Long Business

n UNIT 11 LONG BUSINESS Correspondence

CORRESPONDENCE

Objectives
After studying this unit, you should be able to:
● Understand how to draft business reports;
● Understand how to draft effective business proposals;
● Differentiate between a business report and a business proposal.
Structure

11.1 Introduction
11.2 Concept of a report
11.3 Types of Business Reports
11.4 Characteristics of a good report
11.5 Preparing the report
11.6 Organisation of a report
11.7 Components of Letter-text combination form of reports
11.8 Research Report
11.9 Technical Reports
11.10 Business proposal
11.11 Components of a business proposal
11.12 Persuasive proposal
11.13 Difference between business report & business proposal
11.14 Summary
11.15 Keywords
11.16 Self-Assessment Questions
11.17 References and further readings

11.1 INTRODUCTION
Every business operates in dynamic market conditions and the market forces
are very versatile and these things impact the functioning of the business.This
is the reason why every organisation frequently takes an effort to understand
the market forces. At the same time, every organisation is affected by internal
forces like less productivity of the employees or high attrition rates. All these
forces have to be analyzed and then they have to be effectively presented in
the form of reports. The business reports address all the internal and external
causes which the business may be facing. The reports have specific formats
and specific styles of presentation so that it is easy for all the readers to
comprehend. The business reports are very substantial as they do impact the
decision making of the organisations. Every organisation needs to expand its
181
Wriitten business annd the inforrmation about new prodducts and seervices havee to be
Commmunication
At Work
W communicaated to all the customeers and bussiness propoosals have bbecome
important tools
t of connnection with the customeers. All the nuances
n of business
b
reports andd business prroposals havee been coverred in this unnit.

11.2 CONCEP
C T OF A REPORT
R T
Report is a formal document which scienntifically describes anny new
phenomenoon, new obsservation annd insights and
a presentss them in a logical
manner in order
o to deduuce importannt informatioon out of it.
Different tyypes of reports are prepaared all overr the year in every organnisation.
The frequenncy of reporrts may diffeer as per thee nature and needs and systems
s
of an organnisation. Som me reports may
m be prepaared daily, soome reports may be
presented weekly
w or evven once in a month, twice in a year etc. For example, a
territory sales officer has
h to preparre a monthlyy sales targett report and send it
to his/her regional
r salees manager mentioning the sales voolume of eaach and
every produuct of his/heer organisation in his/herr territory orr region. Thuus, s/he
also mentioons the sales of the prooducts whichh could achiieve the targget and
also the prooduct which could not acchieve the taarget with reaasons as welll.
A publicatiion firm, intterested in inntroducing into the markket a new seeries of
books, can ask for a reeport on thee latest prefeerences abouut the readeers. The
Board of Directors
D of the firm woould definiteely like to get
g a report on the
lower produuctivity of aan organisatioon and the fu
future plans and
a vision.

Importancce of reportss
Decisions cannot
c be taaken random mly in any orrganisation. Every decision has
small term and long terrm consequeences and invvolves cost. Thus reportss play a
crucial rolee in orientingg the decisioon making inn an organissation. The ffindings
of the repoort create a llogical base so that the rright decisioons can be taken
t at
the right timme. The deccisions can be taken at an area level, state leveel or at
country lev vel and even at the international
i l level as the
t reports act as
substantial benchmarkss in the decission-makingg process.

11.3 TYPES OF BUSIN

NESS RE
EPORTS
On the bassis of legal formalities and officiaal protocols which havee to be
adhered to, we can classsify reports into two typpes.

1) Infoormal reports
2) Form
mal reports
1) Informmal reports-- An inform mal report maay not be sppecifically prrepared
as perr the rules and perm manent obliggations and protocols of the
organissation. Thesse reports doo not have a fixed formaat and these reports
are usuually shorterr in length ass compared to formal reeports. Trip rreports,
email, conference reports, meemos are usually some examples of o these
reportss.

1822
 2) Formal reports- A report that is prepared as per the set protocols, Long Business
n Correspondence
formats and as per the rules and regulations of the organisation are
generally the formal reports.Formal reports can be statutory or non-
statutory. A report prepared and presented as per the rules and
regulations as per the requirement of any law comes under the purview
of statutory report. The Executive Director’s report at the annual general
meeting, annual return reports, and auditor’s report are some of the
examples of statutory reports. Non-Statutory reports are prepared to
assist the top management of the organisation and facilitate them in the
decision-making process but these reports do not fall under any law. For
example, report of any committee to the top management, report of any
individual executive, officer, manager to the organisation etc.

