Persuasive

Memorandum To: Andy Andler, Benita Buchanan, Charles Chavez CC: Darcy Danko From: Heady the Head Honcho Date: June 1, 2006 Re: Need for New Memo Format I've noticed we don't seem to be able to communicate important changes, requirements and progress reports throughout the company as effectively as we should. I propose developing one consistent memo format, recognizable by all staff as the official means of communicating company directives. While I know this seems like a simple solution, I believe it will cut down on needless e-mail, improve universal communication and allow the staff to save necessary information for later referral. Please talk among yourselves to determine the proper points of memo writing and return the input to me by 12 noon. I will then send out a notice to the entire staff regarding the new memo format. Thank you for your prompt attention to this. Ads by Google ThuisStudie Rechten - Van losse cursus tot master. Kijk snel voor de mogelijkheden. www.ou.nl/rechten Free Brainstorming Tool - Work Smarter and Capture Creativity Organize Your Thinking and Ideas www.TheBrain.com

Directive
Memo To: All Staff From: Heady the Head Honcho Date: June 1, 2006 Re: New Memo Format Effective June 1 In order to make interoffice communications easier, please adhere to the following guidelines for writing effective memos: Clearly state the purpose of the memo in the subject line and in the first paragraph. Keep language professional, simple and polite. Use short sentences. Use bullets if a lot of information is conveyed. Proofread before sending. Address the memo to the person(s) who will take action on the subject, and CC those who need to know about the action. Attach additional information: don't place it in the body of the memo if possible.

Please put this format into practice immediately. We appreciate your assistance in developing clear communications. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call me. Thank you.

Technical
Memo To: Heady the Head Honcho, Andy Adler From: Darcy Darko Date: June 15, 2006 Re: Update on the T-12 Phase Three testing As we enter Phase Four of the T-12 testing, I wanted to provide a progress overview of the Phase Three testing. The body of the memo might include two-four paragraphs outlining the purpose of the memo. If this is a longer memo, each paragraph will have a subhead to help guide the reader through the document. Finally, the writer includes a summary paragraph, which features bullets highlighting the main points of each previous paragraph, and concludes the memo with a stated action required by the reader or writer. A quick note about the use of "memo" vs. "memorandum:" it doesn't really matter. It falls in line with the style selected by the writer.

More Memo Guidelines

All Purpose Example
To: (Recipient)From: (Sender) Date: (Month/Day/Year) Subject: (These words can be bold format.) This purpose memo provides a model. When writing a memo, state the purpose clearly at the beginning as seen in the first sentence. At the end of the memo let the recipient know what action is expected. Memos are concise and focus on a single purpose. If you have more topics to discuss write a separate memo for each. Use lists and headings to highlight important items.

What to Include in Your Memo

I am writing because The facts are I will, or I propose that you

When writing a memo margins should be 1 inch all around and text should be left justified using block-style paragraphs and single spacing unless the memo is very short.

Further Formatting Guidelines

Use an easy-to-read 12-point font Don't use a complementary close Don't sign a memo at the bottom

Add your initials beside your name at the top. This indicates you have read and approved the memo. If copies are sent to more than 10 people, place the list of names at the end of the memo. *When a memo is addressed to a distribution list, name the list. If your memo is long, start with a paragraph which functions as an executive summary.

In general, remember to spell-check your work. If your bulleted lists are long, break them into clusters to help readers find their place when they go back to check a detail. When the memo is completed, take a moment to read it aloud. This helps catch awkward wording or rhythms. Lastly, be sure to proofread. Spell check doesn't catch everything.

Conclusion
Writing effective memos helps keep the lines of communication open in your company or department. By incorporating some of the basic points from the memo examples above, you should notice a deeper connection with employees and co-workers.

MEMO FORMAT : Why Write a Memo?

