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Learn best practices for content and formatting of notes, memos and messages.
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Quick reference
Topic
Learn best practices for content and formatting of notes, memos and messages.
When to use
When writing notes, memos and messages to communicate internally within a company.
Instructions
Purpose
Typical uses of notes and memos:
- Brief notice in message form
- Personal message to individual
- Interoffice memorandum
- Team communications
- Public posting of announcements
Interoffice Correspondence Overview
- Formatting may be pre-styled in forms by company. Templates are commonly used
- Memos deliver clear information, share news, issue directives. State the reason for a memo upfront
- Public notes or memos express thoughts and ideas. They also issue directives as appropriate, reinforce distributed memos and provide instructions
- Business messages or task documents deliver clear information or share news with the team
- Personal messages or notes express thoughts or ideas. They also issue directives as appropriate, or share news privately
- 00:04 Now we'll take a look at best practices for the content and formatting of notes memos and messages
- 00:13 as part of our learning objectives for interoffice correspondence.
- 00:21 In a perfect situation communication could always be handled cleanly and quickly in person
- 00:28 with no room for errors or misinterpretation, but in business we have to rely on notes and
- 00:35 messages and memos to communicate information every day.
- 00:41 This could be handled with
- 00:44 a brief notice in message form something as simple as
- 00:48 changing the meeting time.
- 00:50 It might be a personal message
- 00:53 to an individual, something like a thank you to a team member.
- 00:59 We often have two exchange interoffice memos is something important like a new
- 01:06 company policy or a company policy change is communicated this way.
- 01:12 Team communications are a typical use
- 01:16 of interoffice documents.
- 01:19 After a meeting there may be a review of important concepts exchanged or brainstorming lists.
- 01:27 And there's public postings of announcements as well, an invitation to a company party or picnic.
- 01:37 There are a vast number of options for presenting interoffice correspondence between staff members and individuals.
- 01:48 Formatting may be pre-styled in forms by the company
- 01:54 Typical templates will be selected for things used often like memos and phone messages
- 02:01 email notices, team recaps, are common examples.
- 02:09 Content however will be a key area to focus on when constructing
- 02:15 your interoffice correspondence documents.
- 02:19 For memos you want to make sure you're delivering clear information they will be used to share news
- 02:26 and if appropriate, issue directives. When doing so you want to make sure you deliver the reason for the memo up front. For example most memos
- 02:38 will contain a RE: or regarding line at the top, above the line. Here we see an example
- 02:45 regarding submitting expense reports for reimbursement.
- 02:49 People who care about submitting expense reports receiving this memo like the sales staff will want to make sure they're paying attention
- 02:58 to the information inside.
- 03:01 A public note or memo be also be posted this may go company-wide. Expressing of thoughts or
- 03:08 ideas can be shared, or directives again, as appropriate
- 03:14 if you have the proper staff clearing to do so.
- 03:19 Public posts are often a reinforcement of what has been distributed on each person's desk or via email.
- 03:27 Or public notices will provide instructions.
- 03:34 Business messages or task documents will be used to deliver very clear information, lists
- 03:42 or to share news.
- 03:45 And example would be a production list or a business message might be a letter to a job applicant to follow up.
- 03:55 A personal message in business or a note is a little bit different.
- 04:00 It would express thoughts or ideas again, or issue directives as appropriate,
- 04:06 or share news again,
- 04:07 however it would contain a relationship
- 04:13 between the recipients and the sender a business relationship. Perhaps
- 04:19 they are your assistant or your supervisor or your partner in business.
- 04:26 In all if you'll keep the contents of your communications top of mind knowing that ultimately you'll need to be clear
- 04:36 and you'll need to be concise while thorough,
- 04:40 and always providing reasons and instructions upfront, and directives where appropriate,
- 04:48 you'll be able to keep all of your interoffice correspondence
- 04:53 going smoothly every day. Because in the professional environment it's highly relied on.
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