On the basis of the frequency of the issue, a report can be periodic or special.
● Periodic or Routine reports are drafted as per specific frequencies of
time. They may be drafted hourly, daily, weekly, monthly or once in a
year.For example, an HR manager may send a monthly report to the
management about the job attrition rate of the organisation. S/he will
report the new recruits as well as those employees who have left the
organisation mentioning the reasons. S/he will also assess the attrition
rate whether it is decreasing or increasing.

● Special reports are drafted on special requests or needs of the

organisation. They target very specific and focused areas, for example,
the decline in the sales of X dolls in Japan. The report investigated the
reasons behind the drop in the sales. Some reasons like the physical
attributes of the doll did not match with Japanese women per se. X dolls
portray physical attributes more of American girls like tall height, sharp
features and broad eyes. Japanese girls did not identify with the structure
of the doll as their physical attributes are different from those of
American girls. As per the facts revealed by the report, the physical
attributes of the doll were modified resembling that of Japanese girls.
The modified doll was then re-launched in the Japanese market.

11.4 CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD REPORT

Each report should have some features which make it a good or bad report.
The characteristics are listed and explained below:

1) Precision- Precision means to be laser focused and only present those

facts in the report which are relevant. This means the writer has to be
very clear about the purpose of the report. The findings in the report
should pinpoint the exact issue or the purpose of the report. Precision
provides a type of cohesiveness to the report.
2) Accuracy of facts- The reliability of the report lies in its accuracy. Any
fake information can ruin the decision-making process of the
organisation. Genuine, authentic reports are vital as many a time
financial decisions are also based upon the findings of the reports.

183
Wriitten 3) Relevaance- Durinng the courrse of reporrt preparatioon, the researcher
Commmunication
At Work
W comes across inforrmation whicch may not be b relevant as
a per the subbject of
the repport. Some writers are very tempted to menntion all thee report
findinggs, even thee irrelevant ones, as thhey feel thatt it would make
m a
detailed report. Mentioning
M irrrelevant finndings confu
use the readeers and
also result in loss of
o their preciious time. Thhe report muust include relevant
r
and useeful matters only.
4) Readeer-orientatioon- The repoort should bbe made in alignment
a w the
with
taste, preferences
p of the readders. The ppurpose of the report w will be
incompplete if the reeaders are no
ot able to coonnect to the report.
5) Objecttivity of Reecommendaations- Prejuudiced thoug ght process, biased
approaach and preoccupied thouughts will taarnish the sannctity of thee report.
The reecommendations should be free froom all these things and should
maintaain an unbiassed tone.
6) Simplee and com mprehensib ble languagge- Clarityy, simplicityy, and
readability are keyy characterisstics of a reeport. It is a kind of sccientific
documment which iss pragmatic in
i nature.

7) Clarityy- Ambiguous reports arre of no use. The tone off the report must
m be
clear and
a comprehhensible. Thee reports should not havve long paraagraphs
but shoould have w
well-articulatted short parragraphs witth titles whiich will
make the
t report moore comprehhensible to thhe readers.

8) Brevitty- A report should be brrief and crispp but it shouuld not comppromise
in its expression. If the repoort is addresssing any inn-depth anallysis of
somethhing then thhe proper ex xpression haas to be resspected. Onne must
alwayss do an analyysis of the content
c whicch can be in ncluded or reemoved
from thhe report. Brrevity has to be respectedd for effectiv
ve reporting.

9) Gramm matical acccuracy- Graammatical coompetence is i one of thhe basic

requisiites of a goood report. Grammatica
G al errors nott only degraade the
image of the writeer but also degrade thee image of the
t organisaation. A
compleete check-upp on the senntence compposition, proper use of articles,
a
punctuuations shoulld be there.
We can say
y that a goodd report shou
uld be:
● preccise and brieef
● accuurate (factuaally and gram
mmatically)
● releevant
● readder-oriented
● objeective
● cleaar and unambbiguous

11.5 PR
REPARIING THE
E REPOR
RT
Let us now
w explore thee logical flow
w in which thhe report preeparation shoould be
approached
d. The methoodical way while prepaaring the repport saves tim me and
1844
 efforts and focuses the attention of the writer in the right way. The following Long Business
n Correspondence
steps can be beneficial while preparing a report:

1) Identify the sources of information;

