Effective Business Communication Do's and Dont's

Technology has become more paramount today in written and visual communication; it has allowed individuals to communicate faster and shorter. However, the power of effective business communication still lies in traditional face-to-face connections through verbal and non-verbal communication. Strong communication skills go beyond basic speaking skills; an essential aspect of successful communication is becoming an engaged listener. One-way conversations are something we're all trying to avoid. Whether it's one-on-one discussions, presentations, or closing a sale, a strong communicator must check all the boxes of verbal, non-verbal, visual, and written communication. 

Suppose you've nailed down the do's and don't of practical communication skills. In that case, you're able to clearly communicate your objectives, scale effectively, optimize the quality in the workplace, and of course, cultivate a healthy workplace culture. As an aspiring leader, practical, clear, and consistent communication has the capabilities of creating an impactful domino effect within your workplace, towards your prospects and existing clients. 

Here we will be sharing some essential business do's and don'ts to help you foster meaningful connections, learn practical leadership communication skills, and strengthen your day-to-day conversations.  

What are the types of business and workplace communication?

Verbal Communication: While many of us have migrated to work from home setups, verbal communication remains a reliable way to effectively build relationships with clients and colleagues. Verbal communication can be used through video, phone calls, face-to-face presentations, and meetings.

Non-Verbal Communication: Body language and facial expressions is a form of effective business communication that is often overlooked in traditional office setups, but it’s a significant way to communicate effectively, read the room, and understand your audience. 

Written Communication: Generally, written communication is the easiest way to communicate with individuals because there isn’t any upfront human interaction. It includes instant messaging, emailing, and memos. However, written communication can lead to miscommunication when delivering a message. More often than not, readers tend to read between the lines and perceive messages differently. 

Visual Communication: Visual communication is often used as a tool to support verbal and sometimes non-verbal communication through presentations, videos, images, and data to clarify or strengthen objectives and concepts. Visual communication is helpful when educating a group of individuals on processes or tools. 

Verbal Communication Do’s and Don’ts:

Verbal communication is an essential type of effective business communication that works hand-in-hand with non-verbal, written, visual, workplace, and business communication. These basic communication do’s, and don’ts are necessary as you embark on your journey as a thought-leader in your industry and communicate with your organization, prospects, and clients. 

Do: Be an active listener. 

As mentioned above, effective business communication begins with engaged listeners. When it comes to 'business or workplace communication do's and don'ts,' listening is just as essential as communicating. As a leader, it's your goal to empower your clients and organization, give feedback, share their thoughts and ideas without fear or obligation. A passive listener may hear what's being said but isn't fully engaged in the conversation, which leads to missing out on essential details. Active listeners engage in conversation and often use the power of paraphrasing to clarify or ask questions to understand what's being said. The benefits of active listening are increased productivity, strengthened connections, and reduced risk of miscommunication.

Don't: Be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. 

Listening is a crucial key element in verbal communication, do's and don'ts; however, it does not mean you have to filter your emotions to make your speaker comfortable and agree to everything your speaker has to say. When spun in a positive light, strong leadership is rooted in voicing your opinions, challenging yourself, sharing ideas, and reacting to the speaker after they finish speaking. 

Do: Ensure clarity in understanding. 

Effective business communication happens when both parties reflect on what the other is saying. Before you communicate, it's essential to read the room and understand whom you're speaking to or what they are trying to say before you share. Empathy is a crucial skill to obtain that will take you further in your professional and personal life. This skill allows you to tailor-fit your conversations to your audience and helps you identify the direction and purpose of the conversation. When you try to understand whom you're speaking to, you'll be able to determine the messages you want to communicate beforehand.

Don't: Assume or judge the audience beforehand. 

Let's face it, at times, it's a natural inclination to have preconceived opinions or notions. To mitigate these negative connotations before starting a discussion is simply by entering a conversation with an open mind, a blind eye, and simply listening. We aren't psychic, so we can’t assume how the conversation will turn out. It's important to constantly switch on empathy mode and remember that what your audience has to communicate is valid and important too. With this mindset, you will be able to go into a discussion confidently without fear of differences that may or may not arise. 

Non-Verbal Communication Do’s and Don’ts

Do: Combine verbal and non-verbal communication. 

Not only do we have the power to speak effectively, but our bodies are highly expressive, giving us the power to support verbal communication and read our listeners. It's always crucial to maintain eye contact when listening to let your audience know that what they have to say is necessary. In addition, our posture and hand or head movements can make or break communication. For example, nodding is a fantastic way to stay engaged when listening to a speaker; it reduces uncomfortable silence and allows your conversations to run smoothly.  

Don’t: Get distracted and ignore communication markers.

It's crucial to provide your undivided attention when listening and put away distractions that can cause setbacks to your listener. Effective Business Communication markers are non-verbal cues the listener gives when attempting to start a discussion. These cues are body language, eye contact, and posture in face-to-face conversations. They provide you with insight that will help you steer a conversation that keeps a listener engaged.