As much as we would like to have face-to-face communication with each co-worker or employee, sometimes this just isn't possible. Yet it's still important to effectively communicate information, such as next steps for a project or a change in the health insurance policy. Memos help convey information more efficiently. Ads by Google Sample Block Diagram - The Leader In Analog Technologies, Semiconductors & Signal Processing. TI.com/Automotive Zakelijk Internet - Bellen + Internet nu maar 48,- pm Voordelig all in 1 pakket bij UPC. Zakelijk.UPC.nl Distance Learning Courses - UK University Qualifications Browse and Apply Online Today www.rdi.co.uk/Distance_Learning For example, maybe many people in a particular department need to know something at once. Or the sender has a time constraint s/he is trying to work around, and one memo is more effective than 10 different conversations on the same issue. Perhaps it's just easier to write one notice and post it in a common area where the majority of the workforce will see it. Communication in memo form retains a professional appearance and streamlines the topical information. In addition, often recipients won't recognize the importance of the topic presented in a general email. A well-executed memo format helps facilitate this.

Memo Formats Made Easy

Most versions of Microsoft Word have memo formats available for use. Simply click on "File" "New" - "Memo." Templates already in place fit a variety of communication and style needs, such as contemporary, elegant and professional, complete with headers and fill-in fields. There's also a wizard function, allowing customization of templates that can be saved with most of the basic information in place. Now it's time to construct the proper content.

How to Write a Memo

Certain characteristics are the framework for an effective memo: Determine if it's persuasive or informative. While many memos are a combination of the two ("In order to process your claim promptly, please submit it no later than January 15."), sometimes memos have to be one or the other for the reader to take the appropriate action. A persuasive memo engages the reader's interest before issuing a directive, where as an informative memo outlines the facts and then requests the reader's actions. Clearly state the purpose of communication in the subject line. Most memo formats have the basics of the header, like "to," "from" and "date" in place. But the memo writer has a responsibility to make the subject line as descriptive as possible so the reader understands the intent. A memo simply titled "Vacation Time" might appear to be good news - until

the document explains that vacation time won't be granted unless first requested in writing. Thus, a better memo title might be "New Vacation Time Request Policy".

Write memos with purpose and make that purpose known in the first paragraph. Needless memo writing should be a crime across all states. One way to make sure no one reads or heeds memos is to send them out for the slightest issue. Try to avoid doing this. Also, outline the purpose and the desired action in the memo's first paragraph. Readers will become conditioned to the importance of a memo and gain that knowledge as soon as they open it. K.I.S.S. - Keep It Simple, Silly. Most memo formats accommodate one page of information. This means that the topic details should be concise, with clear directives and contacts for follow-up. If it's a complex topic extending into multiple pages, still keep the language as direct as possible, add headings or bullets to guide the reader and conclude with a summary paragraph of key points. Reinforce the reader's necessary action. At the end of the memo, specifically direct the reader to the desired action.

Effective business communication improves workflow and relationships. Use the tools of memo formats and well-constructed information to your advantage.

Business Memo
The business memo or letter are two of the most common forms of written communication in the work world. A letter communicates with someone outside the organization. The memo is used to send information to colleagues, workers in other departments, and management personnel.

Reasons for Sending a Business Memo

A memo can be used to share information with other staff members, such as making announcements or announcing changes in policies. It can also be used to direct workers to take some sort of action. These actions could take the form of attending a meeting or changing the way in which work projects are handled. Ads by Google Business computer - Ervaar de kracht van HP Workstations. Laat u adviseren! www.workstationspecialist.nl

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Composing a Business Memo

The Heading
The form of a business memo includes a heading which lists the names of the staff members who will be receiving it. Do use the individual's full name (no nicknames). You should also include your full name, and the date the memo was prepared. The next part of the heading is the subject of the memo. Do try to make the subject as specific as possible. Instead of a general heading such as, "New Policy," choose "New Policy for Scheduling Vacations." This will make the memo easier to file and to retrieve if an employee needs to refer to it later.