2) Take notes;
3) Meticulous analysis of the data;
4) Prepare an outline; and
5) Draft the report.
1) Identifying the sources of information- Content is distributed in
journals, magazines, reports and in many other sources. Due to the
scarcity of time the researcher cannot go through all the sources of
information. S/he has to apply his/her mind and filter out the irrelevant
sources of information. S/he has to pick those sources that can give
accurate, speedy and relevant information. For example, if an
organisation is frequently receiving complaints about its poor services
from the customers, the ideal way to collect the data here could be
identifying those customers and having face-to-face conversations or
interviews with them. On the other hand, if the need of the report is to
study the audience at a large scale then the source of collecting the data
has to be different. For example, if a bank needs to study the emotional
quotient of all of its employees in a country like India, then in this case
questionnaire will be a good source of collecting the information. The
questionnaire will be thus distributed to few employees (as per the
sample size) to different branches of banks located in North, South or
Eastern or western India so as to gather maximum information.
2) Taking notes- In the course of report making, the writer has to keep on
taking notes so that any type of vital information should not be missed.
Taking notes actually helps the writer to visualize which type of content
is relevant or which type of content has to be rejected. Taking notes also
helps in giving a methodical approach to report writing. In addition to it,
proper details are not missed as this may be very important for decision
making in the future.
3) Analyzing the Data- This is a crucial part of the report writing process.
Right tools of analysis have to be used. Today with the help of various
statistical tools the data can be logically analyzed but the writer of the
report should have the awareness and understanding to choose the right
tools for analysis and interpret it correctly.
4) Making an outline- Once the blueprint of the report has taken shape in
the writer's mind, the writer can systematically infer the flow and tone in
which the report work has to be drafted. S/he can logically deduce the
priority of the information to be presented first or last,the flow of the
parts-subparts of the report etc.
5) Writing the report- The rough draft should be revised and polished by
and again. The writer should also be careful that the language of the
report is simple, free from grammatical errors, and should contain
relevant facts with authentic data.
185
Wriitten
Commmunication
11.6 ORGANIS
O SATION
N OF A R
REPORT
At Work
W
There are thhree ways inn which a repport can be oorganized. These
T are:
1) Letter form;
2) Memorrandum form
m;
3) Letter--text combinnation form.
1) Letterr form- In thhe letter form
m of report wwriting, the title, date, address,
a
salutation, the body, compllimentary cclose, and signature are a all
mentiooned. The body
b of thee letter cann be furtherr divided innto the
following parts

a). In
ntroduction-- What is thee purpose off the report?? Why is thee report
neeeded? Whatt is the probllem area in hand? The answers
a to all
a these
qu
uestions shouuld be covereed in the intrroduction paart.
b). Fiindings- Thhe next few
w paragraphss present thhe findings of the
invvestigation.
c). Reecommendaations- This is the mosst vital part of the repoort as it
givves a bird’s eye view ab bout the sugggestions andd recommenndations
whhich are to bbe incorporaated in the near future. This
T part cann orient
thee readers off the report to
t take impoortant decisiions as welll as the
secction of thee report givees new piecees of informmation and iinsights
annd directly adddresses the nature of the problem.
2) Memoorandum foorm- the simplest
s waay to draftt a report is the
memorrandum stylle of writingg. The date is mentioneed at the toop. It is
followed by the naame of the person
p to whhom the repo
ort is addresssed, the
name of the writter, and the subject off the report.. A format of the
memorrandum form m is given beelow.

Mem
morandum
Date
To:
From:
Subject:
Report content

Large businness houses have differeent types off printed form ms to send rreports.
This simpliifies the proccedure and ensures
e a uniiform style.

3) Letterr-text combiination form m- Long repports are usu

ually writtenn in the
letter-ttext combinaation form. A completee report in this form inncludes
three major
m parts and
a these aree:
I) Intrroductory paarts;

II) Boddy of the repport;

III)Adddenda
1866
 It is not essential that a report contains all these parts. Long reports Long Business
n Correspondence
containing most of these parts are generally submitted in book form.

11.7 COMPONENTS OF LETTER-TEXT

COMBINATION FORM OF REPORTS
Let us now discuss different components of the letter-text combination form
of reports.
The complete outline of such a report is as follows:

1) Introductory parts
● Letter of transmittal or letter of presentation
● Title page
● Table of contents
● List of illustrations
● Abstract and/or summary.

II) Body of the report

● Introduction
● Discussion or description:
● Conclusion
● Recommendations.

III) Addenda
● List of References
● Bibliography
● Glossary
● Appendices
● Index

I. INTRODUCTORY PARTS

Letter of transmittal or letter of presentation

A letter of transmittal is a formal letter written to transmit the report from the
writer to the reader. It includes details like (1) providing a permanent record
of transfer; (ii) highlighting the date on which the report was submitted; (iii)
mentioning the name and position of the writer of the report; (iv) stating
when and by whom the report was authorized.
A letter of presentation is slightly different from a letter of transmittal. In
addition to giving the information contained in the letter of transmittal, it
usually states the purpose and scope of the report and refers to the writer's
sources of information, and highlights special features.

