How often you communicate with people during your day? How clear is your communication? This article, published on Mind Tools, shares the seven Cs of communication to ensure you’re communicating inthe most clear and effective way possible
You write emails, facilitate meetings, participate in conference calls, create reports, devise presentations, debate with your colleagues…the list goes on.
We can spend almost our entire day communicating.So, how can we provide a huge boost to our productivity? We can make sure that we communicate in the clearest, most effective way possible.
This is why the seven Cs of communication provide a checklist for making sure that your meeting, emails, conference calls, reports, and presentations are well constructed and clear – so your audience gets your message.
According to the seven Cs, communication needs to be: clear, concise, concrete, correct, coherent, complete and courteous.
In this article, we look at each of the 7 Cs of Communication, and we’ll illustrate each element with both good and bad examples.
1. Clear
When writing or speaking to someone, be clear about your goal or message. What is your purpose in communicating with this person? If you’re not sure, then your audience won’t be sure either.
To be clear, try to minimize the number of ideas in each sentence. Make sure that it’s easy for your reader to understand your meaning. People shouldn’t have to “read between the lines” and make assumptions on their own to understand what you’re trying to say.
Information and actions required, must be clear so thereader has the information they need to take action.
2. Concise
When you’re concise in your communication, you stick to the point and keep it brief. Your audience doesn’t want to read six sentences when you could communicate your message in three.
- Are there any adjectives or “filler words” that you can delete? You can often eliminate words like “for instance,” “you see,” “definitely,” “kind of,” “literally,” “basically,” or “I mean.”
- Are there any unnecessary sentences?
- Have you repeated the point several times, in different ways?
3. Concrete
When your message is concrete, then your audience has a clear picture of what you’re telling them. There are details (but not too many!) and vivid facts, and there’s laser-like focus. Your message is solid.
4. Correct
When your communication is correct, it fits your audience. And correct communication is also error-free communication.
- Do the technical terms you use fit your audience’s level of education or knowledge?
- Have you checked your writing for grammatical errors? Remember, spell checkers won’t catch everything.
- Are all names and titles spelled correctly?
5. Coherent
When your communication is coherent, it’s logical. All points are connected and relevant to the main topic, and the tone and flow of the text is consistent.
6. Complete
In a complete message, the audience has everything they need to be informed and, if applicable, take action.
- Does your message include a “call to action,” so that your audience clearly knows what you want them to do?
- Have you included all relevant information – contact names, dates, times, locations, and so on?
7. Courteous
Courteous communication is friendly, open, and honest. There are no hidden insults or passive-aggressive tones. You keep your reader’s viewpoint in mind, and you’re empathetic to their needs.
Note:
There are a few variations of the 7 Cs of Communication:
- Credible – Does your message improve or highlight your credibility? This is especially important when communicating with an audience that doesn’t know much about you.
- Creative – Does your message communicate creatively? Creative communication helps keep your audience engaged.
Key Points
All of us communicate every day. The better we communicate, the more credibility we’ll have with our clients, our boss, and our colleagues.
Use the 7 Cs of Communication as a checklist for all of your communication. By doing this, you’ll stay clear, concise, concrete, correct, coherent, complete, and courteous.
FAQs
The 7 Cs stand for: clear, concise, concrete, correct, coherent, complete, and courteous. Though there are a few variations.
Who created the 7 Cs of communication? ›
In 1952, University of Wisconsin professors Scott M. Cutlip and Allen H. Center published their seminal book, 'Effective Public Relations' in which they introduced the 'Seven C's of Communication'.
What are the 7 Cs of electronic communication? ›
The 7 Cs of communication is a useful approach to use when considering effective communication. Figure 10 provides an overview of the seven elements. This is an illustration showcasing the 7 Cs of communication: clear, concise, correct, concrete, coherent, complete and courteous.
Which of the 7 Cs of communication suggests respect? ›
Courteous
The fifth C is courteous, or consideration. Courtesy is more than just good manners. Courteous communication means acknowledging your audience by showing respect, making eye contact and speaking politely and conversationally.
What are the 4S of communication? ›
Master the art of communication with the 4S's: Shortness, Simplicity, Strength, and Sincerity. Learn how these principles enhance effective business communication.
What is an example of clarity in communication? ›
If you want something from someone within a time frame for a specific reason, mention that very clearly. For example: "Even if you don't have all the information yet, please send me a mail filling me in as much as you can before 6:00 pm. That will be my last chance to check in today."
What are the 7 C of leadership? ›
The 7 C's of Leadership
- Consciousness of Self. Awareness of the beliefs, values, attitudes and emotions that motivate one to take action. ...
- Congruence. ...
- Commitment. ...
- Collaboration. ...
- Common Purpose. ...
- Controversy with Civility. ...
- Citizenship.
Courtesy: Politeness and respect go a long way in building rapport. Use an appropriate tone, acknowledge the audience's perspective, and avoid being condescending or dismissive. Maintaining a courteous demeanor fosters a positive communication environment.
What are the basic principles of good communication? ›
The 8 basic principles of communication are clarity, timeliness, coherence, urgency, conciseness, correctness, courteousness, and completeness. Similar to Cialdini's principles of persuasion, the eight principles of communication are the driving force behind messaging that resonates and persuades.
What are the 7 C of communication PDFs? ›
Use the 7 Cs of Communication as a checklist for all of your communication. By doing this, you'll stay clear, concise, concrete, correct, coherent, complete, and courteous.
Communication barriers can be defined as obstacles that one may face when attempting to effectively communicate with another person. These barriers can be anything that can misrepresent and/or avert someone during the communication process. This process involves a sender, receiver, and message.
What is clear communication? ›
Clear communication is a complex, nuanced and teachable practice essential for successful officers and leaders of character. Effective use of oral, visual, written, and aural modes of communication signifies the professional competence and knowledge expected in a leader while engendering the trust of those being led.
Why are the 7 C's of communication so important? ›
The 7 C's of communication is a checklist that helps to improve your professional communication skills and increases the chance that your message/what you are trying to say will be understood in exactly the same way as it was intended.
Which is not a C of the 7 C's for effective communication? ›
Co-ordination in work is not one of the seven C's of effective communication. The seven C's of communication involves: clarity, completeness, conciseness, concreteness, courtesy, correctness and consider.
Can one remain not communicating? ›
No. We underestimate the extent to which we communicate with ourselves. This inner dialogue is crucial to decision making, which in turn is critical to survival. So even if we're by ourselves, we still need to communicate.
What is meant by coherence in communication? ›
The term coherence refers to the smooth flow of ideas in a text. There are two main strategies that will make your writing coherent: organizing your ideas in a logical order, and connecting them effectively by using transition words and phrases.
What is the difference between supportive and defensive communication? ›
Answer and Explanation:
Supportive communication encourages listening to and empathizing with one another, while defensive communication encourages selfishness and egocentrism. The gestures used in supportive communication usually are productive and more significant compared to those used in defensive communication.
