Biz-commPulse

Integrated communication (IC), if applied correctly in the business, will help you to build long term relationships with your customers. You can somewhat control how customers feel about your business through unified communication and messaging. I still consider Don Schultz as one of the pioneers of the integrated communications concept. Although theorists are still trying to work out a united definition of what integrated communication entails, the majority of literature on the topic indicates that by controlling all communication the brand of the business is enhanced through a consistent brand image, which could eventually result in better sales. Having loyal customers can only benefit the business through repeated sales. Sounds impossible?  Exactly how can integrated communication be achieved?   ·      The top management must first of all understand integrated communication. Integrated communication can only be achieved when it is implemented ...

Ethical communication occurs when it is honest, open, fair and mindful of all employees' rights.  It is not surprising that the management of a business could play a pivotal role to set the example to employees.  They should lead by example, reward ethical behaviour as well as create an awareness of ethics in general. The corporate values of the business are imperative in that they guide the ethical behaviour of employees.  It is important for employees to understand the difference between right and wrong behaviour in the workplace. Business' values are usually related but not limited to human rights, employee development, health and safety, discrimination and respect for others as well as working conditions. How can a manager instill ethical communication practices in the business? By, for example: creating an awareness of the values of the business through continuous communication having ethical roundtable discussions with employees blog postings ...

M any businesses now embark on a social media campaign (often also referred to as social influencing) to reach their target audiences in the thousands of different social media networks. In addition employees are also increasingly using social media for different business reasons.  In fact, a social media strategy has now become almost imperative in today’s business communication milieu. But what makes a good social media strategy? Is it enough to only decide which of the different social media networks to use or may be used by employees? As a social media strategy becomes more imperative, it is perhaps also time to consider the following four Cs when planning the strategy. The four Cs are circumstances, contribution, communication and consequences. These can be explained as follows: Circumstances A good social media strategy should always consider the  circumstances  of the target audience(s) of the business. What are their needs? Who are they? Why are ...

Branding a company is important for distinguishing it clearly from the competitors through planned communication strategies but it also expands to other functional areas in the company, for example, a   reliable customer service   when dealing with customers’ email, written, personal and telephonic enquiries and basically all instances where customers come into contact with the company. A reliable customer service is also applicable to effective brand administration in that customers can benefit by the whole administration process.  As indicated in previous posts, the role of happy employees in this regard is of utmost important.  The happier the employees, the better the customer service will be. But how should it work?  A   brand communication strategy , as part of an internal communication strategy ,   should include strategies how to offer value to the customer in all areas of service delivery, including administration. When a company has ineffi...

Employees generally welcome feedback from managers, not only  constructive feedback  about their own work performance, but also about any undertakings in the business which directly relate to their tasks.  Managers tend to forget that well informed employees are more productive and also focused on achieving business objectives. So what kind of  feedback should a manager give to employees? Continuous feedback to employees is important.  Picture Credit: Photopin . Feedback on work performance without discouraging the employee, thus constructive remarks to help the employee grow and prosper to the benefit of business goals.   The annual performance interview is the ideal place, but feedback could also be continuous throughout the year in less formal settings. Feedback about all activities and undertakings in the business.  Large businesses have their own public relations officers dealing with internal communication according t...

Photo credit : Photobin. Are your employees spending too much time reading emails?  Many employees are constantly being interrupted by reading emails throughout the day resulting in a loss of productivity for the business.  Once interrupted by an email, some experts suggest that  employees can on occasion waste up to 30 minutes to get back to work again.  Many of these emails are from colleagues and not really that important.  As a result some businesses now do not allow employees to send emails to their colleagues and only to clients of the organisation.  However, since emails have become essential for daily, instant communication, some businesses even introduced instant messaging for employees to communicate with each other without having to send emails while file sharing through applications such as DropBox or similar  applications are encouraged. What do managers need to do?  Depending on the nature of the business, it is ...

Source: Freedigitalphotos.net Team work has become increasingly important in a business, especially since numerous studies confirm that not only are employees more productive when working in a group, but many excellent and innovative ideas had their origin in a group setting to the long-term benefit of the business. Why is team work good  for a business? In a group setting employees have different skills, talents and working styles which can complement each other while striving towards achieving the same business goals.   Employees have to collaborate while different ideas are shared and tested with peers.  It often happens that employees are encouraged to do their best in a group setting because they trust and respect each other.  However, the opposite is also true if the team consists of different personalities who do not agree which could  result in conflict. To really succeed with a team approach in a business, the culture of the business nee...

Another key area for seamless integration of business communication is having access to  the right technology or infrastructure.  Many business owners therefore are looking for the right software with which to integrate all messages to or from employees.  I recently discovered Google Enterprise which is a very cost effective way of managing communication in the business.  Google has been widely criticised especially since they seem to almost have a monopoly when it comes to search engines, but I am fascinated by the many possibilities for any business.  So why am I impressed and what can Google Enterprise do to enhance integration? Source: Google Enterprise. Google has many applications which business owners can use to communicate with employees.  Employees are always connected via email while the communication can be better managed with added productivity applications.  Examples of such applications are: A calendar where all calendars are...

Effective business communication should be part of a strategic plan and revised on an annual basis. A manager needs to constantly communicate with employees to inform them about their roles in the business and what their duties are.  Good business communication provides clear direction to employees on how their duties can contribute towards the success of the business.  A manager should never neglect to communicate with employees and assume that they know what their roles in the business are. But what should this strategic communication plan entail? Each business is different and has its own policies and structures.  Similarly the size, culture, mission and vision as well as managerial style of a business vary. Depending on the above, the strategic communication plan should indicate all communication activities in the business and who should be responsible for these activities.  Clear communication channels should be identified to convey specific me...