187
Wriitten Title pagee- The title page givess the title oor heading of the repoort, the
Commmunication
At Work
W person(s) too whom it is
i submitted, the date off submissionn, and the nname of
the writer(ss).
Table of coontents- In the
t case of loong reports, it is advisabble to give thhe table
of contents in the beginnning. The benefit
b of givving the tablee of contentss is that
it helps in locating thee desired conntent which the reader wishes
w to reaad. The
table of conntents gives the title and the page nuumber of eacch chapter.
ustrations- The illustraations are ussually given
List of illu n after the table
t of
contents. The
T list givess the number, title of thee illustrationns being menntioned
in the reporrt.
Abstract and/or
a summmary- In thee case of longg reports, it is advisable to give
an abstract or summaryy of the repoort for a quicck reference. An abstractt is also
ynopsis. An abstract tells about the exact naturee of the report, the
called a sy
t report inn short. Therre are no haard and fast rules regardding the
finding of the
ideal length
h of the abstrract.

II. BODY
Y OF THE R
REPORT
Introduction- The intrroduction is the first paart of the body of the reeport. It
includes thee following items of infoormation:
1) Authorrization for tthe report;
2) Theoreetical and tecchnical backkground;
3) Scope of study, wiith a clear deescription off the limitatioons;
4) Methodds of colleecting data and mentioon of primaary and seccondary
sources of data;
5) Definittions of speccial terms; iff needed.

Discussion n or descripttion- This iss the main paart of the rep

port. It preseents in a
very logicaal way the vvarious aspeects of the iissue under headings annd sub-
headings. ItI may incluude excerptss from otherr published reports alonng with
charts, grapphs, statisticaal tables.

Conclusion n and recoommendatioons- On thee basis of the t facts annd data

presented under
u the heeading 'findinngs', the wriiter infers deefinite concllusions.
This is the most imporrtant part of the report aas here the crux of the reeport is
mentioned. The recom mmendationss mentionedd here are of o key importance
because theey will help the managem ment in channnelizing their future coourse of
action.

III. ADDE
ENDA
List of refeerences- Thee works cited in the text are either crredited in foootnotes
on the pagge on whichh they are cited
c or menntioned togeether in the list of
references. Some writeers also menntion the refferences in thet footnotes if the
number off search refeerences is not
n too mucch. On the other hand,, if the
number of the
t referencees is more thhan they shoould be preseented at the end.
e

1888
 Bibliography- It includes the work reviewed by the writer and is given in the Long Business
n Correspondence
bibliography.

Glossary- Glossary section includes the meanings of all the technical terms
being used in the report. It is not easy for everybody to understand the
meaning of all the technical, financial terminologies mentioned in the report.
If the report is made for seasoned professionals; glossary section may be
skipped as they are already acquainted with the meanings of the technical
terms.
Appendices- Statistical data, charts, and diagrams that are not included in the
main body of the report for maintaining the smooth, uninterrupted flow of the
report. They are put at the end in the form of appendices.

Index- In case of lengthy reports, an index of the contents of the report may
be included.
Signature- A report must be dated and signed by the person(s) who has
(have) made it. Somebody has to take the accountability of signing the report.
As for signing, the report makes you responsible for the authenticity of the
content which has been mentioned in the report.

Activity 1
You are the marketing head of a mobile manufacturing Organisation named
as X. Your organisation is receiving strong competition from Y Mobile.
Organize a meeting with the sales head, R&D Head and conduct a market
survey with the distributors of X mobile to understand the perception of
people regarding X mobiles. After taking all these inputs, draft a business
report to the managing director of the X mobiles.
…………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………

11.8 RESEARCH REPORT

Research is the systematic investigation into study of a natural phenomenon
or materials or sources or existing conditions of the society in order to
identify facts or to get additional information and derive new conclusions.
Research reports are prepared by the researchers or statisticians after
analyzing the information gathered by conducting organized research,
typically in the form of surveys or qualitative methods.
The key components of a research report are as follow:

A) Preliminary Section

1) Title Page
189
Wriitten The title paage is one of the most immportant paages of the reesearch repoort. The
Commmunication
At Work
W following mentioned
m innformation should be inccorporated on the title paage:
1) Name((s) of the autthor(s)
2) Name and positionn of the menttor
3) Name of the prograamme in wh
hich the reseaarch was com
mpleted
4) Departtment in whiich the reseaarch was connducted
uthor(s) and mentor(s)
5) Contacct informatioon of both au

2) Acknoowledgmentts (if any)

This sectio
on is devoted to expressing gratitudde to all thee persons, mentors
m
even the institutions thaat have made this research possible.

3) Table of Contentss
The chapteers, sectionss, figures, sub-sections
s must be properly
p listted and
organized in a system matic way. The T table off content heelps the reaaders to
identify thee content andd its relevantt position.

4) List off Tables (if any)

a
The detailss of the lisst of tabless being useed in the reesearch shoould be
mentioned separately aas it will heelp the readeer to locate any table too which
s/he might wish to referr.

