (2016). The 7Cs of Effective Communication Applied to Science