Communicating is one of the most important aspects of any business. Make sure you’re business communication skills are excellent by utilizing these 15 practices.
Business communication skills can make or break a business. Success relies on sharing your dream.
Whether it’s customer service with clients, internal employee interactions or to network with others in the industry, you need good communication to survive and thrive.
Check out these surefire ways to improve your business communication skills
Make Business Communication Skills a Priority
Billionaires Richard Branson, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett all agree business communication skills are essential if you want to be a successful entrepreneur.
It’s not enough to have a vision; you have to be able to share it effectively. You need to capture everyone else’s imagination, so they connect with your message.
Not all communication is verbal or written. Over half of how we communicate is non-verbal body language and facial expressions.
Improving Business Communication Skills as an Individual
From someone’s first day at an entry-level position to someone who’s been the CEO for years, communication skills are necessary.
The inability to convey information could be a roadblock to even getting your foot in the door. Never mind your dream position within the company.
Luckily, communication skills are something you learn. Even if you struggle to communicate today, it’s possible to learn skills for the future.
Practice Your Listening Skills
Many make the mistake of thinking communication is all about what you say. One of the most important skills you can learn is how to listen.
One of the biggest mistakes people make when trying to listen is their motive for doing so. They listen to respond rather than listening to understand.
Richard Branson, Founder/CEO of Virgin Group, says that listening skills are not only part of learning to communicate but also being a great leader.
Branson says,
“Being a good listener is critical to being a good leader; you have to listen to the people on the front line. That’s a very Virgin trait. Listening enables us to learn from each other, from the marketplace, and from the mistakes to get anywhere that is original and disruptive.”
You can’t know what needs fixing, or what’s expected if you aren’t listening to what’s said.
Be Prepared with Facts and Data
It’ll be easier to convey your message if you’re prepared before even opening your mouth. Relevant facts and data to share during the conversation help support your statements.
Being prepared is essential. Preparation gives you confidence for any meeting or discussion.
Be Organized
It’s much easier to communicate if you’re not busy rifling through papers. Frantically searching for files doesn’t inspire confidence.
Being organized doesn’t just help your communication skills. It can help your mental and physical health on the whole.
Getting organized helps reduce depression, anxiety, and stress as well as improve your relationships and energy levels. It can boost your ability to concentrate and critical thinking ability.
Read and Write More
Reading is good for your career and your life.
Reading not only improves your vocabulary but your ability to express yourself and share your opinion as well. Reading can help reduce stress, increase empathy and creativity. It is also said to enhance emotional and mental intelligence.
You don’t have to write a book or take more than a few minutes to do so but writing every day can help your communication, thought process, critical thinking, and memory. Writing by hand can make it easier to learn and help you sleep more soundly.
Connect with People
Connecting with people is more than just conveying the information you want to share. Making a connection with others entails sharing information in a way that the listener can relate to.
Even the shyest person can gain the skills to connect with others if they put effort into learning how.
Connecting with others will require using the listening skills talked about earlier. Listening will help you find a way to make an emotional or intellectual connection.
Be Creative but Clear
It’s critical to be professional in all business communication. That doesn’t mean you have to be boring.
Albert Einstien had good advice when he said, “If you can’t explain it to a six-year-old you don’t really understand it yourself.”
You don’t want to talk down to a business associate or client, but you want to be clear and concise when you do.
Finding a balance between being creative and being clear and concise in what you say can be difficult. Improving individual skills can lead to better business communication skills for the entire team.
Quality Control Before You Send
We’ve all felt the dread of reading a typo seconds after hitting the send button. Your written communication skills will improve just by taking a moment to edit and read your correspondence before you send it.
If it’s a critical report or something, you’re not quite sure of getting a second or third opinion. Ask coworkers to read it over to make sure it’s coherent and easily understood.
Improving Business Communication Skills as a Team
Every team no matter how cohesive can benefit from working on communicating better. There are many things that a team leader can personally do, or implement to improve the teams business communication skills.
Language and cultural barriers, lack of information, and misinterpretations can all lead to a break down in communication channels.
Lead By Example
The best way to get your team excited about business communication skills is to lead by example.
Proving to the team that communication is a priority can be as easy as implementing an open door policy and opening a dialogue with employees about what they need and want in the workplace to increase motivation and boost productivity.
Make Your Mission and Vision Clear
It’s easier for the entire team to work towards a single goal of company success if the organization’s mission and vision are clear.
Focussing on your overall mission and vision as the team tackles each project can help employees find motivation.
Integrity and quality service can be easily incorporated into daily operations when the company communicates the mission and vision as an integral part of every project.
Productivity Software with Communications Platform
You want your team to communicate better? Do you want to be more productive?
If you’re wondering how to do that then why not turn to technology? Improving productivity- You guessed it- there’s an app for that.
In fact, there are several apps for that. Productivity platforms and communication apps can help build a more streamlined and efficient operation.
No more waiting for information because productivity software offers real-time updates to the whole team at the same time.
This cuts down on mistakes, delays, waste, and paperwork. Especially when you find the right programs for your business’ specific needs.
Team Communication Software
Platforms like Slack allow employees to communicate, share progress on projects, send files, and more. This is particularly helpful in a world where more employees than ever are working remotely.
Boostlingo improves business communication skills for all employees and clients by offering the ability to connect and solve language barriers. This makes it easier for everyone to make informed choices.
Team Building Activities
Whether your team works in a small office where their noses are almost touching every day, or they’re spread across the globe and will never actually meet in person, team building activities are essential for a smooth operation.
Conversation groups, online games, company trips and team building workshops can all help your team bond.
Workshops and Continuing Education
Continuing education is a great way to motivate team members to acquire new business communication skills. Some may not realize the way they interact isn’t the most effective choice.
In meetings, many rely on powerpoint and other media presentations without knowing they may actually be hindering their ability to win people over.
Many CEOs like Jeff Bezos banned powerpoint presentations from company meetings because people tend to pay closer attention to the message without them.
Opportunities to Develop Skills
It’s not enough to tell your team what it takes to communicate better; they need an opportunity to put those skills into practice.
Delegating and expanding the responsibilities of employees and team members helps them grow and reach their potential. It’s impossible to know what someone is most talented at if they’re never given a chance to shine.
Offering team members the opportunity to develop new skills and discover hidden talents can give them the motivation to take your entire team to new heights.
Business Communications Skills Evolve
As the way we conduct business adapts to the new trends, the way we interact does too. As innovative technology advances, our business communication skills need to evolve, too. The way you communicate with customers, clients, and partners determines your success in building stellar relationships.
Communication skills are essential soft skills. They also matter when engaging your colleagues or team. This is particularly important when trying to communicate technical ideas, subjects or reports to an audience that knows little about your field.
If you want more information on growing your business, don’t forget to check out the rest of our business success tips today.
| 
Fetching the Best Small