5) List off Figures (iff any)

The detailss of the lisst of tabless being useed in the reesearch shoould be
mentioned separately aas it will heelp the readeer to locate any table too which
s/he might wish to referr to.

6) Abstraact
The abstracct of any ressearch contaains a summaary of the details mentiooned in
the report.

B) Main Body
B
The main body
b includees the follow
wing components:
1) Introdduction –Thhis includes the details about the topic with problem
p
statement and theooretical backg
ground of thhe topic.

2) Review w of Related d Literaturre- A literatuure review is a summaryy of all

the preevious researrch which haas been done on a given n topic. A litterature
review
w creates a "platform" for the reeader, givinng him a holistic
understanding of thet research h work donee in his/her field f and heelps the
researccher to channnelize his/heer efforts in tthe right direection.
3) Researrch Method dology- Botth qualitativve and quanntitative reseearch is
appliedd to find answers to reseearch questioons. The chap
pter is set too satisfy
the research objecttives.

1900 uld talk abouut the followiing points

It shou
 ● Details of the Research, Long Business
n Correspondence
● Design and tools to be used
● Sources of Data collection
● Sampling study
● Statistical Tools being used
4) Analysis of Data- Data Analysis is the logical process of applying
various statistical techniques and tools to condense the data,
recapitulation of data, describe the data, and finally evaluate it
systematically.
5) Summary and Conclusions- The following details must be incorporated
in the summary and conclusion section of the research report:
● Restatement of the Problem- This section refers to the summary and
conclusion part.
● Major Findings- After the application of various statistical tools and
techniques the observations and results will pinpoint some major
results i.e. the findings. The major findings will provide revealing
information useful for the research and all the readers.
● Conclusions- The essence of the report is discussed in this part of the
research report.
● Recommendations- As research is an ongoing process, certain
advancements and new changes will surely take place in the times to
come. The researcher should mention those areas in which further
studies can be conducted.
● Limitations of the study- Every research will have some limitations
and it is quite a normal thing. One should always acknowledge the
limitations in a research report with transparency.

● Reference Section- It comprises of the following sub-sections

● Endnotes
● Bibliography or Literature Cited
● Appendix
The research report is normally used for the summer projects and academic
studies. However, it is seen that the business houses too have started using
the research reports in their research and development section.

11.9 TECHNICAL REPORTS

A technical report is a formal report in nature. These reports are drafted to
convey technical information in an easy way which is easy to comprehend.
Presenting the technical report is a challenging task as technical
terminologies being used in the report is not everyone’s cup of tea. The
ability to simplify the language and the art of presenting a difficult concept
easily are the two skills required by a report writer. In a technical report,
191
Wriitten there are vaarious elemeents and partts and all of them have to be connected and
Commmunication
At Work
W presented methodically
m y to make thee report imprressive.
The tools that
t facilitatee writing a technical
t description cann be definitiion and
classificatio
on.The folloowing pointts would faacilitate in designing a good
definition.
i) Use sim
mple words which are seelf-explanatoory;
ii) Ensurin
ng that the ddefinition be comprehenssive to the reeader;

iii) Avoid using abstraact words as they may crreate confusiion;

iv) The deefinition shouuld be holisttic in nature..
c be done in the follow
Classificatiion in techniical reports can wing ways.

● Specify
fy the type of classifiication. Claassification can be bassed on
parameeters like utiility, nature, size etc.
● Classiffication cann be subjecttive in natuure i.e. bassed on one’s own
comforrt or by keepping the readders of the reeport in mindd.

After the definition

d annd classificattion, the nexxt step invoolved is a teechnical
description
n of machines/mechanism ms and proceesses in the report.
r

Machines and
a Mechan
nisms
A machinee is a compleex collectionn of variouss parts and sub-parts.
s Eaach and
every part is connecteed with eacch other andd works in a synchronization.
These partss of the macchine have to t be explainned clearly and accurateely and
this is the first
f step in aany technicall report writiing.

Describing
g Processes
Can you visualize
v a process
p withhout any maachine or deevice? It is next to
impossible.. While desccribing a machine the main
m focus is
i on the paarts and
objects butt on the otheer hand whenn we describbe a processs the entire focus
f is
on the work or operaation it perfforms. Thereefore, it is quite necessary to
describe eaach step in a process verry clearly annd accuratelyy and also to
t show
how the vaarious steps ccombined toogether in a llogical sequeence lead to an end
result.

11.10 BUSINES
SS PROPOSAL
A businesss proposal isi a formal document used in bussiness. A business
b
proposal iss normally sent
s to a proospective cllient where the buyer explains
e
about the products,
p serrvices being offered by them, USP of their prooduct or
service, and
d why they sshould be coonsidered aboove their com
mpetitors. Business
proposals are
a carefullyy drafted as they target prospectivee clients. Thhere are
different types
t of buusiness prop posals and they are made as pper the
requiremennt.
Let us now
w discuss diffferent types of
o business pproposals.

