Q&A Hero

Q: If a customer requesting an adjustment is at fault for the problem, the one thing you should not do is A) refuse the claim. B) refuse the claim, and politely point out the customer's mistake. C) honor the claim, and politely point out the customer's mistake. D) honor the claim grudgingly and show your resentment

Q: When responding to a claim when your company is at fault, it is best to A) avoid sympathizing with the customer, since it can lead to lawsuits. B) do all you can to discourage any need for follow-up. C) take (or assign) personal responsibility for setting matters straight. D) be vague about when the claim may be resolved.

Q: When responding to a customer complaint about one of your company's services, you should A) soften the situation with excuses such as "Nobody's perfect" or "Mistakes will happen." B) use a generous, grudging tone. C) use a standard form letter, with blanks left for filling in unique information in neat handwriting. D) avoid blaming anyone in your organization by name.

Q: When responding to a customer request for an adjustment, it is usually sensible to assume that A) if you handle the situation well, the customer will be even more loyal than before. B) the customer's account of the situation is exaggerated. C) the customer is hostile. D) the customer is trying to pull a fast one.

Q: When answering requests and a potential sale is involved, one important goal is to A) leave your audience with a good impression of you and your firm. B) provide negative information about any possible competitors. C) use hard sell techniques to pressure the reader into making the purchase. D) none of the above.

Q: The categories of routine replies and positive messages include all of the following except A) answering requests for information and action. B) granting claims and adjustments. C) refusing requests. D) sending goodwill messages.

Q: The closing section of a positive message A) highlights a benefit to the audience or expresses goodwill. B) states the main idea. C) is the longest part. D) provides resale information.

Q: The close of a routine reply or positive message should A) clearly state who will do what next. B) explain the reasons for any negative information you have included. C) offer an explanation for why this decision was made. D) create some ambiguity, so the audience will be more likely to contact you.

Q: In corresponding with customers, making statements such as, "Thank you for purchasing the most durable notebook computer you can buy" is A) to be avoided in routine positive messages. B) a good way to build customer relationships. C) an important part of all negative responses to claim letters. D) all of the above.

Q: If you have strongly negative information to deliver as part of a positive message, you should A) open with the negative information. B) use the indirect approach. C) put the negative information in a separate message. D) apologize for having to spoil the moment.

Q: Explain how to apply the three-step writing process to instant messages.

Q: Describe four challenges of effectively managing communication in a social media environment.

Q: Briefly explain the differences among user-generated content sites, community Q&A sites, and community participation websites.

Q: Explain how inappropriate use of email at work can lead to legal problems.

Q: What are seven guidelines to keep in mind when creating content for business-related social media?

Q: When creating podcasts for business, should you script them entirely and read them word-for-word? Briefly explain your answer.

Q: Give at least three examples of how podcasts could replace more traditional message formats in business.

Q: Briefly explain the difference between blogging and microblogging.

Q: List at least three advantages of using blogs in business.

Q: List at least three drawbacks of using instant messaging in business.

Q: Write an informative subject line for the following email. From July 6-9 the employee cafeteria will be closed in order to update the electrical system in the kitchen. Employees may bring their own food and eat in the cafeteria, but no food will be served on those dates.

Q: Briefly describe the characteristics of an effective email subject line.

Q: Briefly explain the concept of using compositional modes for electronic media.

Q: List at least three general situations in which you would send a printed version of a business message instead of using an electronic medium.

Q: List at least five media that are popular for sending brief business messages.

Q: A podcasting ________ offers regular recordings on a consistent theme, designed for a wide public audience.

Q: ________ your blog makes it easier for readers to find your material and easily find everything you've written about a certain topic.

Q: Reputation ________ such as Evolve24 have developed ways to automatically monitor blogs and other online sources to see what people are saying about their corporate clients.

Q: Viral ________ refers to spreading the word about your company and its products in much the same way that biological viruses are transmitted from person to person.

Q: ________ have become a popular medium for customer supportenabling employees to answer questions and offer tips and advice.

Q: The IM version of email spam is known as ________.

Q: Compared to email, ________ ________ is faster, simpler to operate, and offers fewer problems with unwanted messages or security and privacy problems.

Q: The ________ ________ feature of instant messaging enables users to see which people are at their desks and available to IM.

Q: Delicious, Digg, StumbleUpon, and Yelp are all examples of community ________ websites, designed to pool the inputs of multiple users in order to benefit the community as a whole.

