Guffey's 3 x 3 Writing
Summary
TLDRThis video script emphasizes the significance of effective business writing in various forms like emails, letters, and reports. It outlines the 3X3 writing process: pre-writing (analyzing the task, anticipating audience, and adapting the message), writing (researching, organizing, and composing a draft), and revising (revising, proofreading, and evaluating). The script illustrates how to tailor writing to different audiences and situations, highlighting the importance of clarity and conciseness in communication.
Takeaways
- 📝 Writing is more important than ever in business today, with many employees required to write various types of documents including emails, memos, and reports.
- ✍️ Business writing prioritizes clarity and brevity, focusing on simple and clear communication rather than showing off extensive knowledge.
- 🔄 The writing process consists of three main phases: pre-writing, writing, and revising, each with specific steps to ensure effective communication.
- 🧐 Pre-writing involves analyzing the task, anticipating the audience's reaction, and adapting the message to suit the audience's needs and expectations.
- 📚 The writing phase includes researching necessary information, organizing that information logically, and composing the first draft of the document.
- 🔍 Revising is a critical step where the writer makes edits, simplifies sentences, improves formatting, and proofreads to ensure clarity and accuracy.
- 🔁 The three phases of writing are not strictly linear; revisions may require a return to the pre-writing or writing stages to refine the message further.
- 👥 Understanding the audience is crucial; writers should adjust their tone and content to effectively convey their message and receive a constructive response.
- 🧠 Good business writing often requires thinking strategically about how to present information, sometimes using a positive start or acknowledging challenges to build rapport.
- 🎯 The ultimate goal of business writing is to create a well-organized, effective final product that clearly communicates the intended message and prompts the desired response.
Q & A
Why is business writing considered more important today than in the past?
-Business writing is more important today because almost everyone is required to write, including emails, and even simple tasks like emails require writing techniques to avoid misunderstandings.
What are the three phases of writing mentioned in the script?
-The three phases of writing mentioned are pre-writing, writing, and revising.
What is the main goal of business writing according to the script?
-The main goal of business writing is to communicate as simply and clearly as possible, without the need to impress with extensive knowledge or length.
How does the pre-writing phase differ for different types of writing?
-The pre-writing phase differs in that more time is spent on it for formal presentations compared to simpler communications like emails to colleagues.
What are the three steps involved in the pre-writing phase?
-The three steps in the pre-writing phase are analyzing the task, anticipating the audience's reaction, and adapting the message to improve understanding and readability.
Why is revising considered an all-important phase in the writing process?
-Revising is considered all-important because it involves making revisions and proofreading the document to ensure it is error-free and effectively communicates the intended message.
What is the purpose of the '3X3 writing process' mentioned in the script?
-The '3X3 writing process' is a model developed to explain what needs to be done in each phase of writing to produce a really good and effective final product.
How does the script suggest handling a situation where a technical update has caused issues?
-The script suggests analyzing the task, anticipating the audience's reaction, and adapting the message to convey understanding and urgency without anger.
What is the strategy for explaining new mutual funds to a company according to the script?
-The strategy is to explain the risks and benefits in simple terms that anyone can understand, potentially using a sales pitch style to engage a wider audience.
How should a company respond to customer feedback about a problematic advertising campaign?
-The company should start with an apology, acknowledge the feedback, and explain that the campaign was a pilot project, valuing the customer's input and business.
What is the first step in the writing phase according to the script?
-The first step in the writing phase is research, which involves collecting all the information the reader will need to know before beginning to write.
Outlines
📝 The Importance of Effective Business Writing
This paragraph emphasizes the significance of writing in the business world, noting that even simple tasks like sending an email require good writing skills to avoid misunderstandings. It outlines the three phases of writing: pre-writing, writing, and revising. Pre-writing involves evaluating the message and audience, writing is about organizing thoughts and composing a draft, and revising is about making changes and proofreading. The paragraph also introduces the 3X3 writing model, which breaks down each phase into three steps, and provides examples of how different employees approach writing tasks based on their needs and audience.
