Business communication

Business communication is the act of information being exchanged between two-parties or more for the purpose, functions, goals, or commercial activities of an organization.^[1] Communication in business can be internal which is employee-to-superior or peer-to-peer, overall it is organizational communication. External communication is business-to-business or business-to-consumer, the act being outside the organization. These methods can happen verbally, non-verbally, or written. It is often that these external and internal forms come with barriers which can cause conflicts between the sender to the receiver. Barriers that can effect communication on both external and internal is language, intercultural communication and behavior, and environmental.^[2]

Overview/History

The word communication has been derived from the Latin word "Communicare" which means to impact, participate, or transmit. Now communicare is also obtained by the word "Communis" that is known to share.^[3] Thus, communication may be defined as the interchange of thoughts and information to bring about mutual understanding on the subject's significance.

Business communication focuses primarily on achieving goals/aims and, in the case of a public company or organization, increasing the dividends of shareholders.^[4]

Thirty years ago organizational communication and company policies were still in use of via paper, which now in the digital age there is companies allowing information to be exchanged virtually. From desktop to mobile, communication and commerce has been digital as desktop computers are becoming relic.^[5]

Types of business communication

Internal

Internal communication also known as workplace communication or organizational communication is the interchange of information within the organization. From employee-to-employee or employee-to-superior the purpose of all information is to develop trust and/or to increase productivity.^[6]

Organizational communication involves meetings, exchange of email messages, or collaboration for projects. It is determined that the success of communication within the individuals of the organization underlined the companies success. For business leaders it is important for them to understand the role of communication in order to motivate employees in accomplishing goals for the company. Low engagement in an organization can cost the global economy trillions of dollars a year.^[7]

Since information is being shared up and down the hierarchy of communication channels, it is shared in various forms such as; verbal, written, and digitally within teams and the company as a whole.

Importance of internal communication

Boosts up employee productivity and satisfaction; communication between staff and leadership where employees feel encourages to give out their ideas and opinions on matters, makes them feel valued.
Promotes the supply for information; information being passed at the right time to the right people decreases the chances of information overload.
Sharing goals and objectives; keeping employees a flow of the companies goals makes them feel well-informed and capable of taking action on it. When conflict arises in detaining certain goals then, being allowed to communicate fast between the company reduces stress and faster thinking to get things done.^[8]

External

External communication is any party outside the company such as; business-to-business or business-to-consumer. The audience can be the suppliers, clients, potential business partners, associations, and the news media among others. Whether the messages be informational or promotional the aim for external communication to take place is to share information about the business and its products or services.^[9]

Business-to-consumer communication, also known as direct-to-consumer, is when a company directly communicates with its consumers about product details or company information. The opposite is when a consumer leaves reviews on a product (or service), which may identify how the company could improve its product.

Importance of external communication

Developing community relations; external communication helps build relations among other businesses.
Communicating and leveraging information; Sharing the companies products or services helps attract potential consumers, retain current consumers, and gain a competitive advantage.
Building brand identity; consistent external communication channels will benefit you to receive bran awareness.
Optimizing external networks; external communication helps the company gain more suppliers, investors, and partners.
Relations with suppliers; Maintains a healthy relationship with suppliers. In sharing information, plans, and requirements helps the company to have a steady supply of products or services.^[10]

Methods of business communication

These internal and external types of business communication occur through verbal and non-verbal methods of communication.^[11]

Therefore, business communication can be broken down into different categories such as;

Electronic communication

Almost all businesses require the use of technology to communicate outside and inside an organization.^[12] They are;

Emails
Text messages
Voice and video calls
Employee intranet and HR software

Non-electronic communication

There will be time where in an organization will have to require documents are non-electronic and submitting physical paperwork.^[13] They are;

Face-to-face meetings
Physical copies of documents

Written Communication

Written forms of communication can be provided electronically and non-electronically.^[14] They are;

Written emails
Written letters
Written contracts

Written documents have saved time and money, keeping a record of what was said in order to avoid any unfair dismissal claims.

Verbal communication

Verbal communication can leave costumers or stockholders confused and unsatisfied if communicated poorly. In using positive language you are most likely to achieve a positive outcome.^[15] They are;

Meetings and job interviews
Presentations and some training
Conversations between employees
Conversations between potential partners
Conversations between external parties

Barriers to business communication

There are several barriers that a business might experience when communicating with business partners. Such barriers can prevent one from receiving or understanding messages others use to convey information, ideas, and thoughts.^[16]^[17]^[18]^[19]

Language

Language is an essential source for human communication because without it, it is not easy for people to communicate among each other. Individuals use language to convey their thoughts, feelings, opinions, information, and emotions to other people.

Language barriers can make communication between internal and external parties difficult with misunderstandings, inefficiencies, and mistrust. Forms of barriers can be cultural differences, psychological differences, and dialects and jargon.^[20]

Intercultural communication and behaviors

Intercultural communication is often used to describe a range of communicational issues that increase inside an organization of different variety of religious, social, ethnic, and educational backgrounds. Intercultural communication becomes more complicated because individuals interpret communication between colleagues based on past experiences and their cultural backgrounds. If two people of different cultural backgrounds interact, intercultural communication is most likely to take place.^[21]

Different cultures also have different behaviors on what they consider to be a polite behavior and negative behavior. An example to be set is, in certain cultures it is the right norm to bargain about prices while in other cultures it may seem rude.^[22]

Environment

Environment barriers in business communication become to be distractions, errors, faults, or anything outside the person you are communicating with. Among space, noise and climate, time becomes an environment barrier when an organization that expects quick results will not afford slack from their employees.