1922
 Types of Business Proposals Long Business
n Correspondence
A business proposal can be classified into solicited or unsolicited. In a
solicited proposal, a prospective client might be interested in availing the
services or buying a product so the clients put up a request to the seller for a
proposal. The seller after receiving the request can have a conversation with
the client; the seller then tries to understand the preferences of the clients and
drafts the proposals accordingly.

With an unsolicited business proposal, things are different. Here the seller
approaches a client aspiring him/her to sell the product or services. Here the
client does not approach the seller but the seller tries to generate the need of
the product by drafting a lucrative proposal.

A solicited proposal is an easy game, as your prospective client has already

made up his/her mind to buy a product or a service. Your prospective client
may have identified other sellers as well. The prospective client may be in the
process of evaluating the other sellers in this process.

11.11 COMPONENTS OF A BUSINESS PROPOSAL

A good business proposal involves key components. These components are
discussed as follows:

Title page
The business proposal should have the following details on the title page. It
should have one's' name, the name of the organisation, the name of the
prospective client to whom the proposal is to be submitted and the date of
submitting the proposal.

Table of contents
If the proposal is lengthy and has too many details, it is advisable to mention
the details in the table of contents. The details will actually help the client to
identify the various sections of the proposals and s/he may specifically refer
to any section as per his/her preference.

Executive summary
In a proposal, one should always include a well-drafted, articulated executive
summary. A good executive summary is the one that positions the
organisation, or the product, or the service very promisingly in the mind of
the customer. It leaves an impression about the USP and the need for the
product.
Statement of problem, issue, or job at hand
The customization of the proposal which directly understands the needs of
the client is a very important point of any proposal. If the proposal is
pertaining to the development of a website, the seller should understand the
exact purpose of the website such as whether it is to enhance the sales or to
create brand awareness or to have more visitors on the website etc.
Understanding the customer’s requirements and addressing those issues is a
winning strategy of each proposal. 193
Wriitten Approach and method
dology
Commmunication
At Work
W
This sectioon is one of the most vital sections of the proposal. The reeason is
that in thiss section thee seller direcctly addressees the clientts’ requirem
ments or
the client’s problem at hand.

One shouldd not get innto too manny details hhere as at times the teechnical
terminologyy used may confuse thee clients. Thee objective of o this sectioon is to
give the cliient a very cllear view off the plan andd how s/he iss going to beenefit.

Qualificatiions
This is the section where one can convince thhe client.Onne can mentiion any
relevant edducation, inddustry-speciffic training, oor certificatiions, or any unique
skill set acquired
a or developed in due couurse of tim me, experiennce and
expertise.T
This section w will brief thee prospectivve customer about the exxpertise
and the reason for givinng a chance.

Schedule and
a benchm
marks
Right fromm the beginning be very clear to adhhere to the expectations
e s of the
clients. Wh
hat is the tim
me duration required to complete the work, deliiver the
product or services aree few questiions which m must be cleaarly discusseed with
the clients? One shouuld never overpromise
o and under-deliver herre. The
proposer annd the prospective clientt should comme to commoon terms witth these
points as proper
p comppletion of a project or delivery
d of a product ono time
deeply im mpacts businness operattions. One must nevver set unrrealistic
ns with the cclients. In caase of produucts or services, certain quality
expectation
benchmark ks are very important. Any comprromise on quality q will not be
appreciated
d. Once the ddeadlines, scchedules, andd benchmarkks are decideed, they
have to be adhered
a to.

Cost, paym
mentand anyy legal mattters
While draffting this seection the most
m important point too be considdered is
transparenccy in the cosst. The cost of the produuct, details of
o partial paayments
(if any) schedules
s of payment in installm ments etc. should be clearly
mentioned in the proposal. There should be no n hidden co ost in the proposal
and transpaarency shouuld be maintained here. In case of any a conflicts, legal
matters succh as permitss, licensing etc.
e should bbe clearly meentioned.

Benefits
This part addresses
a alll the beneffits which tthe client will
w have froom the
moment th he services of o the buyerr are taken. Features lik ke all-time support,
s
free servicee details, cosst-cutting addvantages with giving refference of thhe other
clients musst be written here.

11.12 PE
ERSUAS
SIVE PR
ROPOSALS
The persuaasive proposals as the name
n suggestts try to perrsuade the client to
take the seervices. Whiile making persuasive
p pproposals thhe followingg points
should be considered:
c
1944
 1) Answer the question, “WHY?” Long Business
n Correspondence
Every client searches for the answer to one question in the proposal. The
question is “What is in it for me”? The client has to be told why the seller is
the best in the market.
Every proposal should answer these ‘why?’ questions:

● Why should the client choose your business?