🔍 The 3X3 Writing Process in Action
This paragraph delves into the application of the 3X3 writing process by various employees. It describes how they approach the writing phase, which includes researching, organizing information, and composing a first draft. The paragraph provides specific examples: a customer service scenario where an employee must write an email to technical support, a financial advisor explaining new mutual funds, and a marketing professional responding to customer feedback about pop-up ads. Each example illustrates the process of gathering necessary information, organizing the content, and drafting a message that is clear, persuasive, and tailored to the audience's needs.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Business Writing
💡Pre-writing
💡Writing Technique
💡Revising
💡Audience Analysis
💡Technical Support
💡Memo
💡Sales Presentation
💡Formatting
💡Proofreading
💡3X3 Writing Process
Highlights
Writing in business is more important than ever, with everyone required to write, especially emails.
Business writing differs from other forms, valuing brevity and clarity over length and impressing others.
The writing process is divided into three phases: pre-writing, writing, and revising.
Pre-writing involves evaluating the message and audience, deciding the best communication channel.
Writing phase includes organizing thoughts and composing a first draft.
Revising is crucial for improving clarity and involves proofreading and making necessary changes.
The three steps of writing are not linear but rather a looping, iterative process.
A simple 3x3 writing model is introduced to guide the writing process in each phase.
In pre-writing, analyze the task, anticipate the audience's reaction, and adapt the message accordingly.
An example of pre-writing involves an employee dealing with a software issue and adjusting their tone for tech support.
Another example is explaining new mutual funds in simple terms to a company's employees.
A customer's complaint about pop-up ads leads to a discussion on how to address the issue in writing.
The writing phase starts with research, gathering all necessary information for the reader.
Organizing information into a clear and persuasive pattern is key before composing a first draft.
An employee's example of writing includes detailing technical issues and requesting assistance from tech support.
Revising involves simplifying sentences, improving formatting, and proofreading for errors.
A good practice is to pretend to be the reader and evaluate the writing from their perspective.
An example of revising includes an employee refining their email to a software company for better clarity and impact.
The 3x3 writing process is emphasized as a method to improve business writing skills.
Transcripts
in business today writing is even more
important than it used to be and for one
thing even if it's only email just about
everyone is required to write now if
you've ever had one of your emails
misunderstood you know that even this
simple task requires writing technique
depending on your job you may be called
on to write an email a formal business
letter an internal memo a report or a
sales
presentation business writing is
different from other writing for one
thing length is not rewarded the shorter
the better and you're not out to impress
anybody with your knowledge your goal is
to communicate as simply and clearly as
you
can any good writer will tell you that
writing takes place in three phases pre
writing writing and revising you start
with pre-writing which is the whole
process of evaluating your message and
your audience next comes the process of
writing itself when you organize your
thoughts and compose a first draft
finally there's the all-important phase
of revising where you make revisions and
proofread the
document now of course these steps are
going to be more or less important
depending on what you're writing for
example you will spend more time on
pre-writing for a formal presentation
than you will for an email to a fellow
worker your personal style will also
come into play some people rewrite every
sentence before moving on to the next
others wait until the first draft is
finished finally it's often not as
simple as 1 two 3 you may find that a
revision you make sends you all the way
back to the pre-writing stage the three
steps of writing are not so much a
straight line as a looping back process
to get to a really good effective final
product we've developed these three
basic phases of writing into a simple
model that explains just what you need
to do in each phase each phase has three
steps let's look at each phase in turn
starting with pre-writing the first
thing you do is analyze the task what's
the purpose of the message and what's
the best channel for the message and
what's the best channel for delivering
it the next step is to anticipate the
audience who will read the message and
how will he or she react to it then you
would ADT to the task and audience for
example by adjusting your tone so the
message is clearly conveyed and the
reader reacts constructively to it let's
observe how these employees begin phase
one of the writing process you'll notice
how they explain the predicament analyze
the task anticipate the audience's
reaction and adapt the message to
improve understanding and readability I
downloaded and installed an update to my
3D Graphics program and now every time I
launch my 3D Graphics program it locks
up my my computer so I called the
company's technical support hotline and
I was put on hold for a half an hour I
have a deadline tomorrow morning so now
I'm going to write the company an email
I want to really go after them I want
them to really understand how mad I am
but I don't think that's going to give
me the results I want so I analyze the
task I want them to provide me with a
patch or talk me to the fix I also need
to anticipate my audience the software
company's tech support guys well they're
probably swamped especially if they're
having this kind of problem everybody's
