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Legal Writing

Business Writing

By Lynn Gaertner-Johnston, founder of Syntax Training in Seattle, Washington, and a fan of business writing.

Post Frequency: 3.2/day

Last Entry: April 01, 2011 at 02:31:44

Should You Help People Who Use Odd Language?

Posted on December 07, 2009
What would you do if someone who speaks English as a second, third, or fourth language used an odd expression--repeatedly--in messages to you? What would you do if someone from another English-speaking country regularly used an odd expression in messages...

Thank You, Tiger--Now We Can Move On

Posted on December 02, 2009
I am grateful for Tiger Woods' admission of guilt and his apology to his family. Since the reporting of his car accident days ago, the Internet has been full of speculation about the accident and about his possible infidelity. People...

There's No Excuse for Dear Sir or Madam

Posted on November 30, 2009
In the unsolicited email I get, every day brings more messages that begin "Dear Sir or Madam." But these days there is no excuse for that greeting. Anyone who wants to write to me can easily learn whether I am...

Holiday Greetings Made Easy

Posted on November 23, 2009
People are asking for advice for writing holiday greetings. To make your holiday messages easier to write and send, I am sharing this Better Writing at Work newsletter article, originally published last year. I hope you find it helpful. *****************************************...

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Managing Resistant Readers

Posted on November 14, 2009
In a Better Business Writing class I taught this week in Seattle, Dave raised an important question when we were talking about writing for your readers. He asked, "What if some of your readers will be perfectly happy with your...

Dear John et al.,

Posted on November 11, 2009
Can the Latin abbreviation et al. be used at the end of the greeting in an email? It would look like this: Dear John et al., Hello, Kimia et al. A reader whom I will call Doug wrote to ask...

When Your Audience Is International

Posted on November 07, 2009
With some business audiences, it's easy to know exactly what to say and how to say it. We do it almost without thinking, following the usual rules. But with a global audience of non-native English speakers, the usual rules get...

Think Like a Customer

Posted on November 02, 2009
In Washington State we changed to daylight saving time on Sunday morning, so yesterday I needed to set all our clocks back one hour. All of the clock changes were easy, except the one in our car. My husband was...

The Smarmy "Valued Customer" Line

Posted on October 30, 2009
This week I taught two groups of sophisticated writers who communicate with clients. One of the business writing topics we agreed to disagree about was the language we use to show customers we care. I like statements like "You have...

When Lights Go Out on the Web

Posted on October 29, 2009
I apologize that this site has only been up only intermittently over the past two days. Even I have been unable to access it. That is frustrating! Having my blog down reminds me that we need to recognize this fact:...

Where to Use a Colon--for Meter Readers and Others

Posted on October 23, 2009
Yesterday six meter readers attended my Keys to Error-Free Writing class. Given their job of traipsing around outside reading electric meters, they don't write much. But all of them were interested in learning more about business writing. If you write...

Nouns in a Stream--What Do They Mean?

Posted on September 29, 2009
Last week while driving on the Palisades Parkway in Bergen County, New Jersey, I spotted a perplexing road sign. It said: End Construction There are several ways to interpret the sign. Does it say that we should end construction? But...

The Stingy Email

Posted on September 28, 2009
In the Writing Tune-Up workshop in McLean, Virginia, last week, I asked participants about their pet peeves, the things that drive them crazy in the writing they read at work. A common email pet peeve came up. Does this scenario...

Constant Company Name-Dropping

Posted on September 24, 2009
Arthur wrote to ask my view of an interesting question: How often should a company use its name in a marketing piece? He asked because he translates marketing pieces into English, and some of his clients use their name five...

More From the Undersigned

Posted on September 21, 2009
I was teaching in Canada last week, and I came up against an issue that has also surfaced in U.S. business writing seminars. It has to do with that supremely formal "undersigned" person who appears at the end of letters...

Warning: Consider What You Upload to the Internet

Posted on September 12, 2009
Social media have people broadcasting what they are doing every hour, day, and minute. Blogs and newsletters posted online share photos and personal details to anyone who is interested. It is amazing to be able to connect so easily with...

Email Etiquette and Whitelisting

Posted on September 11, 2009
This week I received an email from someone suggesting that we get together to network and learn about each other's businesses. Like me, she lives in Seattle. I enthusiastically emailed my reply. Then I received this response: "I apologize for...

When They Misspell Your Name

Posted on September 09, 2009
Last week I led my first live online class, Email Intelligence. A participant asked what to do to make people spell her name correctly in email. As someone whose first and last names are often misspelled, I empathized. But I...

How to Follow Up on Networking Contacts

Posted on September 05, 2009
Alexandra wrote to ask what to write in a follow-up email to people she meets at important meetings in Bucharest. At the meetings, she often talks to potential clients or partners for only a few minutes, and she would like...

Today I Left Out the Jargon

Posted on September 03, 2009
Today I presented my first live web-based workshop "Email Intelligence," a 90-minute program. It was tricky and stressful because of some technological problems I could not solve. But so far the reviews are positive--whew! Whenever I do something new that...

Know Your Audience

Posted on September 01, 2009
The other day I was teaching a business writing class with a varied group of people, among them accountants, purchasing agents, and other "numbers" types who came with their coworkers. At one point, I wanted the attendees to do only...

Thank You in Advance

Posted on August 29, 2009
In email, letters, and memos that include a request, writers often end with one of these statements: "Thank you in advance for your attention to this matter." "Thank you in advance for any help you can provide." In comments on...

Good Customer Service Overdone and Underdone

Posted on August 25, 2009
Most companies try hard to communicate well with customers. I had a recent experience of a business trying hard--and yet not hard enough--to communicate with me in email. Here is the story: I had a reservation at a nice hotel,...

An Efficient Way to Schedule Follow-Up

Posted on August 21, 2009
A potential new client has delighted me with his efficiency. He schedules follow-up on the spot. Here's what I mean: On Monday we met by phone and agreed I would give him a proposal on Thursday. In the Monday call,...

In Receipt Of--A Phrase to Banish

Posted on August 18, 2009
Maureen wrote to me today to ask about the appropriate salutation to use when writing a letter to one person who is a friend and another who is a stranger. Would it be "Dear Kathy and Ms. Greene"? I suggested...

A Bright Tip on PowerPoint

Posted on August 14, 2009
I just finished reading Real Leaders Don't Do PowerPoint: How to Sell Yourself and Your Ideas, an excellent book by Christopher Witt for those who write and deliver speeches. As with so many books that take a strong stance, the...

Presentations: Less Is More

Posted on August 10, 2009
Lately clients have been asking about how to help people improve their PowerPoint presentations. In a tidy package, here is my best advice for presentations: Less is more. Less data--just a few powerful pieces--is more compelling than heaps of numbers...

She Didn't Hear My Comma

Posted on August 07, 2009
The other night while I was flying from Orlando, Florida, to Seattle, I was reminded of the valuable role the comma plays. The flight attendant was taking drink orders. When I asked for water, she asked, "No ice?" I responded,...

Dear Comma, Semicolon, or Colon

Posted on August 03, 2009
Kathryn from Hershey, Pennsylvania, wrote asking a question I should have answered a long time ago. Kathryn wants to know whether this punctuation is correct: Dear Ms. Gaertner-Johnston; What do you think? Is a semicolon correct after the greeting? How...

How to Slow Down Email: Ignore Lists

Posted on July 29, 2009
For last week's public Better Business Writing class, I emailed four questions to attendees in advance. They were in list form, like this: What is your job? What do you write on the job? To whom? What do you want...

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