● Why should the client not choose any other competitor?
● Why is your product/service the right choice for the client?
● Why should they trust you?
● What makes you an expert in the product/services?
● Why should the client spend his/her money on your product/service?
2) Complete understanding of the client

The seller should have a meticulous understanding of the needs, likes and
dislikes, tastes, and preferences of the client. This will help the seller to
provide tailor-made, customized solutions to the clients. Thus after
understanding the client’s requirements the seller should directly address the
clients’ requirements or the client’s problem at hand.

3) Use the 'Problem, Agitate, Solution' technique

It is important that the client’s problem is understood thoroughly. The next
step is to agitate the problem, tell the client the disadvantages of the problem,
the cost factor involved, the risk associated with it, and how crucial it is to
opt for a solution. Then provide a doable solution which.

4) Provide social testimonies

The proposer should always illustrate the experiences of those clients who
were facing the same problem and how their business has been reformed after
the services of the buyer were availed. The testimonies of the clients and how
they have got the benefits that can be expressed in the proposal. The details
of the clients who got the benefits, the details of their organisations and their
pictures can be drafted in the proposal.

5) Design should be persuasive

The way one format and designs may give the proposal a cutting edge over
the competitors. The design should be colourful, legible, aesthetically
pleasing, and have a professional look which can play a very vital role.
Here are four basic rules to follow when designing the proposal:
● Do not overburden every page with text;
● Use whitespace and lively images to let the design stand out;
● Make balanced and apt use of colour;
● Use legible and nice typography.
195
Wriitten Activity 2
Commmunication
At Work
W
You are woorking as thhe Creative Head
H of an IInterior Design organisaation in
Delhi. Lotss of new hotel chains aree coming upp in South Delhi. Identify
fy a few
hotel chainns in South Delhi and try to understand their interior designing
osals about your firm annd services offered
requiremennts. Draft efffective propo
to these hotteliers.
…………… …………………………
……………… ………………
………………
………
……………
………………
…………………………
………………
………………
………

……………
………………
…………………………
………………
………………
………
……………
………………
…………………………
………………
………………
………
……………
………………
…………………………
………………
………………
………

11.13 D
DIFFERE
ENCE BEETWEENN BUSIN
NESS
R
REPORT AND BU
USINESS
S PROPO
OSAL
There is a difference between
b the business prooposal and the
t business report.
The differeences based oon certain paarameters aree presented in
i table 1.

Table 1:: Differencee between Business

B Prooposal and Business
B Report

Parameterrs B
Business Rep
port Busin
ness Proposal

Exploring the reasoons behind

any bussiness issue/pproblem.
Such ass
To generatee sales and target
t
a). Reaasons for high turnover prospectivee clients.
b). SWOT analysiss of the
busiiness.
c). Expploring reasoons for low
salees.
Data coollection metthods, Products orr services,
details of
o research layout,
l
Benefits, orrganisation
Key Data annalysis of sciientific informationn, pricing
elementss report, F
Findings & informationn, pricing strructure
observaations,
Recomm mendations.
Approach tot offer soluttions,
To addrress a busineess issue,
products, seervices to adddress
Purpose explorinng new insigghts and
the needs and
a requirem ments of
informaation.
prospectivee clients.
Documennt
Internall External
type
Vast as it addressess business
Scope Limited
1966 problem
ms in hand.
 Long Business
Only sent to stakeholders Sent to the target group such
n Shared with Correspondence
concerned with it. as clients.
Future as the focus is Present to enhance the sales
addressing and exploring
Plans for volume.
specific reasons for any
business concern
Factual and insightful
A value proposition and call
Offers description of the business
to action.
issue in hand.
Holds a long-term objective Time-sensitive document as
with a scope to incorporate the objective is to convert the
Time-bound
new changes in the existing business proposal in a timely
business issue. sale.

11.14 SUMMARY
The manager, secretaries, accountants, chief executive, and experts are often
required to submit reports on various issues such as low sales volume, the
feasibility of any premises, the establishment of a new branch, the scope of
diversification, imports and exports issues, any conflict or financial issues,
etc. They need to be meticulous and investigate the issue at hand properly so
that the right solution to the problem at hand can be recorded. Thus reports
are being frequently used in all organisations as a form of business
communication. A good report has to be result-oriented, precise, with
accurate facts, relevant giving concrete recommendations. Business proposals
are very important sales tools as they present the products or even the chain
of products in front of the customers. A business proposal should be sound
lucrative and must address the likes, preferences, and tastes of the customers.
Business proposals should be designed to mention the USP of the product
and should also mention how a product is relevant and congruent with the
customer’s needs.

