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The Business Writing Process

Subjects : writing-skills, business-skills

Instructions:

Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
Match each statement with the correct term.
Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.

1. The attitude a writer expresses toward the subject and his or her readers. May range depending on purpose etc.
Strategy and Humanness
Tone
Visualize Readers - Keep their interests in mind - List Pertinent Facts - Brainstorming - Diagrams
Information needed for short report

2. What is critical to a message's success?
Connotation
Keep Distance between Writer and Reader - Avoid Personal References/Contractions - Longer Sentences - for people of Higher Status
Information the reader will want - put it first.
Attractive and Readable Format

3. What is the best advice for Drafting?
Main parts of internal proposals
Intensifiers
Be Flexible - Avoid Perfectionism - Keep Going - Keep making progress
Figures of Speech

4. When to use Instant Messaging?
Stress Brevity - uses abbreviations - Convey ideas completely - minimal need for response - Telephone message - but in writing.
Conciseness
What do you want to say - Say It - Say it Better
Visualize Readers - Keep their interests in mind - List Pertinent Facts - Brainstorming - Diagrams

5. How do you Plan the message?
Position
Define the Problem - Consider the Audience and their Individual Contexts - Consider your own Contexts - Best Way to Achieve message;
Conciseness
Your audience is the best guide for What and How

6. What are Individual Contexts
Figures of Speech
Goal of a letter of application
Tone
Organizational - Professional - Personal

7. A sentence that is so tangled with structural and grammatical problems that it cannot be repaired - often result from trying to include too many ideas in one sentence.
Put it Last - using the opening to prepare the audience
Garbled Sentences
Not Confidential - Doesn't Communicate Emotions - Tone of Voice - or Unspoken Communications - Can be Ignored or Delayed
Emphasis

8. How is formatting important?
Characteristics of job-related writing
Keep Distance between Writer and Reader - Avoid Personal References/Contractions - Longer Sentences - for people of Higher Status
It is integral in how your audience will receive and accept the information.
Past Correspondence - Employees - Records - Warranties - Product Descriptions - Survey - Interviews

9. What are three levels of Revision?
Revision of content - Organization - Formatting
Affectation
Characteristics do employers like to see in a resume
What do you want to say - Say It - Say it Better

10. What types of research is done in gathering information?
Sentence Type
Past Correspondence - Employees - Records - Warranties - Product Descriptions - Survey - Interviews
Goal of a letter of application
Main parts of a set of instructions

11. What is Indirect Order?
Past Correspondence - Employees - Records - Warranties - Product Descriptions - Survey - Interviews
Put it Last - using the opening to prepare the audience
Most Important Information First - and then Descending Order
Recursive

12. An organized presentation of relevant data on any topic that a company or agency tracks in its day-to-day operations
Intensifiers
Cut out nonessentials - Minimize references to Previous Communications
Characteristics of job-related writing
Short report

13. Clairty
What do you want to say - Say It - Say it Better
Revision of content - Organization - Formatting
'You Viewpoint'
Strive for Concreteness - Vigor - Precision - Short sentences and paragraphs

14. Tell and show how to do something
Your audience is the best guide for What and How
Organizational - Professional - Personal
Instructions
Main parts of internal proposals

15. Means that extraneous words - phrases - clauses - and sentences have been removed from writing without sacrificing clarity or appropriate detail.
Characteristics of job-related writing
Write Correctly so others will not think you are stupid or lack credibility
Sentence Type
Conciseness

16. General considerations with Email Messages
Gathering and Collecting Information - Analyzing and Organizing Information - Choosing the Form - Channel - and Format of the Message
Figures of Speech
Conciseness - Clarity - Etiquette - Correctness
Guidelines for effective business e-mail messages

17. Avoid language that attempts to evade responsibility - Avoid deceptive language - Do not deemphasize or suppress important information - Do not emphasize misleading or incorrect information - Avoid using language that is biased - racist - or sexist o
Key draft questions
Ethics in Business Writing
Characteristics do employers like to see in a resume
Not Confidential - Doesn't Communicate Emotions - Tone of Voice - or Unspoken Communications - Can be Ignored or Delayed

18. Etiquette
NO offensive or abusive emails should be sent - and no upper case - as that is considered SCREAMING
Conciseness - Clarity - Etiquette - Correctness
Idioms
Outlining

19. How do you know what to include in your message?
Climatic Order
Buzz Words
Your audience is the best guide for What and How
Internal Letters. Sometimes classified as Reports

20. Introduction; list of equipment and materials; steps for your instructions; warnings - cautions - and notes; conclusion
Main parts of a set of instructions
Date - To - From - Subject Headings
Keep Distance between Writer and Reader - Avoid Personal References/Contractions - Longer Sentences - for people of Higher Status
Characteristics do employers like to see in a resume

21. The ___________ of a word are its meanings and associations beyond its literal definitions - words often have particular connotations for audiences within professional groups and organizations
Short report
Casual - Informal - or Formal
Connotation
Stress Brevity - uses abbreviations - Convey ideas completely - minimal need for response - Telephone message - but in writing.

