What did you come up with? Most of us would conclude that Les’s
objective is clear—sort of. We know what he doesn’t want: glasses left
scattered on the counter. What could be clearer is what he does want. For
example, maybe Les wants the frames lined up neatly on a black velvet
display pillow.
2. What do you know about his audience?
It seems clear that he is writing to Producers: matter-of-fact and
bottom-line oriented. Is this smart? Of course, you can’t know the personalities
of all members of his sales team, but what would you speculate?
What personality traits would you expect successful retail sales
people to possess?
Do you think he’s right to focus on Producers? Many people think
he is but would aim to include some words that would appeal to other
personality types, too.
3. Is the E-mail written at the proper level of formality? Complete the
Formality Index.
Les knows the sales team well, although he doesn’t know them all personally
(perhaps a score of four is appropriate); he says that he considers
them as equals in rank (a three); and he is asking them to take
on extra work—definitely not good news, but not terrible news either
(a three, perhaps). The score totals ten, slightly more informal than
a standard business communication. Does the tone of the E-mail match
this standard, and thus seem appropriate, or do you think it’s a bit
formal?
4. Which quadrant of the Matrix of Persuasion is he targeting?
Les seems to be assuming his writing task is Easy—that people are on
his side and can do what he’s asking. Therefore, he is writing only the
facts. But when you think about it, Les is giving the sales staff more work.
They’re going to have to take the initiative to keep the counters tidy. In
other words, perhaps they’re not on his side, and his task is, in fact,
Persuasive, not Easy.