Q: In an email message, "cc" refers to ________ ________.

Q: The ________ ________ of an email is important because it helps readers decide whether to read the message or delete it.

Q: Compositional ________ for electronic media include (among others) conversations, comments and critiques, orientations, summaries, and narratives.

Q: ________ systems such as Twitter are being used widely in business for everything from research to customer service to live backchannels during presentations and conferences.

Q: A(n) ________ is the online equivalent of recorded radio or video broadcasts.

Q: Social ________ sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn have led to fundamental changes in business communication.

Q: The completing step is where podcasting differs most dramatically from written communication.

Q: Using hashtags in microblogs makes it easy for people to track topics of interest, but it is complicated and difficult to use.

Q: Using iTunes to distribute podcasts is unrealistic for most organizations.

Q: One of the best ways to distribute podcasts is to use a blog that provides supporting information.

Q: It is best to read from a prepared script when creating podcasts for business.

Q: Unlike other business presentations, podcasts require little planning and are most effective when delivered impromptu.

Q: Without a steady stream of new information, a blog is unlikely to be successful.

Q: Blogs are an excellent venue for hard-sell sales tactics because they feature a built-in audience.

Q: Blogs are useful tools for crisis communication.

Q: One drawback of current blogging software is that it takes a great deal of time to post new material.

Q: "Spim" is the term used to describe the IM version of email spam.

Q: SMS is another term for text messaging.

Q: Instant messaging is a faster communication tool than email.

Q: If you are frustrated that virtually no one responds to your emails, you should set the message priority to "High" for all the messages you send.

Q: Mistakenly clicking "reply all" when sending an email can be career threatening in today's technology-driven economy.

Q: Spelling, punctuation, and grammar do not matter in email; getting your message out quickly should be your only concern.

Q: An effective email subject line is very short and describes only the general topic of the message.

Q: Leaving the subject line out on important email messages will spark your readers' curiosity and increase their desire to read your email.

Q: Email etiquette requires that you respect the chain of command.

Q: In business-related email messages, it is a good idea to make frequent use of background colors and colored type to add visual appeal to the text.

Q: In email, "cc" stands for "confidential copy."

Q: It is illegal for your company to open and read email you send and receive at work.

Q: Due to budget constraints, very few employers now monitor employee email.

Q: In general, user-generated content sites have yielded disappointing results for companies that have used them for business purposes.

Q: If your company's social media content draws criticism, it is best to respond promptly and honestly.

Q: In a court of law, email messages and other electronic documents can have the same weight as printed documents.

Q: Creating effective social media content in business means taking every opportunity to promote your company's products.

Q: Writing "teasers" on microblogging sites can be effective, as long as the payoffs to which they lead are valuable and legitimate.

Q: Because each electronic medium has unique requirements, basic communication skills do not usually transfer from one system to another.

Q: One advantage of blogging for business is that it enables you to update content quickly and easily.

Q: One of the few remaining functions for the printed, hard-copy document is in legal papers.

Q: Twitter is one example of a microblogging system.

Q: There are no important differences between instant messaging and text messaging.

Q: In business communication, email is often being replaced by other tools that provide better support for instant communication and real-time collaboration.

Q: Sites such as Flickr, Facebook, and YouTube are valuable for social communication, but not for business.

Q: One of the greatest drawbacks to using podcasts in business is A) they require costly, specialized equipment you'll need to purchase regardless of the production quality you want. B) people find online video and audio to be intimidating. C) the difficulty of scanning back and forth to find specific parts of the message. D) the high cost of distributing them.

Q: In terms of the three-step writing process, podcasts differ mostly from written messages in the ________ step. A) planning B) writing C) completing D) There are no significant differences.

Q: Compared to blogs, podcasts are A) much easier to edit. B) more difficult to edit. C) equally challenging when it comes to editing. D) used only by high-tech companies.

Q: Podcasts are A) great for entertainment, but not useful in business. B) helpful for training in business, but not much else. C) too technical to be practical for business use. D) none of the above.

Q: When it comes to blogging for business, A) don't worry about proofreadingyour audience doesn't expect it. B) you should apply the three-step writing process as you would for any other business message. C) don't spend a lot of time trying to define your audience: you're writing for everyone. D) it is a waste of time unless you are selling high-tech products or services.