Effective communication is a solution to many conflicts that occur among people within their daily activities. Poor writing skills may lead to miscommunication due to wrong interpretation of messages. In the readings “Choosing a Channel” in Chapter five outlines the primary elements needed in formulating a real text message that passes the required information to the right audience ( Ballantyne et al., 2015) . The author of the message should consider which channel to use depending on the purpose of the text. For example, precise information in an organization may be sent through the email or even typed letters and not via mobile text messages. Therefore, if the information received is not clear as well as understandable, it lacks the 10 Cs of writing actually.
For the case of Bobby Johnson’s email, the writer has a communication problem that acts as a barrier towards delivering material information. To begin with, the subject of the email is not clear since it is a mix-up of message purpose and greetings. Salutation in an email should play the role of an introduction ( Berger and Iyengar, 2013) . It should be separate from the subject of the text. Additionally, Johnson’s text has grammatical errors including verb disagreement as well as missing punctuations. Readers of the message find it hard to understand what the sender is aiming at.
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Bobby Johnson’s email primarily aims at the inviting friend to a retirement welfare. However, the information lacks clarity of what will happen and how the party shall be conducted. For example, the message does not indicate the street address of where the function will be taking place. The sender has an assumption that everybody who receives the email is conversant with the venue. Indeed, a cohesive text message should be detailed to avoid aftermath clarifications by the audience ( Mahmoud, and Montasser, 2014) . Therefore, correctness and completeness should be traceable in a text message to simplify the content. What the eye reads in the text should match the movement of the tongue.
Consideration is an element that is also omitted from Johnson’s email. When addressing the public, the author must put into consideration the audience perspective towards the message. A line in Bobby’semail issaying “We are asking everyone to contribute” is information that creates alertness to the receiver. Asking for contributions should be accompanied by a good explanation of what the funds will be used to facilitate the functions. The reader of his message is left to wonder whether they are contributing towards the certification process or the core requirements like food and drinks. No matter what channel of communication is used, the message should be detailed to ensure the reader has no questions after getting the information.
Using the 10 Cs, Johnson’s email should read as follows;
“ To Bobby Johnson. Subject : Retirement Party. Hello everyone, I am glad tolet you know about Canyon retirement welfare party. He is retiring next month. We friends have decided to organize a party in honor of his contribution to the firm. As a result, we kindly request for your input towards supporting the function. Among the things to take place, we are planning to award him a certificate. The party will be held on Friday the 6th of May at 6:00pm.The party will be held at City Café Washington Ave. Your attendance will be highly appreciated. Please confirm you attendance in advance to facilitate budgeting. Thank you”.
Comparing the above rewrite with the initial message, there is alack of accuracy. The sender of the email did not check for accuracy as well as competency before sending the message. The message should have a polite tone since it is a request. As a result, the tone of the speech may deny the sender credibility ( Lodge, 2015) . People might be willing to attend theparty, but due to the language used by the sender, they end up viewing him as disorganized and rude.What people read on text messages relate it with who the sender is and what are the intentions of the information. Different people interpret messages differently. Hence, Johnson's email should require some formality to enhance seriousness in the audience mind.
In conclusion, writing effectively needs the reader to learn and understand the how to use the 10Cs of composing a good message. After choosing the right channel for passing information, the writer should take consideration of the audience to receive the text. Therefore, completeness and clarity of addressed issues should be the prime concern. Such writing skills are vital even when dealing with the public in other channels like phone messages, fax as well as the social media platforms that involve formal discussions. The author should be in a position to capture the readers’ interest. Follow-ups made by audiences is a clear indication of miscommunication and undetailed information. Everybody has a responsibility communicating effectively to avoid misunderstandings. Ultimately, reader’s understanding will always depend on the application of all the10Cs of writing effectively as used in the text message.
References
Ballantyne, R., Crabtree, A., Ham, S., Hughes, K., & Weiler, B. (2015). Tour guiding: Developing effective communication and interpretation techniques .
Berger, J., & Iyengar, R. (2013). Communication channels and word of mouth: How the medium shapes the message. Journal of Consumer Research , 40 (3), 567-579.
Lodge, D. (2015). The modes of modern writing: metaphor, metonymy, and the typology of modern literature . Bloomsbury Publishing.
Mahmoud, AbdelWahab, and Montasser Mohamed (2014). "The Effectiveness of Using the Cooperative Language Learning Approach to Enhance EFL Writing Skills among Saudi University Students." Journal of Language Teaching & Research 5.3.
