Business Communication

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Online Business Communication Course Overview

Online Business Communication is a practical course that examines principles of communication in the workplace. It introduces you to common formats, such as the memo, letter, and report. It helps you review your writing skills to gain greater mastery of grammar, mechanics, and style.

More importantly, it introduces you to the strategies successful business professionals employ for a variety of situations. You are exposed to techniques for writing informational, persuasive, sales, employment, good news, and bad news communications. You gain information on internal and external communication situations, with practice in audience analysis.

You also gain information on the technological tools available to business communicators today. You are introduced to the exciting communication possibilities offered by personal computers, cell phones, videoconferencing, desktop publishing, and other cutting edge technology.

In essence, it provides you with an introduction to the communication skills needed to
enter and advance successfully in your business career.

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Online Communications Course Text

Lesikar, Raymond V., Marie E. Flatley, and Kathryn Rentz. Business Communication:
Making Connections in a Digital World, 12th, McGraw-Hill/Irwin, 2010, ISBN: 9780073377797 [buy the text]

Do I have to buy the textbook?
As in many college courses, purchasing the book is ultimately up to you. The StraighterLine courses use reading assignments and practice work from the textbook as supplements, but you will not be required to turn in anything from the book. StraighterLine recommends that you purchase the appropriate text so you are equipped with as many resources as possible (please note that e-books are generally less expensive but may have slight differences in page numbers and resources compared to a hard copy text).

Online Business Communication Course Objectives

After completing this course, students will be able to:

  • Demonstrate with an example the importance of communication to business.
  • Using audience analysis adapt a message to the audience.
  • Write business messages and documents with clarity and precision.
  • Use the you-viewpoint and positive language in writing to build goodwill.
  • Organize and write clear business e-mails and letters.
  • Write positive messages that are well-structured and direct.
  • Compose tactful and courteous negative messages.
  • Use persuasive strategies to compose a variety of persuasive messages.
  • Show how to research and organize information in a report.
  • Organize and write a short report or a proposal.
  • Prepare a well-structured, long, formal report.
  • Create different kinds of textual and visual graphics and apply the guidelines of page designing to a report.
  • Prepare and organize an effective formal presentation.
  • Describe what one can do to effectively communicate across cultures.

Online Business Course Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites to take Business Communication.

Important Online Course Terms

In this course, different terms are used to designate tasks:

  • Practice Exercise: A non-graded assignment to assist you in practicing the skills discussed in a topic.
  • Exam: A graded online test.
  • Graded Writing Assignment: A graded writing assignment is a piece of writing that you will submit online which is graded by a qualified grader.

Online Course Evaluation Criteria

StraighterLine does not apply letter grades. Students earn a score as a percentage of 100%. A passing percentage is 70% or higher.

If you have chosen a Partner College to award credit for this course, your final grade will be based upon that college's grading scale. Only passing scores will be considered by Partner Colleges for an award of credit.

There are a total of 1000 points in the course:

Topic Assessment Points Available
1 Graded Exam
 25
2 Graded Exam 25
3 Graded Exam 25
4 Graded Exam 25
5 Graded Exam 25
6
 Graded Exam 25
6 Graded Writing Assignment 1:
Routine Inquiry		 100
7 Graded Exam
25
  Midterm Exam (Topics 1-7) 150
8 Graded Exam 25
9 Graded Exam 25
10 Graded Writing Assignment 2:
Résumé/Cover Letter		 100
11 Graded Exam 25
12 Graded Exam 25
12 Graded Writing Assignment 3:
Short Report		 100
13 Graded Exam 25
14 Graded Exam 25
15 Graded Exam 25

Final Graded Exam (Topics 8-14) 200
Total   1000

At the end of the course, each student will receive the number of points earned. The student's final letter grade is determined by the corresponding institution's grading scale.

