Chapter 7 LECTURE NOTES
Short Workplace Messages and Digital Media
CHAPTER SYNOPSIS
Today’s workplace is changing as new technologies transform the way we exchange information
and conduct business. Although your students may already be connected digitally with friends
and family, they will need to understand how to use communication technologies professionally
in the workplace.
This chapter explores short forms of workplace communication, beginning with e-mail. E-mail
continues to be the lifeblood of businesses today, and this chapter teaches students how to use
e-mail efficiently and expertly. Because instant messaging and texting are gaining popularity, this
chapter also explores their best practices and liabilities. .
In addition, this chapter introduces podcasts, wikis, and blogs. Any applications that do not
require a human presence (e.g., certain training videos) lend themselves to podcast recordings
that users can stream or download on demand. Wikis enable far-flung team members to share
information and build a knowledge base and can be used to replace meetings, manage projects,
and document tasks large and small. Blogs help businesses keep customers, employees, and
suppliers informed and receive feedback.
Social networking sites, including Facebook and Twitter, allow firms to share company news;
exchange ideas; and connect with customers, employees, other stakeholders, and the public at
large. Companies may boost their brand recognition and provide a forum for collaboration by
participating in established social networks or by creating their own in-house communities. The
downsides of social media participation are productivity losses, fallout from inappropriate
employee posts, security breaches, and leaking of trade secrets.
Really simple syndication allows users to navigate the huge resources on the Internet. RSS feeds
are time-savers because they allow businesspeople to monitor many news sources in one
convenient online location.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
1. Understand e-mail and the professional standards for its usage, structure, and format in the
digital-era workplace.
2. Explain workplace instant messaging and texting as well as their liabilities and best practices.
3. Identify professional applications of podcasts and wikis, and describe guidelines for their use.
4. Describe how businesses use blogs to connect with internal and external audiences, and list
best practices for professional blogging.
5. Address business uses of social networking and the benefits of RSS feeds.
WHAT’S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER
Reorganized the e-mail discussion to streamline coverage but also to reflect current
workplace use with updated techniques and advice.
Acknowledged complaints about e-mail but emphasized that it occupies nearly a third of
workers’ time; provided ample contemporary advice for using e-mail strategically and
professionally.
Encouraged students to recognize the difference between writing e-mails to friends and using
the professional standards and procedures required in the workplace.
Strengthened e-mail coverage by organizing best practices into chunks with topic headings to
improve readability, comprehension, and retention.
Provided sufficient coverage of memos to remind students that memos are still important for
internal messages that are long, complex, or formal.
Focused even more emphatically on current policies and best practices in the workplace for
texting, instant messaging, blogging, wikis, and social media to convey the need for solid
writing skills and help students negotiate potential minefields.
Explained the risks and benefits of communication technology on the job with many
up-to-date examples to make students aware of professional social media applications.
Introduced more than 90 percent new end-of-chapter activities to provide opportunities for
students to engage with contemporary workplace communication technology.
LECTURE OUTLINE
I. Preparing Digital-Age E-Mail Messages and Memos (p. 205)
New technologies are transforming the way we exchange information and conduct
business. Businesspeople are increasingly connected 24/7.
Communicators are increasingly switching to mobile devices.
Cloud computing involves storing and accessing data along with software applications in
remote networks.
PowerPoint slides 1-3
A. E-Mail: Love It or Hate It – But It’s Not Going Away
Most business messages are sent by e-mail.
Businesspeople spend at least two hours a day writing and replying to e-mail.
PowerPoint slide 4
B. Why People Complain About E-Mail
Messages are frequently poorly written.
People are overwhelmed by too many unnecessary messages.
Because e-mail can be accessed 24/7, the line between work life and home life is
blurred.
E-mail messages can be the source of damaging evidence.
PowerPoint slides 5, 6
C. Knowing When E-Mail Is Appropriate
E-mail is appropriate for short, informal messages that request information and
respond to inquiries.
