5 Highly Effective Business Communication Skills

5 Skills That Take Business Communication to New Heights

Humans learn communication skills from early childhood. Learning how to communicate is essential if one wants to build strong relationships, accomplish goals, and avoid conflict. There is no place where it's more important to use good communication than in the workplace.

Effective business leaders utilize business communication and listening skills to optimize project management, or even engage in public speaking. So much of entrepreneurship is establishing relationships with others. If a leader cannot master the art of communication, it will be hard to build a successful business.

Business communication includes the sharing of information both internally and externally. This requires one to utilize nonverbal communication, verbal communication, writing skills, and good eye contact. Business communication is not just about how well one speaks. It encompasses so many facets that work together to make a successful leader and restaurant business.

So, what are the exact skills that constitute effective business communication? Read ahead to learn some best practices, according to the experts.

1. Business Communication Skills Collaboration

Teamwork is critical to a restaurant's success. Employers who make sure to prioritize collaboration will have better marketing campaigns, lower turnover, and greater customer service. Collaboration isn't about just one thing, however. It requires a complex set of good communication skills and techniques that correlate with one another.

Leaders must ask questions, use appropriate facial expressions, maintain good eye contact, and be patient. They also need to listen to other perspectives and be humble enough to know their shortcomings. Those who collaborate effectively are typically emotionally intelligent and aware of their surroundings.

Fast Facts on Collaboration and Communication:

• Less than 30% of millenials are engaged in the workplace
  
• 80% of employees feel stressed due to a lack of internal communication and collaboration at work
  
• Over 60% of Gen Xers and Millenials would collaborate more through visual means
  
• Video conferencing now accounts for over 8.1% of all company meetings
  

2. Business Communication Skills Public Speaking

Who wants to engage in public speaking? One of the biggest fears across all demographics and incomes is public speaking. People are typically afraid of speaking out when an audience is listening. For restaurant managers and small business leaders, public speaking is a required part of the job. When people are confident enough to speak in public, they gain the respect of stakeholders and potential customers.

Not only do employers need to be unafraid, but they must also speak with authority and sound credible to others. Unfortunately, anxiety often gets in the way of learning this critical skill. Studies show that when leaders ask questions throughout a public speech, they tend to feel less anxious. This can help break the initial ice and put the speaker at ease so he/she is more apt to speak publicly in the future.

3. Business Communication Skills Active Listening

Unfortunately, many people have never acquired active listening skills. Listening is difficult, particularly when there are numerous other projects to complete. Good listeners ensure others feel respected, appreciated, and valued.

Because team members tend to know when a manager isn't listening, it isn't a skill that can be faked. Active listeners should look for quirks in body language, listen to words, and try to absorb key information. It's better to respond with short and helpful comments that insinuate the point is understood.

Active listening is particularly important when there is a conflict. Those who refuse to listen during a confrontation come off as aggressive, immature, and ineffective. If approached with an attitude of respect, leaders will accomplish more and resolve conflicts more quickly.

Fast Facts on Active Listening:

• People spend about 55% of their day listening to coworkers, managers, and customers
  
• Most people only remember 17-25% of what they listen to
  
• Words only convey 7% of what people attempt to say. The rest is conveyed through body language, facial expressions, and eye contact (or lack thereof)
  
• According to experts, active listening shows that a leader cares, is engaged, is empathetic, is not judgemental, and knows how not to interrupt.
  

4. Business Communication Skills Nonverbal Communication

Without even saying a word, a person can tell an entire story. Body language, eye contact, voice inflection, and posture can all reflect what a person thinks. Good leaders not only know how to pick up on these cues, they know which cues to use to get others to listen.

It's critical to be aware of one's nonverbal cues and look for shortcomings. Something as simple as a weak handshake can make or break an important business deal. While unconscious biases are unfair, everyone uses them. Controlling others' conceptions by using good nonverbal communication will eliminate many problems that arise in the workplace.

5. Business Communication Skills Written Skills

Written communication is key in the business world. From social media posts to emails, business owners need to communicate through writing every day. Restaurant managers should treat emails exactly how they may treat a real letter. It's normal to talk casually to a subordinate, but formal emails display confidence and minimize problems.

Written correspondences are also permanent, so everything in writing should be appropriate. Clarity is critical when it comes to writing skills. Otherwise, stakeholders will need to ask more questions or even misunderstand instructions. As a rule of thumb, each written correspondence should be true, respectful, and necessary.

The Cost of Poorly Written Communications: A whopping 80% of business executives claim that poorly written materials wastes valuable time. Furthermore, these same executives spend 6% of total wages trying to understand these materials. This wastes money, hurts customer service, and leads to more missed opportunities.

Key Takeaways of Business Communication Skills

In conclusion, here are the top skills that maximize business communication -

• Owners need to know how to collaborate with stakeholders to complete important tasks. They should also be good at public speaking and learn tricks to minimize their anxiety levels.
• Owners should be active listeners and understand other peoples' perspectives. They should ask questions, assess body language, and respond appropriately.
• Owners should know how to read and use nonverbal communication. Body language, eye contact, posture, and attitude can impact the way someone reacts or perceives a person. Leaders should understand how their nonverbal cues can impact collaboration and task completion.
• Owners should be good at written communication. They should treat emails as they would a written letter, and be highly professional. All written business communications should be true, respectful, and necessary.