Mastering the right tone is critical when connecting and communicating with people in the construction business. Whether you're writing an email, making a phone call, or meeting in person, how you present yourself can make all the difference in building strong relationships with clients, colleagues, and partners.
Research suggests that as much as 93% of communication is non-verbal, so it's unsurprising that the tone and meaning of emails and messages are misinterpreted as much as half the time.
For small construction businesses, email is frequently the preferred way to communicate with new leads, customers, and employees – but if you haven't mastered your tone, the meaning of your message may be lost. In the worst-case scenario, you may even unintentionally offend your audience.
Follow these tips to improve your tone when writing emails or other business communications.
1. Adapt to your audience
Tone reflects the writer's attitude toward the reader, so you'll use a different tone depending on whether you're asking a bank officer for a loan or your client to respond to your change order question.
Your relationship and purpose will help you decide on your word choices, which might be serious and formal, or relaxed and fun. Using active voice will bring your reader right to the point. Taking care always to use courteous language will keep them on the side.
2. Be clear and concise
Avoid using jargon or technical terms such as' load-bearing walls' or' footings' that may not be familiar to everyone you're communicating with. Instead, try to use plain language that is easy to understand and gets your point across effectively.
If it's in written form and you doubt how an email may be interpreted, hit save and return to it a day later – or ask a colleague to read it and provide some feedback.
These additional tips can help you write emails that get read and avoid offense or confusion:
3. Be professional and respectful
Use proper grammar and spelling, address people appropriately in all your interactions, and avoid confrontational or aggressive language.
What to do when delivering a negative message:
The tone becomes a more significant challenge if your message contains terrible news. After all, there is no way around creating unpleasant feelings in some circumstances.
You can, however, avoid insult to injury by following these tips:
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