E-mail is effective for messages to multiple receivers and messages that must be
archived.
E-mail is not appropriate for critical work situations, such as human resource annual
reviews, discipline, and promotions.
PowerPoint slide 7
D. Drafting Professional E-Mails
Draft a compelling subject line.
Include a greeting.
Organize the body for readability and tone.
Close effectively.
Figure 7.1 Formatting an E-Mail Message That Makes a Request
E. Controlling Your Inbox
Check your e-mail at set times.
Avoid being distracted by e-mail messages.
Follow the two-minute rule and respond immediately to messages that require less
than two minutes of your time.
PowerPoint slide 8
F. Replying Efficiently With Down-Editing
An efficient trick to managing e-mail is down-editing, which involves inserting your
responses to parts of the incoming message in a different color or preceded by your
initials.
Figure 7.2 Best Practices for Better E-Mail
PowerPoint slides 9-16
G. Writing Interoffice Memos
Memos are necessary for important internal messages that (a) are too long for
e-mail, (b) require a permanent record, (c) demand formality, or (d) inform
employees who may not have access to e-mail.
Figure 7.3 Formatting a Memo That Responds to a Request
PowerPoint slides 17, 18
H. Checklist for Professional E-Mail and Memos
Subject Line
Summarize the central idea.
Include labels if appropriate.
Avoid empty or dangerous words.
Opening
State the purpose for writing.
Highlight questions.
Supply information directly.
Body
Explain details.
Enhance readability.
Apply document design.
Be cautious.
Closing
Request action.
Provide a goodwill statement or a closing thought.
Avoid cliché endings.
II. Workplace Messaging and Texting (p. 213)
IM enables two or more individuals to use the Internet or an intranet (an internal
corporate communication platform) to “chat” in real time by exchanging brief text-based
messages.
Text messaging, or texting, is another popular means for exchanging brief messages in
real time. Usually delivered by or to a smartphone, texting requires a short message
service (SMS) supplied by a cell phone service provider or a voice over Internet protocol
(VoIP) service.
PowerPoint slide 19
A. Technology Behind Instant Messaging and Texting
Use a public IM service, such as AOL’s Instant Messenger.
IM communication is exchanged between two computers that are linked by
servers or handheld devices such as the iPhone.
Texting requires a smartphone or PDA, and users are charged for the service.
Figure 7.4 Instant Message for Brief, Fast Communication
B. Impact of Instant Messaging and Texting
Benefits:
Enables real-time communication with colleagues anywhere in the world
Allows people to share information immediately and make decisions quickly
Includes group online chat capabilities
Offers a low-cost substitute for voice calls
Avoids phone tag and eliminates downtime associated with telephone
conversations
Provides presence functionality – coworkers can locate each other online
PowerPoint slides 20, 21
Risks:
Reduces worker productivity
Creates risk that private company records will be accessed by hackers
May be the source of evidence in lawsuits
Creates driving hazards when users text while driving
PowerPoint slides 22, 23
Figure 7.5 Centers for Disease Control Text Alerts
C. Best Practices for Instant Messaging and Texting
Adhere to company policies at all times.
Don’t use IM or text messages to disclose sensitive information.
Steer clear of harassment and discriminatory content against classes protected by
law.
Be vigilant about the appropriateness of photos, videos, and art that you link to or
forward.
Don’t say anything that would damage your reputation or that of your
organization.
Don’t text or IM while driving a car.
Separate business contacts from family and friends.
Avoid unnecessary chitchat, and know when to say goodbye.
Keep your presence status up-to-date.
Beware of jargon, slang, and abbreviations.
Use good grammar and proper spelling.
Figure 7.6 Texting Etiquette
PowerPoint slides 24-27
III. Making Podcasts and Wikis Work for Business (p. 218)
A. Business Podcasts or Webcasts
The words broadcasting and iPod combined to create the word podcast.
Podcasts can extend from short clips of a few minutes to 30-minutes or longer
digital files.
News organizations and media outlets podcast radio and TV shows.