The Body
After you compose the heading, the next step is to move on the body of the business memo. Consider exactly what piece of information you wish to convey. Is an existing policy changing? Are all members of a department asked to attend a meeting? Are you announcing a promotion or other change in personnel?Set out the purpose of the memo in the first sentence or two. Expand on this information in the subsequent paragraphs of the memo. If a policy is being changed, you may want to explain the reasoning behind this change. If the purpose of the memo is to let staff members know that they must attend a meeting, give them an idea of its purpose. In the case of a meeting, indicate (if possible) the length of time attendees should set aside for this purpose. In the case of a memo to announce the addition of a new employee to the company, indicate what position that person will be taking on. You may want to share some information about that individual's background and experience with fellow staff members. Sometimes, the purpose of a business memo is to report to one's supervisor and/or fellow team members about the progress of a certain project. If you have memos of this nature on the project in the past, start off giving a brief summary of the status of the project at the time the previous memo was written. The reader will have a frame of reference to work from when reading the new information.

The Closing Statement

To finish off the memo, indicate to the reader what action he or she is to take based on the information contained therein. Do they need to attend a meeting, prepare a report, or change their working hours? Set it out here.

To Sign or Not to Sign

Traditionally, memos are not signed. Some companies, however, have adopted a policy where memos are signed or initialed by the writer. Follow your company's guidelines in this matter. Keep the tone of your business memo friendly but professional. Keep the body short and to the point. If desired, bullets can be used to list items or procedures to be followed. Follow these suggestions and your business memo will be an effective way of communicating with your colleagues. If you need to write an interoffice memorandum or memo, use a standard memo format. Memos are highly scripted and formal documents. They follow a set pattern and format that makes it

easier for you to write them and for your staff and colleagues to glean pertinent information from them.

An Overview of the Standard Memo Format

Memos are short for interoffice memorandum. They were originally created as formal, written documents to communicate one basic piece of information to many people at one time. Before email made such communications swift and easy, managers typed individual notes to employees called memos. Sometimes such a note was duplicated for the entire staff. Ads by Google Writing Business Memo - Improve your Business Writing Just Fill-in the Blanks & Print! Biztree.com Overtuigend schrijven - Alle zakelijke communicatie Tweedaagse training - Engelstalig www.businesswritingeurope.com HR Business Partnering - Helping to build and improve your Partnering processes and teams. www.Develop.uk.com If email has taken the place of paper-based mail, why use memos? Having something typed and in writing makes more of an impact than email. Many human resources or operational issues, for example, benefit from a written paper trail documenting the issue and steps taken to communicate to the entire staff. A formal memo offers this option and ensures recipients cannot claim they accidentally deleted the message or it ended up in the spam filter. With some human resources related memos, for example, the human resources manager may personally hand the document to the employee and ask them to initial it in the corner, signifying that they received it. While this is an extreme example, it does point out the continued need for paper-based communications such as memos in a supposedly 'paperless' modern office.

The Standard Parts of a Memo

The standard memo format contains six parts. The To Line The "to" line is usually indicated as the word "To" followed by a colon and the name of the individuals or groups receiving the memo. Some examples are: To: All Staff To: All Marketing Department Members To: Jane Smith, Holly Marshall, Joe DiMaggio, Adrian Monk

