In our business writing courses, employees learn how to apply basic and advanced writing techniques and styles to enhance written communication in the workplace.
Click on each title to view details.
Delivered by Shannon Andrus, EdD
In this fast-paced and interactive review of the most common errors in grammar, punctuation, and usage, Shannon covers everything from the difference between affect and effect to where to put your commas to what exactly is passive voice (and how to avoid it). The course is centered on high-value components crucial to writing powerful, error-free content for business. This course is adjustable in length and focus to correspond to the particular needs of your team.
Delivery
In-person or live webinar for your organization’s group.
Suitable for:
Groups of 5 – 25 participants.
Length
Adjustable from one to three hours.
Delivered by Shannon Andrus, EdD
This is a five-week series of ongoing two-hour business writing courses in which subsequent sessions build upon previous skills learned. Everything from grammar, punctuation, usage, digital communication, and style is covered.
Shannon can work with your organization to customize a tailored set of courses and content based on your specific business writing needs. The length and time frame can also be adjusted according to your group’s needs.
Delivery
In-person or live webinar for your organization’s group.
Suitable for:
Groups of 5 – 25 participants.
Length
Each session is typically two hours but can be adjustable from one to three hours.
Delivered by Sheng Huang, MBA
These days, everything a company publishes is content marketing. However, blogging is very different from emails and press releases. Sitting in between a 140-character social media blast and a lengthy whitepaper, blogs are designed to be catchy, memorable and quick to read. They are opportunities for companies and individuals to share their unique voice while showcasing their domain expertise.
This course will show you where blogs fit into your external communication stack, how to use Mind Maps to understand the purpose and audience of your blog post, structure your story, organize your thoughts, gather feedback from stakeholders, and finally put everything into writing. We will also cover style, title and intro hooks, and multimedia enhancements to make your articles stand out.
Course Objectives
Upon completion of this program, participants will be able to:
- When to use blog posts and where to publish them
- Use Mind Maps to identify your audience and voice
- Map out the core story of your piece and get feedback from your team
- Turn Mind Maps into paragraphs, and paragraphs into a coherent whole article
- Come up with attention grabbing titles to ensure clicks and compelling intros to hook your audience from the beginning
- Know when to break up and highlight key sections for maximum impact during “quick reads”
- Use multimedia like images, graphs, gifs, and videos to make your article memorable
Delivery
In-person or live webinar for your organization’s group. If in-person, Sheng requires travel from the San Francisco Bay Area.
Suitable for:
Groups of 5 – 25 participants.
Length
Half day.
Delivered by Shannon Andrus, EdD
This course is typically paired with The Business Writing Blitz and focuses on using email and other forms of electronic business communication both effectively and efficiently. For most employees, email represents the bulk of the business writing they create each day. Shannon reviews the rules, expectations, and current “netiquette” so employees can be sure that they are sending clear, appropriate, and compelling emails.
Delivery
In-person or live webinar for your organization’s group.
Suitable for:
Groups of 5 – 25 participants.
Length
One hour.
Delivered by Shannon Andrus, EdD
This inclusive course is designed to help all members of an organization address issues of gender that can arise in the workplace. The session focuses primarily upon written communication, including the use of pronouns, stereotypical male and female communication styles and their implications, and ways to promote and support all employees regardless of gender. Shannon includes practical suggestions to promote positive gender consciousnesses within the workplace.
Delivery
In-person or live webinar for your organization’s group.
Suitable for:
Groups of 5 – 25 participants.
Length
Adjustable from 30 minutes to 2 hours.
Delivered by Shannon Andrus, EdD
Legal writing has its own specific rules for grammar, composition, and style, and this course is specially designed for those in the legal field who need to draft error-free legal documents that follow those rules.
Delivery
In-person or live webinar for your organization’s group.
Suitable for:
Groups of 5 – 25 participants.
Length
Adjustable from one to three hours.
Delivered by Shannon Andrus, EdD
This course includes a review of the elements of excellent writing and then extends into the art of storytelling. What makes a compelling story? What topics are most effective in the business world to promote your brand, attract new clients, communicate important information, obtain funding, or generate interest for a new project? Using examples and workshop time, participants unpack the components of compelling and persuasive stories for business. The session includes workshop time for participants to apply these skills.
Delivery
In-person or live webinar for your organization’s group.
Suitable for:
Groups of 5 – 25 participants.
Length
Adjustable from one to three hours.
Delivered by Shannon Andrus, EdD
This session illustrates and explains the elements of captivating writing including organization, clarity, and tone. Using examples of excellent writing, Shannon helps participants explore how to transform unclear or uninspiring writing into powerful prose. The session includes workshop time for participants to apply these skills.
Delivery
In-person or live webinar for your organization’s group.
Suitable for:
Groups of 5 – 25 participants.
Length
Adjustable from two to four hours.