Business Communication Course Topics and Objectives

Topic Lesson Topic Subtopics Objectives
1 Role of Communication in the Workplace
  • Knowing Your Audience
  • Elements of Effective Business Communication
  • Technology in Business Communication
  • Non-Verbal Communication Elements
  • Formulating Effective Strategies
  • Describe and analyze the process of communication.
  • Compare and contrast verbal and non-verbal communication, and oral and written communication.
  • Distinguish between formal and informal communication and between internal, external, and personal communication.
  • Demonstrate the importance of communication to business through example.
  • Formulate a strategy to write a successful business communication.
  • Be aware of the technology available today for business communication.
2 Tailoring the Message to the Audience
  • Identifying and Analyzing Your Target Audience 
  • Communicating Your Message
  • Reader Benefits
  • Summarize the different ways to analyze the target audience.
  • Demonstrate how audience analysis can be used to adapt a message to the audience.
  • Identify and develop reader benefits.
3 Basics of Business Writing
  • Choosing the Right Words and Voice
  • Communicating with Clarity and Precision
  • Avoiding Bias in Communication
  • Grammar, Punctuation, and Style
  • Construct clear sentences and paragraphs.
  • Use accepted standards of English grammar and punctuation in written business communications.
  • Use non-discriminatory words in writing.
  • Write effectively by selecting simpler words and using the active voice.
4 Writing to Build Goodwill
  • Using Positive Language
  • Writing from the You-Viewpoint
  • Conversational Style
  • Courtesy in Business Communication
  • Use the you-viewpoint in writing to build goodwill.
  • Show how positive language can be used to achieve goodwill.
  • Demonstrate with examples the various techniques of achieving the effect of courtesy in writing.
  • Show how to use the conversational style to build goodwill.
5 Fundamentals of Writing Business Messages
  • The Process of Writing Business Messages
  • Impact of Technology on Writing
  • Traditional Letters and Memorandums
  • Describe the process of writing business messages.
  • Write a business e-mail and a text message.
  • Illustrate the different forms of memorandums.
6 Positive and Direct Business Messages
  • Organizing Positive and Direct Business Messages
  • Writing Positive Messages
  • Writing Basic Informational Messages
  • Ordering Messages
  • Using Directness for Communicating Bad News
  • Show how to organize positive and direct business messages.
  • Write positive messages that are well-structured and direct.
  • Write claims that objectively present facts.
  • Show how to organize positive and direct business messages.
7 Negative and Indirect Business Messages
  • Organizing Negative and Indirect Business Messages
  • Using Tone and Strategies in Negative Messages
  • Writing Different Negative Messages
  • Write a variety of indirect negative messages.
  • Organize negative and indirect business messages.
  • Use tact and courtesy in negative messages.
8 Fundamentals of Report Writing
  • Determining Report Problems and Solutions
  • Researching Strategies and Interpretation of Data for Reports 
  • Organizing the Information in a Report
  • Writing a Report
  • Determine and state a problem for a report and enumerate the factors involved in the problem.
  • Describe different strategies for research and the attitudes and practices conducive for good interpreting.
  • Show how to organize information in a report.
  • Write a clear and objective report.
9 Persuasive and Sales Messages
  • Organizing Persuasive Strategies
  • Organizing Persuasive Business Messages
  • Writing Different Persuasive and Sales Messages
  • Choose a persuasive strategy for a message.
  • Compose a variety of persuasive and sales messages.
  • Organize and structure a persuasive message.
  • Use indirect strategy for persuasion.
10 Résumé/Cover Letter
  • Writing appropriate Résumés
  • Writing appropriate Cover Letters
  • How to format and organize a Résumés
  • Drafting job-specific cover letters
11 Writing Short Reports
  • Overview of the Structure
  • Features of Short Reports
  • Different Kinds of Short Reports
  • Proposal Writing
  • Outline the structure of a report.
  • Explain the features of short reports.
  • Select and write a short report for a particular purpose.
  • Write a clear and well-organized proposal.
12 Writing Long, Formal Reports
  • Prefatory Part
  • Main Body
  • How to End a Long Report
  • Construct the prefatory parts of a long, formal report.
  • Construct the main body of a long, formal report.
  • Determine the best way to end a report.
13 Oral Business Communication
  • Informal Oral Communication: Meetings and Using the Telephone
  • Speeches and Formal Presentations
  • Oral Reports
  • Describe techniques for conducting and participating in meetings and for using the telephone.
  • Prepare and organize an effective formal presentation.
  • Compare and contrast between oral and written reports.
14 Designing the Page and Using Graphics
  • Designing Documents, Slides, and Screens
  • Planning and Designing Graphics
  • Constructing Textual and Visual Graphics
  • Avoiding Common Errors in Presenting Graphics
  • Explain how design is a part of the writing process and paraphrase the guidelines for page design.
  • Describe the guidelines to be followed for designing brochures, presentation slides, and web pages.
  • Determine the information that is most effectively presented as a graphic and where in a report the graphics should be placed.
  • Create different kinds of textual and visual graphics.
  • Prepare a checklist to avoid common errors in presenting graphics.
15 Cross-Cultural Communication
  • Culture and Cultural Differences
  • Non-Verbal Communication Across Cultures
  • Verbal Communication Across Cultures
  • Use examples to show how cultural differences impact communication.
  • Use examples to show effective verbal communication across cultures.
  • Describe cultural differences in non-verbal communication.
16 Review
  • Course Review
  • Complete a review of key content covered in this course.

Business Communication Tutoring Included

Online Business Communication includes 10 hours of free tutoring help— live, one-on-one, on-demand instructional support from SMARTHINKING.

TRANSFERABLE COLLEGE CREDITS: 3

This program provides you with 6-months of course access.

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