Written Communication - Meaning, Advantages and Disadvantages

Corporate Meetings are very crucial part of business activities. They are a significant means of formal communication. Meetings are a venue for generation of new and innovative ideas. These meetings are multipurpose in nature actually. They aim at discussing feedback and receiving feedback on the spot. The information of prior importance is given during meetings.…

Components of Communication Process

Communication is a process of exchanging verbal and non verbal messages. It is a continuous process. Pre-requisite of communication is a message. This message must be conveyed through some medium to the recipient. It is essential that this message must be understood by the recipient in same terms as intended by the sender. He must…

Communication Barriers – Reasons for Communication Breakdown

Communication is a process beginning with a sender who encodes the message and passes it through some channel to the receiver who decodes the message. Communication is fruitful if and only if the messages sent by the sender is interpreted with same meaning by the receiver. If any kind of disturbance blocks any step of…

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Written communication has great significance in today’s business world. It is an innovative activity of the mind.

Effective written communication is essential for preparing worthy promotional materials for business development. Speech came before writing. But writing is more unique and formal than speech.

Effective writing involves careful choice of words, their organization in correct order in sentences formation as well as cohesive composition of sentences. Also, writing is more valid and reliable than speech. But while speech is spontaneous, writing causes delay and takes time as feedback is not immediate.

Advantages of Written Communication

Written communication helps in laying down apparent principles, policies and rules for running of an organization.
It is a permanent means of communication. Thus, it is useful where record maintenance is required.
It assists in proper delegation of responsibilities. While in case of oral communication, it is impossible to fix and delegate responsibilities on the grounds of speech as it can be taken back by the speaker or he may refuse to acknowledge.
Written communication is more precise and explicit.
Effective written communication develops and enhances an organization’s image.
It provides ready records and references.
Legal defenses can depend upon written communication as it provides valid records.

Disadvantages of Written Communication

Written communication does not save upon the costs. It costs huge in terms of stationery and the manpower employed in writing/typing and delivering letters.
Also, if the receivers of the written message are separated by distance and if they need to clear their doubts, the response is not spontaneous.
Written communication is time-consuming as the feedback is not immediate. The encoding and sending of message takes time.
Effective written communication requires great skills and competencies in language and vocabulary use. Poor writing skills and quality have a negative impact on organization’s reputation.
Too much paper work and e-mails burden is involved.

Article Written by

Himanshu Juneja

Himanshu Juneja, the founder of Management Study Guide (MSG), is a commerce graduate from Delhi University and an MBA holder from the esteemed Institute of Management Technology (IMT). He has always been someone deeply rooted in academic excellence and driven by a relentless desire to create value. Recently, he was honored with the “Most Aspiring Entrepreneur and Management Coach of 2025 (Blindwink Awards 2025)” award, a testament to his hard work, vision, and the value MSG continues to deliver to the global community.