Page 212 - DENG102_COMMUNICATION_SKILLS_II

Unit 14: Writing and Planning Effective Business Letters

Transitional words help the reader see relationships between sentences. Such words may be as notes
simple as first and other indicators of sequence.
Ten years ago, Collins tried to overcome market resistance to its new line of baby clothes. First, it
mounted a multimillion-dollar ad campaign featuring the Mason quintuplets. Next, it sponsored
a Collins baby look-alike contest. Then it sponsored two network specials featuring Dr. Benjamin
Spock.

Finally, it brought in the Madison Avenue firm of Morgan & Modine to broaden its image.
The words first, next, then, and finally clearly signal step-by-step movement. Now note the
following logical transitions, aided by connecting words:

I recognize, however, that Collins cannot thrive on baby food alone. To begin with, since we
already control 73% of the market, further gains will be difficult. What’s more, the current baby
boom is slowing. Therefore, we must expand our product line.

Transitional words act as road signs, indicating where the message is headed and letting the
reader know what to expect.
A second way to achieve coherence is to use pronouns. Because pronouns stand for words already
named, using pronouns binds sentences and ideas together. The pronouns are underlined here:
If Collins branches out with additional food products, one possibility would be a fruit snack for
youngsters. Funny Fruits were tested in Columbus last summer, and they were a big hit. Roger
Johnson, national marketing manager, says he hopes to build new food categories into a $200
million business. He is also exploring the possibility of acquiring other established name brands.
These acquired brands would let Collins expand faster than if it had to develop a new product
of its own.
A third way to achieve coherence is to repeat key words. In a misguided attempt to appear
interesting, writers sometimes use different terms for the same idea. For example, in discussing
a proposed merger a writer may at different points use merger, combination, union, association,
and syndicate. Or a writer may use the words administrator, manager, supervisor, and executive
all to refer to the same person. Such “elegant variation” only confuses the reader; who has no way
of knowing whether the writer is referring to the same concept or to slightly different variations
of the concept. Avoid needless repetition, but use purposeful repetition to link ideas and thus
promote paragraph coherence. Here is a good example:
Collins has taken several steps recently to enhance profits and project a stronger leadership
position. One of these steps is streamlining operations. Collins’s line of children’s clothes was
unprofitable, so it discounted the line. Its four produce farms were likewise unprofitable, so it
hired an outside professional team to manage them. This team eventually recommended selling
the farms.
Ensure paragraph unity by developing only one topic per paragraph and by presenting the
information in logical order. Ensure paragraph coherence by using transitional words and
pronouns and by repeating key words.

14.1.9 use Parallel structure

The term parallelism means using similar grammatical structure for similar ideas-that is,
matching adjectives with adjectives, nouns with nouns, infinites with infinites, and so on. Much
widely quoted writing uses parallelism,

Example: Julius Caesar’s “I came, I conquered” and Abraham Lincoln’s “government of
the people, by the people, and for the people”.

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