Communication Strategies
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Communication Strategies
Communication entails the exchange of verbal and nonverbal messages between persons and for making meaning. Communication helps in passing of messages between the sender and the receiver. Communication occurs as a dynamic process between persons, which means that people are continuously drawing meaning from the verbal and nonverbal cues that others give (Kasper & Kellerman, 2014). Both verbal and nonverbal forms of communication play a critical role in passing messages between a sender and a receiver. The verbal messages help in conveying the content to the receiver, while nonverbal messages help in portraying a relationship aspect of the communication. Content is the literal meaning of the words spoken. The relationship aspect helps the recipient to understand the message in a better way. It helps the receiver of the message to tell more about the fine aspects of the message. For instance, the receiver can infer whether the sender of the message is being sarcastic or genuine. It is thus critical in clarifying the message. Communication strategies define how the messages are exchanged between the sender and the receiver. This paper is an evaluation of the key communication strategies.
Verbal Communication Strategies
Verbal communication is the use of spoken or written words to convey messages to the receiver. Oral communication denotes the use of spoken words while written communication denotes the use of the written word to convey messages to the recipient (Smith, 2004). Examples of written communication are use of text messaging, letters, chat, e-mail, and among others. Examples of oral communication are phone calls, face-to-face conversations, video communication, and among others. Several factors are critical in determining the effectiveness of verbal communication. These are the nature of the language used, clarity of the message, and message structure. Message structure concerns the order of presentation and the kind of arguments used. The language used should be easy for the receiver of the message to understand. It is important to consider the knowledge level of the receiver of the message when using verbal communication. The use of technical jargons could make it difficult for the receiver to understand the message (Smith, 2004). The message should be as clear as possible to avoid confusion. This should entail ensuring there is no ambiguity in the message, which might lead into confusion. Lastly, it is important to use an ethical or legal language when communicating.
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Nonverbal Communication Strategies
Nonverbal communication involves the use of actions or cues to convey meaning to the receiver (Smith, 2004). Nonverbal communication strategies include facial expressions, gestures, body language, physical distance, logos and symbols, tone of the voice, and among others. While the nonverbal communication cues may not be intended, they are important in helping the recipients understand the message being passed along. Nonverbal communication and verbal communication often go hand-in-hand. Facial expressions help in communicating emotions, which is key in passing messages (Smith, 2004). For instance, smiling or frowning can communicate a lot about the emotional status of the speaker as well as the true meaning of the message. A speaker might say that he/she is happy, yet the audience may deduce otherwise by looking at the facial expression. Gestures are important in passing messages. For instance, a speaker may wave or point in order to draw the attention of the recipients to a particular point. Body language is critical in communication. Certain postures such as crossing the arms may indicate defensiveness. Various paralinguistic aspects such as tone of the voice, inflection, pitch, and loudness have a significant effect on the message being passed along. For instance, using a loud tone may be indicative of anger in the speaker.
Visual Communication Strategies
Visual communication strategies are those that rely on seeing or the visual aspect of obtaining a message. In visual communication, the receiver of the message relies on his/her eyesight either wholly or partly to receive the message. Visual communication includes illustration, graphics, signs, images, video, and among others (Buether, Augsburg, McKenna, & Munroe, 2014). Businesses often rely on visual communication to pass messages to their clients. Visual communication often accompanies oral communication. This helps in emphasizing the oral messages being passed to the recipients. For instance, when using demonstrations, it is important to combine both oral and visual aspects to communicate the message in a better way. The use of visual communication helps in passing messages that cannot be effectively passed to recipients using verbal communication. For instance, the use of graphs can help communicate trends in business that would be hard to communicate using other communication strategies. Visual communication may be costly and time consuming comparing with the other communication strategies. For instance, it is both costly and time consuming to prepare graphs, charts, maps, and other forms of illustrations.
To conclude, three types of communication strategies were identified. These are verbal communication, nonverbal communication, and visual communication. Verbal communication entails the use of spoken and/or written words to pass messages to the recipients. Nonverbal communication involves the use of cues to pass messages. These include gestures, facial expression, body language, tone of the voice, and among others. Visual communication is the use of illustrations, images, videos, or graphics to mass messages. Visual communication involves seeing the messages and deriving meaning from the visuals. The three communication strategies are critical in business. Visual communication is often used to complement verbal messages.
References
Buether, A., Augsburg, A., McKenna, C., & Munroe, L. (2014). Colour: Design principles, planning strategies, visual communication. Munich.
Kasper, G., & Kellerman, E. (2014). Communication strategies: Psycholinguistic and sociolinguistic perspectives. London;New York;: Routledge. doi:10.4324/9781315844350
Smith, R. D. (2004). Strategic planning for public relations. Routledge.