Depending on how many people are in the group receiving the memo, you may choose to write their names out individually or use their group name. You may choose to list them as shown here with each name followed by a comma, or create columns for the names to neaten the appearance. If Jane, Holly, Joe and Adrian comprise the entire Marketing Department, you can either list their names individually or use the group name "Marketing Department." The From Line The "From" line indicates who is writing and distributing the memo. Your name and title should be included. The From line may indicate an individual or a group within the company. From: Archie Bunker, Vice President of Marketing From: Human Resources Ads by Google Employment Contracts - Expert drafted Employment Contracts and related HR forms and templates clickdocs.co.uk/employment-contract Native English Editing - Uw taalexpert voor het corrigeren en schrijven van Engelse teksten. www.needser.nl Krijt- of Memobord nodig? - Krijtborden, Glassboards of Memoborden koop je bij: www.krijtbordshop.nl From: Patrick Starr, Human Resources Manager The Re or Subject Line "Re"stands for "In Reference To" and may be used interchangeably with the word "Subject." This line comes immediately under the From line and indicates what the memo is about. Re: Company Holidays Subject: Company Holidays It is better to use a short subject or Re line than a long one. Try to think of a short phrase that sums up the gist of the memo. This makes it easy for employees to note at a glance whether the memo is of immediate concern, something to file with other important papers, or perhaps post it in their cubicles. Company Holidays may merit a spot on the cubicle wall while "New Phone System" may be useful for only a short time. The CC Line If copies of the memo should be distributed or saved by other members of the company, their names go on the Cc line. Cc or CC stands for Carbon Copy, a reference to the old-fashioned practice from the days of typewriters of inserting a piece of carbon paper among the blank sheets in the typewriter to create an instant copy. Even though photocopies have been used for decades and now computer printers make creating additional copies a breeze, the term lives on. The Date The date the memo was written should be included next.

Body of the Memo

After these important points of information, a standard memo leaves several lines blank, followed by the body of the memo. The body of the memo should contain short, succinct text formatted for quick and easy reading. This is not the time or place to chide anyone, scold anyone,

or roll out complicated policies and procedures. Rather, use it to communicate short bursts of important information.

An Example of a Standard Memo

Below is an example of a standard memo format. TO: Jane Smith, Holly Marshall, Joe DiMaggio, Adrian Monk FROM: Patrick Starr, Human Resources Director RE: Company Holidays DATE: July 12 The Acme Corporation will be closed on the following official holidays. Full time employees who have been with the company for six months or more will receive a full day's pay on a holiday. Full time employees who have worked less than six months, part time employees and interns are not eligible for paid holidays. Please make sure you change your voice mail message to announce that the office is closed and make any arrangements for emergency projects to be covered while you are enjoying your holiday. Official Acme Company Holidays January 1 New Year's Day February 12 President's Day May 30 Memorial Day July 4 Independence Day September 1 Labor Day November 24 Thanksgiving Day December 25 Christmas Day

Sample Memo
Summary: This handout will help you solve your memo-writing problems by discussing what a memo is, describing the parts of memos, and providing examples and explanations that will make your memos more effective. Contributors:Courtnay Perkins, Allen Brizee Last Edited: 2010-04-21 08:22:50 TO: Kelly Anderson, Marketing Executive FROM: Jonathon Fitzgerald, Market Research Assistant DATE: June 14, 2007 SUBJECT: Fall Clothes Line Promotion Through market research and analysis, it has been discovered that the proposed advertising media for the new fall lines need to be reprioritized and changed. Findings from focus groups and surveys have made it apparent that we need to update our advertising efforts to align them with the styles and trends of young adults today. No longer are young adults interested in sitcoms as they watch reality televisions shows. Also, it is has become increasingly important to use the internet as a tool to communicate with our target audience to show our dominance in the clothing industry.

Internet Advertising XYZ Company needs to focus advertising on internet sites that appeal to young people. According to surveys, 72% of our target market uses the internet for five hours or more per week. The following list shows in order of popularity the most frequented sites: Google Facebook Myspace EBay iTunes

Shifting our efforts from our other media sources such as radio and magazine to these popular internet sites will more effectively promote our product sales. Young adults are spending more and more time on the internet downloading music, communicating and researching for homework and less and less time reading paper magazines and listening to the radio. As the trend for cultural icons to go digital, so must our marketing plans. Television Advertising It used to be common to advertise for our products on shows like Friends and Seinfeld for our target audience, but even the face of television is changing. Young adults are tuning into reality television shows for their entertainment. Results from the focus group show that our target audience is most interested in shows like American Idol,The Apprentice, and America's Next Top Model. The only non-reality television show to be ranked in the top ten most commonly watched shows by males and females 18-25 is Desperate Housewives. At Blue Incorporated, we need to focus our advertising budget on reality television shows and reduce the amount of advertising spent on other programs. By refocusing our advertising efforts of our new line of clothing we will be able to maximize the exposure of our product to our target market and therefore increase our sales. Tapping into the trends of young adults will help us gain market share and sales through effective advertising. Attachments: Focus Group Results, January- May 2007; Survey Findings, January - April 2007 This is a sample memo; facts and statistics used are fictional.