11.15 KEYWORDS
Informal reports: An informal report may not be specifically prepared as
per the rules and permanent obligations and protocols of the organisation.

Formal reports: A report that is prepared as per the set protocols, formats
and as per the rules and regulations of the organisation.
Periodic or Routine reports: They are drafted as per specific frequencies of
time.

Business proposal: A business proposal is normally sent to a prospective

client where the buyer explains about the products, services being offered by
them, USP of their product or service and why they should be considered
above their competitors.

Unsolicited business proposal:The seller tries to generate the need of the

product by drafting a lucrative proposal. 197
Wriitten Solicited proposal:
p A solicited prooposal is an easy game, as
a your prosspective
Commmunication
At Work
W client has already
a madee up his/her mind
m to buy a product orr a service.

11.16 SE
ELF-ASS
SESSME
ENT QUE
ESTION
NS
1) What is
i a report? What
W are thee characteristtics of a good report?
2) What dod you meann by a businness proposal? What are the componnents of
a businness proposaal?
3) Prepare a report foor submissioon to the Booard of Directors regardding the
markett potential off electronic equipment.
e

11.17 REFEREN
R NCES AN
ND FUR
RTHER READING
R GS
Conger, J. A. (1998).The necesssary art of persuasion. Harvard Business
B
Review, 76, 84-97.
Debs, M. B. (19911). Recent research on o collaborative writting in
industry. Technical
Te com
mmunicationn, 476-484.
Ehrenberg, A. S. C. (1992). Reeport writingg–six simplle rules forr better
business doocuments. Addmap, June, 39-42.
Kaul, A. (2009).
( Effecctive Busineess Communnication. Neew Delhi: Edi
E Phi
Learning
Koneru, A. (2008). Prrofessional Communicat
C tion. New Delhi:TataMc
D c-Graw
Hill Publicaations
Korlahalli, R. P. (19996). Essentiials of Bussiness Comm
munication.S
Seventh
Edition. Neew Delhi: Suultan Chand & Sons
McIsaac, C. M. P. (1987). Im mproving S
Student Summaries T
Through
Sequencingg. The Buulletin off the A
Association for B
Business
Communicaation, 50(3),, 17-20.
Rai, U. (20008). Busineess Commun
nication (100th ed.). New
w Delhi: Hiimalaya
Publishing House
Rao, N. & Das, R. P P. (2009). Communicati
C ion Skills (22nd ed.). Mumbai:
M
Himalaya Publishing
P H
House
Resnik, D. B. (2000). S
Statistics, eth
hics, and reseearch: An aggenda for edu
ducation
m. Accountability in reseaarch, 8(1-2),, 163-188.
and reform
Scot, O. (2004). Contemporary Business Communicaation. New Delhi:
Biztantra.
Sharma, R. C. & Mohhan, K. (2002).Businesss Corresponndence and Report
Writing.Third Edition. New Delh
hi: McGraww-Hill Publisshing Organnisation
Limited
Vesper, J. F., & Vespper, K. H. (1
1993).Writinng a Business Plan: The Total
Term Asssignment1. TheT Bulletin of thee Association for Business
B
Communicaation, 56(2),, 29-32.
Wrightson,, K. (1995). T
Tips for Better Writing.T
The Rotariann (July), USA
SA.

1988
 Long Business
n Correspondence

BLOCK 4
COMMUNICATION IN ORGANISATION

199
Wriitten
Commmunication BLOCK
K4 C
COMMUUNICATTION IN
N
At Work
W
O
ORGANIISATIO
ON

This is the last block oof the coursee. This blockk has 4 unitss and it focuusses on
the role of communicat
c tions in orgaanisations.

Unit 12 Communica
C tion for Emmployment:In this uniit we will discuss
communicaation for eemployment which inccludes resu ume buildinng, CV
developmen nt, differencce between the two etcc. It also deescribes the role of
interviews as part of coommunicatioon.

Unit13 Teechnology and a Commu unication:Thhis unit as the name suuggests

discusses thhe relationshhip of technnology and ccommunicattion. Here you
y will
learn the usse of differennt modes of technology being used for
f communiication.
This unit also
a explainss how one can
c manage their sociall media profiles as
effective co
ommunicatioon strategy.

Unit 14 Cross
C Culturral Commu unication:A As the name suggests thhis unit
focusses onn the role off culture in communicattion which isi one of thee major
factors in the
t communnication proccess in organnisations. Here,
H you wiill learn
the concept of cross cculture, its tyypes, barrierrs and how to overcom
me these
barriers.
Unit 15 Etthics in Com mmunicatioon:This is thhe last unit of
o the coursee and it
deals withh a very important and sensittive conceppt i.e. ethhics in
communicaation. It expllains the rolee of values in
i communiccation and how
h can
these be used for resolvving issues inn the organissation.

2000