22. Steps to Successful Writing
Selecting the proper medium
Sentence Length
Preparation - Research - Organization - Writing - Revision
Cautiously i.e. BTW: by the way

23. How to end an email
Organizational - Professional - Personal
Coherent writing
Be Flexible - Avoid Perfectionism - Keep Going - Keep making progress
Your Name - Closing Statement such as Thanks - Regards in more formal messages

24. Iitalics - bold type - underlining etc.
Emphasis
Mechanical Devices
Cautiously i.e. BTW: by the way
Tone

25. Provide practical info - give facts - not impressions - provide visuals to clarify - give accurate measurements - stating responsibility precisely - persuading and offering recommendations
'You Viewpoint'
Characteristics of job-related writing
Casual - Informal - or Formal
Write Correctly so others will not think you are stupid or lack credibility

26. The skeleton of the document you are going to write--structures your writing by ensuring that it has a beginning - middle - and end.Types: topic outlines - sentence outlines etc.
Your audience is the best guide for What and How
Active Voice
Outlining
Buzz Words

27. A group of words that has a special meaning apart from its literal meaning. Someone who 'runs for office'
Climatic Order
Euphemismss
Sentence Variety
Idioms

28. General ideas - qualities - conditions - acts or relationships-intangible things that cannot be detected by the five senses
Main parts of instructions
Abstract words
Keep Distance between Writer and Reader - Avoid Personal References/Contractions - Longer Sentences - for people of Higher Status
Instructions

29. Repeating keywords and key phrases
Procedures
Repetition
Connotation
Characteristics of job-related writing

30. What are three levels of Editing?
'You Viewpoint'
Your audience is the best guide for What and How
Revision - Editing - Proofreading
Characteristics of job-related writing

31. What is the general Purpose of a Letter?
Date - To - From - Subject Headings
Internal Letters. Sometimes classified as Reports
similar
Represent writer and topic formally to recipient. Correspondence with People Outside the your organization.

32. Am I giving the reader too much or too little info? - does this point belong here? - is this point relevant? - am I repeating or contradicting myself? - have I ended appropriately?
Date - To - From - Subject Headings
Key draft questions
Sentence Type
Position

33. Used to show - by the structure of a sentence - the appropriate relationship between ideas of unequal importance.
Guidelines for successful group writing
One-third
Subordination
Main parts of a set of instructions

34. Purpose - problem - plan/solution - conclusion
Short report
Revision of content - Organization - Formatting
Sentence Length
Main parts of internal proposals

35. Condenses writing by omitting articles - pronouns - conjunctions - and transitions - e.g. ' Per 5/21 email 12 copies of instruction needed asap'
Repetition
Information the reader will want - put it first.
Guidelines for successful group writing
Telegraphic Style

36. What is format of most Memos?
Outlining
Date - To - From - Subject Headings
Not Confidential - Doesn't Communicate Emotions - Tone of Voice - or Unspoken Communications - Can be Ignored or Delayed
Attractive and Readable Format

37. Goal and audience
Goal of a letter of application
Tone
Cautiously i.e. BTW: by the way
Things to think through when planning a website

38. Formality Considerations
Casual - Informal - or Formal
Procedures
Purpose - Format - Composition
Cliches

39. What are the activities in the planning stage?
Gathering and Collecting Information - Analyzing and Organizing Information - Choosing the Form - Channel - and Format of the Message
Emphasis
similar
Your Name - Closing Statement such as Thanks - Regards in more formal messages

40. Purpose - findings - conclusion - and recommendations
Represent writer and topic formally to recipient. Correspondence with People Outside the your organization.
One-third
Information needed for short report
Climatic Order

41. To emphasize the performer of an action: make the performer the subject of the verb
Active Voice
Cliches
Visualize Readers - Keep their interests in mind - List Pertinent Facts - Brainstorming - Diagrams
Abstract words

42. How do you present information in message?
Most Important Information First - and then Descending Order
Revision - Editing - Proofreading
Put it Last - using the opening to prepare the audience
Eliminates phone tag - saves time - facilitates fast decisions - cheap - provides written record

43. What are Pros of Email?
Past Correspondence - Employees - Records - Warranties - Product Descriptions - Survey - Interviews
Denotaion
Eliminates phone tag - saves time - facilitates fast decisions - cheap - provides written record
'You Viewpoint'

44. Less formal than in the past - Varies from conversational style - The use of personal pronouns is important - In emails etc. something between conversational & business writing should be used - Only use we when it is company policy
Active Voice
Cut out nonessentials - Minimize references to Previous Communications
Characteristics of job-related writing
Business Writing Style

45. Audience's preferences - personal work style - how widely info needs to be distributed etc.
Selecting the proper medium
Characteristics do employers like to see in a resume
Past Correspondence - Employees - Records - Warranties - Product Descriptions - Survey - Interviews
Purpose - Format - Composition

46. How do you begin the message?

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47. The relationships among ideas are clear to readers. A logical sequence of related ideas and clear transitions between these ideas.
What do you want to say - Say It - Say it Better
Coherent writing
Be Flexible - Avoid Perfectionism - Keep Going - Keep making progress
similar

48. Plan what you are going to say - polish what you wrote before you sent it - proofread everything

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49. What is important in the Revising stage?
Characteristics of job-related writing
Attractive and Readable Format
Get Feedback From Others!
Stress Brevity - uses abbreviations - Convey ideas completely - minimal need for response - Telephone message - but in writing.

50. Varying sentences by using a compound sentence - a complex sentence - or a simple sentence
Internal Letters. Sometimes classified as Reports
Preparation - Research - Organization - Writing - Revision
Be Flexible - Avoid Perfectionism - Keep Going - Keep making progress
Sentence Type