Simply Communicate

This book is intended to help businesses recognize that communication is an important aspect of creating a successful business. The book guides businesses and managers through the why's and how's of communication strategy and upon completion of the book they should have a solid and customized communications strategy for their company. There are activities at the end of each chapter that will allow the reader to accomplish this. This book is all encompassing as it describes why communication is important to a business and covers communication problems, knowing your audience, and even includes the receiving end of communication. Intended to be a do-it-yourself guide, this book will teach the reader what is necessary for effective communication and they will be able to lead others in communicating successfully. It will also provide a solid background so the reader can provide training to their staff and set expectations for them to follow. The book teaches the reader that they should make time for communication efforts and those efforts should be a priority at their company. Strategic communication can increase sales, improve customer loyalty and build relationships. The book is a do-it-yourself guide for businesses who want to identify their needs and create a strategy to be effective communicators. Have you ever wanted to increase your communication efforts, but didn't know where to start? Or perhaps your company is experiencing siloing or inconsistency in messaging. Maybe you are constantly sending and receiving emails that go on and on or having endless conversations. The world of communications can be confusing and time consuming. Questions such as "Am I providing too much information?", "Am I sending enough information?", and "Am I reaching my intended audience?" may arise on a daily or even hourly basis. This book will take you on a journey to discover why communication is important to your company and how to create the right messages based on your audience while using an array of communication tools. You will identify common communication problems, such as having too much information, and what you can do to overcome them. You will get to know your audience and how to connect with them so your messaging makes sense and reaches whom you need it to and at the right time. You will explore the other side of communication and focus on how to get your audience to really listen and take responsibility for their role in effective communication. You also see how effective communication is connected to customer service and what you can do to improve it. In the day and age of information overload, you can probably recall numerous times when there have been major communication failures in your personal and professional life. Communicating effectively seems like it would be easy - take information and let people know about it, but in reality there are many roadblocks when trying to communicate effectively. The purpose of this book is to help you take a deep look at your company's needs, identify what is missing, what you could do better and create a strategy to get there. The book focuses on internal and external communication, so you can decide which one you need to work on the most or maybe both areas need work. The great thing about this book is it helps customize a strategy that's right for you and your business, not the guy down the street. Instead of spending hundreds and thousands of dollars hiring a consultant or a dedicated employee to achieving a successful communications strategy, you can do it yourself by following the simple steps laid out in this book.
About the Author: Kristel Keys Running has always had a passion for communications. In high school she wrote for the school paper, which carried onto her college years when she wrote for the university paper. Kristel has continuously worked in the marketing and communications field and is an expert at strategic planning, messaging, and writing. Her industry experience ranges from manufacturing to retail to food and beverages and everything in between. Kristel founded and is CEO of Obsidian Link Communications Consulting. She helps businesses identify their communication needs, develops a strategy on how to meet those needs and helps implement the plan, as needed. She also conducts workshops and trainings on best practices in communicating. Kristel has a bachelor's degrees in Communication Technologies Management and a master's degree in Business Communications. She lives in rural Wisconsin with her husband, Adam, and two small children.