Sample Template for a Memorandum

Contributed by Deane Gradous, Twin Cities consultant

copies to: Ltltl Mtmtm To: Ccccccc Ssssssss From: Ddddd Gggggg Date: Mmmm 99, 9999 Mtmtm Mtmtm Ntntn Mtmtm Ototo Mtmtm

Subject: Boldface the line and use words to allow filing the memo correctly

The purpose of this memo is to provide a model. Generally, you should clearly state your purpose at the beginning of the memo and request the action you want at the end. Confine your memo to a single purpose. If you have two purposes, write two memos. Take the time to analyze your reader; that is, consider how he or she (always a single reader) wishes to be approached with your message. Consider the tone or language that will appeal to the reader. Because your organization pays you to think and to communicate that thinking to others, be sure to include the following content:
I am writing because The facts are I will, or I propose that you Use 1-inch margins all around (1-inch left margin if the memo will be 3-hole punched and inserted in a binder). Do not justify the right margin. Use block-style paragraphs. Single-space your memo, and add 6 points above paragraphs--3 points above the items in a list. Double-space a very short memo. Use 12-point Times Roman as the default. Do not add a complementary close (e.g., sincerely). Do not sign memos at the bottom Add initials beside your name to indicate that you have read and approved the memo (optional). If the "copies to" list is longer than ten names, place it at the end of the memo. If your memo is addressed to a distribution list, name the list. In a footer, add the date and number the pages of the memo, for example "2/23/96, page 2 of 4." In the footer, you may choose to use smaller type. Begin long memos with a paragraph that functions as an executive summary. Your reader determines what long is. Use the spell-check function. Break long lists of bullets into several clusters. (Try clustering this list.)

The following formatting devices will add to the attractiveness of your memos:

Read your memo out loud to discover awkward rhythms and phrases. Proofread it carefully for mistakes and missing words. Sleep on it for five minutes or overnight. Finally, ask someone whose competence and wisdom you value to read it and to give you feedback.

Example Memo From: Management To: Northwest Area Sales Staff RE: New Monthly Reporting System

Wed like to quickly go over some of the changes in the new monthly sales reporting system that we discussed at Mondays special meeting. First of all, we'd once again like to stress that this new system will save you a lot of time when reporting future sales. We understand that you have concerns about the amount of time that will be initially required for inputting your client data. Despite this initial effort, we are confident that you will all soon enjoy the benefits of this new system. Here is a look at the procedure you will need to follow to complete your area's client list:
1. Log on to the company web site at http://www.picklesandmore.com

2. Enter your user ID and password. These will be issued next week. 3. Once you have logged on, click on "New Client". 4. Enter the appropriate client information. 5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until you have entered all of your clients. 6. Once this information has been entered, select "Place Order". 7. Choose the client from the drop down list "Clients". 8. Choose the products from the drop down list "Products". 9. Choose the shipping specifications from the drop down list "Shipping". 10. Click on the "Process Order" button. As you can see, once you have entered the appropriate client information, processing orders will require NO paperwork on your part. Thank you all for your help in putting this new system into place. Best regards, Management Important Points to Remember

Use the following structure to begin a memo: MEMO From: (person or group sending the memo) To: (person or group to whom the memo is addressed) RE: (the subject of the memo, this should be in bold) The term "memorandum" can be used instead of "memo". A memo is generally is not as formal as a written letter. However, it is certainly not as informal as a personal letter. The tone of a memo is generally friendly as it is a communication between colleagues. Keep the memo concise and to the point. If necessary, introduce the reason for the memo with a short paragraph. Use bullet points to explain the most important steps in a process. Use a short thank you to finish the memo. This need not be as formal as in a written letter.

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