Workplace and Effective Business Communication Do’s and Don’ts 

Cultivating healthy workplace communication creates a ripple effect to help you lead a profitable team, increase productivity, and encourage your organization to produce meaningful client experiences. However, trust is an essential factor in a workplace, so it’s necessary to break down walls and learn how to develop leaders within your organization. 

Dos: Be Consistent 

In verbal, non-verbal, visual, and written communication, it’s essential to be consistent throughout your messaging. As professionals, we’re not always going to have good days. And sometimes, on bad days, It’s human nature for us not to want to communicate at all. Little do we know we might be building walls. It’s important to set boundaries between your work life and personal life and maintain a professional manner when communicating to your organization or clients. As a leader, keep in mind that you are setting an example and setting the workplace standard. If you are consistent in communicating to your peers, team, or clients, you showcase a high level of professionalism while building stronger business relationships. 

Don’t: Overshare 

Again, it's essential to be mindful of what you're sharing about your personal life in the workplace, whether you're communicating in meetings or presentations. Of course, it's essential to bring light to your unique personality and enjoy your job, but these conversations should be kept at a minimum. To avoid future conflicts and set the standard of a non-toxic work environment, avoid gossip and be mindful of the language or jargon that isn't considered professional. 

Do: Give Feedback 

To effectively scale and grow in your workplace, whether positive or constructive, it’s crucial to provide your organization with constructive feedback for better results. Your team members need to have knowledge of their work performance and receive recognition when it’s needed. Feedback needs to go both ways, and it’s okay to ask your organization for feedback to help you find ways to improve your skillset. Feedback is an element to enhance work ethic, productivity, and workplace quality.

Don’t: Have one-sided conversations. 

Most successful organizations have open-door policies to cultivate a healthy work culture. It’s crucial to remove the fear of not voicing opinions in the workplace. Active listening helps mitigate that fear and gives complete transparency to you and your workplace. For client-facing conversations, you’ll have instances where clients might share their differences; while it may not be positive all the time, this is essential for your organization's growth. It’s always important to leave discussions open to voice their concerns or obligations.

Written Communication Do’s and Dont’s 

Do: Have a solid effective business communication plan. 

Written communication can often be a tricky skill to maneuver, and often you want to keep the approach personable and professional without adding unnecessary details. In that sense, having a communication plan in place combined with proofreading helps you cut down the unnecessary fluff and allows you to get down to business and communicate your objectives concisely. 

Don’t: Communicate everything in written form.

A drawback with written communication is not communicating everything through 

instant messaging or e-mail. Whether ideas, client requests, or concerns, messages can often be unclear or go beyond your knowledge as you try your best to read the tone. So try your best to take these conversations offline if necessary and use different channels to integrate non-verbal communication to get your message across.

Visual Communication Do’s and Don’ts

Do: Use visuals as tools to support what you’re trying to communicate. 

Presentation decks that include videos, images, or data are great ways to elevate your verbal-communication skills while educating your audience with evidence. Our favourite visual tool to support effective business communication is digital business cards. Business cards have always held prominence with new business relationships, prospects, and clients. It also gives you credibility as it is a reflection of your professionalism. Therefore, they should be mandatory in your visual communication package. KADO is a modern approach to combining traditional business cards and networking with integrated technologies on your smartphone. There’s no better way to impress your audience than to leverage your verbal communication skills than using this innovative visual tool. All-in-all visual tools are great because they create a shared experience with your audience.

Don’t: Use silence as a conversation tool.

While visual communication is excellent for engagement, it’s essential not to let them do the talking for you. After all, visual communication is not decoration; they are tools to support your verbal and non-verbal communication skills. Visual communication tools are meant to be clear, easy to understand, and simplified. The last thing you want is to overload your audience with unnecessary information where they lose focus on your main objective. KADO is a great visual effective business communication tool that is simplified and straight to the point when supporting non-verbal communication. It’s easy on the eyes and user-friendly, allowing your audience to focus on your main objective while giving you extra points for professionalism.

Bottom Line:

Now that we've learned the critical communication 'do's and don't,' it's important to remember that effective business communication takes time and practice. All-in-all, excellent leadership qualities stem from cultivating healthy workplace culture, empathy, and active listening skills. KADO’s contact manager feature is the perfect tool to help guide you as you practice active listening. As you listen to your audience and digest important information, remembering the key messages can be challenging. To help take your listening skills up a notch, you can use KADO’s seamless note-taking feature to jot down important details with the contact saved on the platform. In addition, there’s an option to integrate their professional information (such as LinkedIn or past accomplishments) into their contact details. When you show your guests that you’re proactively listening without missing crucial information, you build credibility, eventually leading to business success. 

These crucial elements pave the way to success in verbal, non-verbal, business, visual, and workplace communication. So it's fair to say that while our time is valuable, take the lead and foster connections face-to-face to strengthen your verbal and non-verbal communication skills offline —while using visual communication to support your effective business communication plan. 

Improving communication skills can be a challenge, but you set the standard as an effective leader in any industry when done right.