Business Writing for Successful Companies

International expansion is becoming an increasingly attractive, if not the only, means of ensuring sustained growth in business turnover.

• Because the Portuguese economy has lagged behind the European average for over 10 years.
• Because the so eagerly awaited recovery forecasts negative real growth rates, with an estimated growth rate of 0,5% for Portugal for 2010 against an estimated growth rate of 1,1% for the EU.
• Because, when the situation improves, real growth rates will remain anaemic or very moderate until at least 2012.
• And because the global trend towards market integration is moving forwards inexorably, markets in which the circulation of capital and goods is increasingly fluid.

Not only this, but thanks to the internet, information on what goods and services can be obtained from whom, how, where and at what price is already available 24 hours a day in nearly every corner of the globe.

The struggle for growth (or survival) engenders fierce competition. For this reason, accessibility, logistics and differentiation are, and will continue to be, the keys to ensuring the success of a competitively priced, high-quality product/service in the international markets (with mediocre products out of the running from the outset).

Is that enough? Not always. Many Portuguese companies offer the right product, at the right price, in the right place… but one thing is also for certain: they often find it difficult to sell successfully.

This is because many Portuguese companies fail in another fundamental area to achieving success in a market, whether domestic or international: communication.

Which does not mean that Portuguese companies do not know how to market themselves. What they lack is the ability to communicate in international terms, in particular when the target of that communication is a foreign market or their channel of communication is an internet website.

• Communication should be thought through in “internationalese” (which is not merely Portuguese translated competently into the target market’s language).

And herein lies the raison d’être for this small business communication guide for companies which need to communicate in “internationalese”, for example with:

• Annual Reports that need translating for potential investors or international banks;
• requests for financing from EU funds;
• proposals to provide services for potential customers or bids to be submitted for international tenders;
• brochures and advertisements, in addition to website content.

The recipient of a communication, whether it is a letter, report or business proposal, does not like wasting time. For this reason, the primary objective of any international communication is the effective transmission of information between two minds with different sets of experiences, culture and knowledge.

When drafting a text destined for other countries, especially if it contains information on products, services or companies, one should specifically avoid both the traditional “padding” and the convoluted style that are typical of many Portuguese texts. On the contrary, the content may be more or less attractive, but it should always be relevant, clear and objective, and written in a sober style.

And always in the style of the recipient, not yours. Potential customers or investors who are used to international communication do not like to receive useless ´padding´!

Lastly, it is essential for the text to be translated by a native speaker from the target country, or for the text to be revised by a native in the target language, to correct any Portuguese style interference and avoid embarrassing mistakes.

Check that the text fulfils the following criteria:

It uses words that in Portuguese can have only one or a limited number of meanings. Always choose the word that best corresponds to the meaning the writer wishes to convey. This ensures a faithful translation.

It uses short sentences where possible to make understanding easy and avoid the need for re-reading.

It avoids endless sentences with innumerable ‘whiches’, ‘notwithstandings’ and the like.

Full stops separate complete and succinct sentences, making the text clear, concise and objective.

Try to use only internationally accepted acronyms.

• When a little-known acronym is used for the first time, it should be written out in full between parentheses. In particular, avoid acronyms (or write them out in full) such as “ETARS” without explaining that this means Water and Solid Waste Treatment Plants, as many Portuguese readers may not know what this refers to, not to mention foreigner readers.
• Avoid creating new acronyms, unless an expression is repeated so many times in a text that it is more comfortable for the reader to use an acronym.
• Give preference to concrete over abstract words (whose meaning is more vague);
• The positioning of an adverb or adjective in a sentence can alter its meaning.
• Avoid words with negative connotations.
• Use figures, pictures and other means of visual communication liberally in the text.
• Give preference to lists which stand out visually, by using bullet points or other symbols.
• Place fine details (which the reader only reads if they really need to) in the footnotes.
• Include notes and comments to aid the translator.

Check if the text suffers from any common problems:

• Poorly structured text.
• Ambiguity (you should only be able to interpret a sentence in one way, and its meaning should be self-dependent).
• Wrong choice of words (we have seen examples where the word “realise” is used to mean “implement”).
• Pretentious style (instead of communicating, the writer shows off).

Check if the author has taken into account that they are not writing for a Portuguese audience, and that an understanding of our cultural values is not needed for a reader to understand the text. Unfortunately, the range of material that companies may wish to use internationally is too wide to be covered by a guide such as this one. However, we have included here some recommendations that cover the most common types of material and content, such as annual reports, bids and presentations, printed materials or content for today's most common and versatile means of communication, the internet. In terms of the internet, 99 out of every 100 users probably ignore :

• The company’s long history;
• Its Mission, Philosophy, Values, etc, however interesting these may be;
• Its strict, comprehensive quality policy and/or “Integrated Environmental, Quality and Safety Management System” and other such declarations, in the form in which they are meticulously set forth in the company’s internal manuals, as valid and serious as these may be;
• The super-detailed organizational chart, which routinely does not include what is really important (who is who, and how to contact them).
• Company history – as much as your company may be proud of it, the only important elements of this history are those that contribute to establishing the company’s image and conveying its experience, reliability and expertise.

• Mission, Philosophy, etc. – should be summarised in an incisive and catchy paragraph. You are not dealing with employees, auditors or shareholders, but with customers.
• More importantly, provide your vision – what value your services or products actually add for the customer, what value your company adds to its employees and business partners.
• What is your vision for the company’s future? This is what most interests everyone - shareholders, employees and suppliers, as well as customers.
• How many will read your full policy and want to find out everything about “Integrated Quality, Environmental and Safety Systems”? People just want to know that they exist and that you implement them (rather give examples of what you do and will do better in the future, but not what should be done);
• The same applies to EN ISO 9000 and 9001 certifications – it is only really important whether you already have one or when you will get one. Do not “teach” what they recommend.

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