probably screaming at them so in order
to get their attention I need to not be
angry then I need to adapt my task to
the audience I need to communicate that
I understand their problem that I'm not
angry but I've got this deadline so I
need help right
away I've got this memo to write and I'm
just a little bit overwhelmed the
financial services company that handles
our 401ks is introducing two new mutual
funds
and I have to explain them to the whole
company okay okay so the task to explain
the risks and benefits in simple terms
that anybody could understand okay so
the audience well we're a financial
services company ourselves so the
decision makers won't have any problem
understanding although the kids in the
mail room might if I put the risks and
benefits in terms of a sales pitch at
least more people will realize they have
some new choices well the customer
raises some legitimate points uh well
maybe I thought that campaign was going
to be really effective I didn't think we
get that kind of reaction I certainly
didn't think we'd get customers angry
over it this is from a longtime customer
who's pretty annoyed at us because of a
series of popup ads that we've been
running on the website of a West Coast
newspaper I guess some people just don't
like pop-up ads well the research said
they'd be fine I mean the ads disappear
after 15 seconds if you don't click on
them but that is a long time in web time
if the ad covers up the front page you
went in to look at it in the first place
right okay what's the task here well
write the customer and address his
points okay I think we should start off
with an apology I agree okay the next
phase in the 3X3 process is writing the
first step is research this doesn't have
to be as formal as it sounds but you do
need to collect all the information the
reader will need to know before you
begin writing then you need to organize
the information into a clear persuasive
pattern a few not may be enough
Organization for a quick email more
complicated presentations will probably
require a formal outline and now you're
ready to compose a first draft now let's
see how these employees begin the
writing phase of this process as they
research organize and compose their
messages so the first thing since this
is their technical support I need to
have my technical facts in order I need
to know the operating system the uh well
the processor speed the available memory
the version number I've got a lot of
things I want to write but I need to put
those in order as well um I need to cry
for help uh the technical facts um what
happened oh and I like their product
that's a great place to start I like
their product start out positive it acts
as kind of like a
buffer what happened technical facts
those two are my explanation of why I
need help and a cry for help this is
where I make my uh persuasive request
for their assistance and closing if I
want them to do something I better
express some kind of urgency let them
know about my deadline and a time in
which I need action taken okay let's
give it a try I mean this is a first
draft after
all
dear technical
support this could be an attractive fund
for employees with a diversified
portfolio who are comfortable with more
risk
okay the financial services firm has
provided me with plenty of information
for my research on this memo what I
needed to do was to pick out the most
important facts as I organized the memo
I decided to keep it really clean and
simple and it looks like it's not going
to be any more than four paragraphs an
intro a paragraph for each fund and a
summary to tell the employees who are
interested what to do
next of course past performance okay so
the first paragraph will begin
indirectly with an apology and make it
clear how much we value as business
certainly now do we then go ahead and
say that the pop-up ads were a mistake
oh well I don't know Cliff I mean I
think we should just let it play out you
know this was only one newspaper and
it's a pilot project okay all right so
let's explain uh we'll say this has been
a pilot project for US based on valuable
feedback from uh important customers
such as yourself will take that approach
yeah that can work our problem here is
that we have to explain to this customer
but our research won't be complete until
we get the data back from the pilot
project what the customer really needs
to know at this point is that it is a
pilot project we value his input we
value his business and we'll follow up
with him once all of the results were in
the last phase in the 3X3 process is
revising every good writer revises a
piece before sending it out revising
itself can involve dozens of WR in
techniques from simplifying sentences to
improving the formatting proof reading
of course is critical a good word
processing program can catch a lot of
typos but don't rely on the program
alone a word you typed may be acceptable
to the program but not what you meant to
say finally pretend you're the reader
and evaluate the piece of writing how
will it look through his or her eyes
let's observe how these employees put
the final touches on their messages as
they revise proofread and evaluate their
work no got to back off here I don't
want to make him
mad no I meant thread spell checker
accepted
tread you think I'm being too desperate
here at the
end
whoa oh you just can't be too careful
after everything I wrote I went ahead
and made a claim on the future
performance of the fund we can't let
that
go good we get works all the way down
oh that's that's terrific right there
the way you that place oh I don't know
that sentence there still sounds a
little defensive don't you think but
it's true that's what the research shows
yeah but Jackie is a customer he doesn't
care about the research and we don't
want to lose him as a customer yeah
you're right
okay yeah see that works a lot better
it's tighter
cleaner good writing it takes work and
practice but it's something you can and
master using guffy's 3x3 writing process
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