Podcasts encoded as MP3 files can be downloaded to a computer, smartphone, or
an MP3 player.
Figure 7.7 GreenTalk Radio Podcasts
PowerPoint slides 28-30
B. Collaborating With Wikis
A wiki is a Web-based tool that employs easy-to-use collaborative software to allow
multiple users collectively to create, access, and modify documents.
Businesses use wikis for the following purposes:
Share information between headquarters and satellite offices
Collect and disseminate information to large audiences
Facilitate feedback before and after meetings
Sharing information among team members
Document large and small projects
Provide templates for reports
Figure 7.8 Four Main Uses for Business Wikis
Figure 7.9 Creating a Wiki With Google Sites and Google Docs
PowerPoint slides 31-33
IV. Blogging for Business (p. 221)
A. How Companies Blog
To provide up-to-date company information to the press and the public
For crowdsourcing promotions to connect with customers and generate buzz
To deliver late-breaking news, address rumors, and combat misinformation
To attract a devoted community of customers who connect, contribute new ideas,
and offer valuable opinions
Figure 7.10 Starbucks Blog Specializes in Crowdsourcing
Figure 7.11 Creating a Professional Blog
PowerPoint slides 34-37
B. Blog Best Practices
Craft a catchy but concise title.
Ace the opening paragraph.
Provide details in the body.
Consider visuals.
Include calls to action.
Edit and proofread.
Respond to posts respectfully.
Learn from the best.
Figure 7.12 Writing a Captivating Blog
Figure 7.13 Student Blog Article Illustrates Best Practices
PowerPoint slides 38-41
V. Web 2.0: Social Networking Sites (p. 206)
Social networking sites enable businesses to connect with customers and employees,
share company news, and exchange ideas.
Social online communities for professional audiences (e.g., LinkedIn), discussed in
Chapter 15, help recruiters find talent and encounter potential employees before hiring
them.
Social networks and blogs are the top destinations and dominate Americans’ time spent
online (23 percent), twice as much as online games (10 percent), the No. 2 category.
A. How Businesses Use Social Networks
To improve internal communication
To invite customer input at the product-design stage (crowdsourcing)
To connect geographically dispersed employees
To provide a forum for collaboration
Figure 7.14 Big Companies Rule on Facebook: Coca-Cola is Number One
PowerPoint slides 42-48
B. Potential Risks of Social Networks for Businesses
Productivity losses
Loss of trade secrets
Risk of attracting the wrath of huge Internet audiences
Embarrassment over inappropriate and damaging employee posts
PowerPoint slide 49
C. Using Social Networking Sites and Keeping Your Job
Use caution in sharing sensitive information, especially risqué photographs.
Don’t share information online that you would not discuss openly in the office.
Avoid snubbing coworkers by not accepting friend requests or blocking users for
no apparent reason.
Figure 7.15 Guidelines for Safe Social Networking
PowerPoint slides 50, 52- 56
D. Navigating the Information Glut With RSS Feeds
RSS (really simple syndication) allows users to monitor many news sources from
one convenient location.
RSS is a data file format and the documents are called feeds or channels.
Feeds increase traffic to syndicated Websites because they can be indexed in
search engines.
The most popular news aggregator today is Google Reader.
PowerPoint slide 51
VI. Checklist: Using Electronic Media Professionally: Dos and Don’ts (p. 211)
Dos
Learn your company’s rules.
Avoid sending personal e-mails, IM messages, or texts from work.
Separate work and personal data.
Be careful when blogging, tweeting, or posting on social network sites.
Keep sensitive information private.
Stay away from pornography, sexually explicit jokes, or inappropriate screen
savers.
Don’ts
Don’t spread rumors, gossip, and negative, defamatory comments.
Don’t download and share cartoons, video clips, photos, and art.
Don’t open attachments sent by e-mail.
Don’t download free software and utilities to company machines.
Don’t store your music library and photos on a company machine, and don’t
watch streaming videos.
Don’t share files and avoid file-sharing services.